Wednesday 24 / April / 2024
Muscat: Parents should think about the safety of their children and strap them in special car seats while transporting them, traffic safety campaigners have told the Times of Oman (TOO).
Shaima Al Lawati, vice chairperson, Oman Road Safety Association (ORSA), told TOO that a lot of parents underestimate the importance of child seats and more should be done to raise awareness among parents about the same.
She warned that mothers who hold their children while sitting in the front seat are risking the life of their child. “It’s very dangerous. God forbid, if a crash happens, the mother’s arms will open and the child will be thrown out of the car. In that case, the child could die,” she said.
Al Lawati said even when people are given free car seats during awareness campaigns, they hesitate using them.
“When we give car seats, people tend to give them to other families, because they underestimate their usefulness. They need to appreciate these seats and understand why they are using them and with a close follow-up, it’ll become a habit,” she said.
She explained that children below 11 years have to be seated in the back and those below six have to be strapped in a special seat designed for their age, adding that parents should not blame their children for not sitting in the back seat.
“It is our obligation as a parent to make them listen to us and put them in the back,” she said.
Daryle Hardie, chief executive officer (CEO) of Safety First, told TOO that although campaigns are helpful, fines are the only way people can be forced to use child seats.
“Safety First has been carrying out a lot of campaigns, giving away child seats to families. Yet, they have minimal success, without a law in place to punish people who do not abide,” he said.
Hardie pointed to other countries where the use of child seats is compulsory by law. “As long as this is not the case in Oman, people cannot be punished for not using them. It only works if it hits people in their pockets,” he said.
He also said that more needs to be done to encourage people to strap in their children while driving. “I do commend the ROP (Royal Oman Police) for its traffic safety efforts, but I’d like to see them make this issue a focal point,” he said.
An official from the ROP told TOO that it has been running campaigns to raise awareness about the issue, but that the problem lies with the law. “From time to time, we run a campaign for the use of child seats. It was a strong campaign, but the problem is that the law does not specify this issue. The current Traffic Law does not make the use of child seats compulsory. If they are not being used, it is not considered a violation,” he said.
He said that the law only considers it a violation if safety requirements are not applied during driving. “It does not explicitly define child seats. However, child seats have become a necessity,” he said.
According to the official, the campaigns by ROP have led to “many” people starting to use child seats. “But if they know that the police will not punish them for not using child seats, they will not abide by it,” he said.
He also said data on the number of injuries or deaths caused by children not being strapped in car seats is unavailable.
Dr. Mohammed Al Zadjali, head of the Legal Committee at the Majlis Al Shura, said the new Traffic Law, which will include fines for failing to use child car seats, has been forwarded from the Majlis Al Shura to the Majlis Al Dawla (State Council) and from there it will sent to His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said for approval.
“We are waiting for a Royal Decree. I expect that the law will be formulated shortly,” he said.
Safety First CEO, Hardie said that despite the absence of fines, parents must install child seats in their car.
“I would encourage people to buy good quality seats for their children. Then you’ll not have to worry about the safety of your children while driving. They will not be able to move around the car anymore and you can focus on driving. Oman cannot afford to have more deaths and injuries because of this problem,” he added.
