A video
showing a mother from Trinidad and Tobago whipping her 12-year-old
daughter with a belt for sharing sexually explicit photos of herself on
Facebook has gone viral, sparking a national conversation in the island
nation about corporal punishment.
Last
Sunday, a video was posted on Facebook showing Helen Bartlett, a mother
of four from Point Fortin, beating her sobbing daughter while hurling
profanities at her.
The
six-minute clip, which depicts Ms Bartlett raining blows on the
12-year-old girl, who whimpers in pain and cowers from the belt, has
been shared more than 43,000 online.
Public shaming: Helen Bartlett (right), a mother
of four from Trinidad and Tobago, shared a video online showing her
beating her 12-year-old daughter for inappropriate behavior
Unsettling: The six-minute clip shows the mother whipping the girl with a belt as she whimpers in pain
The
unsettling clip has left viewers divided, with some people justifying
the mother's actions, while others calling it child abuse.
On
Wednesday, Bartlett’s daughter and her older sister uploaded another
video in response to the controversy, expressing support for their
mother.
Looking
into the camera, the two girls said Bartlett was a good mother who
wanted to protect her child from teenage pregnancy, or worse.
When
Helen Bartlett was interviewed by a local radio station earlier this
week, the woman declared she was 'prepared to go to jail' to set her
wayward young daughter on the right path, Trinidad Express reported.
Asked
if she regretted her actions, Ms Bartlett, who has three girls and a
boy, said she stood by her mode of discipline, but she was sorry that
the video intended to shame her 12-year-old has gained such notoriety.
Ms Bartlett explained that since the girl's father, a police officer, left them, the child has been unmanageable.
The
single mother added that she has exhausted all avenues trying to keep
her daughter on the straight and narrow, including seeking counselling
for her.
And
according to Ms Bartlett, the 12-year-old's father has been of no help,
telling the girl that he wanted nothing to do with her.
No alternative: Ms Bartlett later explained that
her daughter has been acting acting since pre-school, and that she has
exhausted all avenues trying to set her on the right path
Defiant: The single mother said she is prepared to go to jail for meting out corporal punishment to her wayward daughter
What
sparked the brutal beating last Sunday in the Bartletts’ apartment was a
salacious text message exchange between the 12-year-old girl and a boy
her age, who was trying to convince her to have sex with him.
After
the mother read the messages, she accessed her underage daughter's
Facebook profile and discovered photos of the girl posing 'seductively'
in her underwear.
Helen
Bartlett explained that while her child is pretty and intelligent, she
has a low self-esteem and is susceptible to peer pressure.
Her
worst fear is that if the 12-year-old continues down this road, one day
she is either going to come home pregnant, or will end up dead on the
streets.
On mom's side: The 12-year-old came out in
defense of her mother, saying in a counter video that she knows Bartlett
loves he dearly
‘I
stand firmly by my decision. I will go to jail for it,’ the woman said.
‘I know people are saying the authorities should charge me for abuse.’
Asked
about her daughter's state of mind following the release of the
controversial video, Ms Bartlett said the girl was coping 'unexpectedly
well.'
In
her response video, the daughter said she knew her mother loves her
dearly, and she reassured the viewers that has no intention of killing
herself because she loves herself 'too much.'
The
girl has not been to school since the video went viral, and her mother
said she has been preparing her for potential bullying and mockery from
her classmates.
Defending
Helen Bartlett's old-school brand of discipline, her older daughter
explained in her counter video that with their father not around
anymore, there is no male figure in the family to set her out-of-control
sibling straight.
‘The
road my sister was heading down was teenaged pregnancy,’ she said. ‘She
saw this as a way she could stop it. My sister has learnt her lesson.’
Speaking
out for the first time since the incident, the 12-year-old at the
center of the firestorm said: ‘I am very sorry for bringing shame on you
and the family. I know you love me dearly. And I love you dearly, too.’
The girl then appealed to other children her age, urging them to watch the video of her beating and learn from it.
Extreme measures: The mother stated that she
decided to teach her daughter a lesson so that one day she wouldn't come
home pregnant or end up dead
‘You are a special piece of God’s puzzle,’ the girl said. ‘And don’t let what happen to me happen to you also.’
The
incident sparked a heated public debate in Trinidad and Tobago over the
issue of corporal punishment, and whether Helen Bartlett’s actions
displayed in the video crossed the line.
According to Jamaica Observer,
Trinidad and Tobago's Ministry of Gender, Youth and Child Development
has weighed in on the issue, calling on parents to use 'non-physical
forms of discipline.'
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