First Time, Last Time

"Does that mean I cannot play with her again; will she come back?"

This is a question posed by Noradila Majlha Azman, the best friend of murdered girl Nurin Jazlin Jazimin. After I saw this quote, strong emotions kicked in; feelings even I cannot distinguish. Is it grief? Perhaps it is anger? Maybe insecure?

Stories on the murder of eight-year-old Nurin has grabbed the front page of newspapers nationwide. It has even been on the prime-time news for days, if not weeks.

It all started on August 20, 2007 when Nurin was reported missing after going to pasar malam
alone to buy some keropok lekor. Soon after she was reported missing, an extensive search for little Nurin began. Efforts to find Nurin included distributing pamphlets to the public and putting up a large banner on tollgates in the vicinity where she went missing. Then, there was a RM18,000 reward put up for whoever came up with information regarding the whereabouts of Nurin.

On September 17, 2007, the remains of a little girl was found in a bag in Petaling Jaya. The body was naked and bruised. According to forensic reports, there were bruise marks on her neck; with cucumber and brinjal inserted into her private parts.

When the DNA results came out, stating that it matches the DNA of Nurin, the whole nation was shocked.

"They(reporters) told me that police said the DNA matches, but that body
wasn't my daughter's. I know my own daughter very well, and it's impossible
for that(the body) to be my daughter."

This was the initial response by the father of Nurin, Jazimin Abdul Jalil when questioned by reporters about the DNA results. Two days later, he accepted that the body was indeed her daughter's, putting an end to speculation as to who the remains belong to.

The initial response by the father clearly shows the trauma he faced, going into the state of denial. It is unimaginable, the pain of losing someone dear, especially knowing the fact that he/she was treated badly before he/she died.

The father said that that was the first time they let her out on her own, but unfortunately, it turned up to be the last as well.