THEY are not yet 16, but they are already wanted by the police.

Three mothers appeared in Juvenile Court last Friday to complain that their children, aged 14 and 15, were Beyond Parental Control (BPC).

All wanted Magistrate Wong Li Tein to issue warrants of arrest for the teens, who were not in court.

Of the 19 BPC applications filed that day, only four were heard in court after being screened by a counsellor from the Singapore Children's Society.

The other applicants were referred to counsellors and alternative programmes.

In three of the four cases, the children were absent from court.

Two mothers told the judge that their daughters had run away from home while the third said she could not get her son to attend court.

We are not using the children's real names as they are minors.

SITI: RUNAWAY 1

Her mother told the judge through a Malay interpreter: 'My daughter ran away this morning. I don't know where she is.'

She confirmed that Siti had previously asked to stay with her grandparents. But that morning, the girl had climbed out of her bedroom window and ran away.

Siti's mother had previously lodged five BPC complaints, but had not proceeded with them.

She said: 'I'm proceeding today because I learnt from my ex-husband that my daughter had hurled vulgarities at her grandmother.'

JANE: RUNAWAY 2

Her mother said Jane, 14, had run away on 9 Mar. She and her husband filed a police report the same day.

Jane's mother told the judge: 'I suspect my daughter is living with her 20-year-old boyfriend.'

When the judge asked if she knew his address, she said she had only his handphone number.

She added: 'I messaged him to ask him to keep away from my daughter, and he said he'll do so.'

But when a police officer called the boyfriend, Jane was with him.

Jane's mother said: 'They both denied having sexual relations when the investigating officer called them.'

The judge noted that Jane may be sent for a medical checkup after her arrest as it is an offence to have sex with a girl below the age of 16.

If Jane's boyfriend is guilty, he can be jailed for up to five years and fined a maximum of $10,000.

Before the hearing, Jane's mother told The New Paper that her daughter had run away from home 'three or four times' since she was in Primary 5.

She said: 'When she got angry, she'd just walk out of the house. We thought she was old enough to look after herself in Primary 5, but we were naive.'

TOM: STOLE FROM FATHER

Unlike the others, Tom's mother knew exactly where he was.

But she and her husband were unable to get their son, 15, who was staying with his grandmother, to show up in court with them.

Speaking through a Mandarin interpreter, Tom's mother said: 'My son used my husband's ATM card to withdraw $4,000.'

Outside the courtroom, Tom's father said it was the second time his son had stolen from them, but he declined to give details.

Magistrate Wong stressed that parents would not be able to withdraw their BPC applications once they have been proceeded upon.

She said: 'Unless there are very good reasons, the Warrant of Arrest cannot be withdrawn.'

DAN: SKIPPED SCHOOL

His mother wanted the 15-year-old to be sent to the Boys' Home.

She told The New Paper outside the courtroom: 'I quarrelled with my mum and sister. They told me not to send him to the Boys' Home because they're afraid he can't take it. But I'm scared he'll turn bad if I leave him alone so I took him to court.'

Dan's mother said he failed all his exams in Secondary Two last year. He was referred to a stay-in programme at Boys' Town. But after less than a month, he left and refused to return.

His mother said he has not been to school since the end of January.

'He'd go to my mother's place to play computer games every day. He'd watch TV till 2am and wake up at noon. He keeps saying he doesn't want to study, he wants to work. He told his principal that he wants to earn money to play computer games.

'He's not that bad, he's just lazy.'

Dan's mother worries about the people he mixes with. 'I'm scared that people will make use of my son.'

She said she had no choice but to take out a BPC order. 'He doesn't listen to me any more. He always loses his temper with me and, sometimes, he kicks my backside when we quarrel.

'I'm doing this for his own good.'

This article was first published in The New Paper on Mar 19, 2008.