The shoebox baby case certainly made some waves when it hit the headlines last week, and it has given rise to some discussion as to the reasons why the mother felt she had no option but to abandon her child.

We will not go into the details much – it is not pertinent to do so and perhaps many people consider it to be a private matter, which is probably the best tack to take.

What is certainly clear is that this young mother, 19-years-old, felt trapped. We have already said in previous articles that a mother’s natural instinct is to care for and protect her child – this goes without saying.

Something, whether the fear of letting down her mother, post-natal depression or whatever else it could have been, made this girl feel helpless, that there was no way out of the situation in which she had found herself. She was so traumatised by her predicament that she hid the pregnancy from those around her.

What are we getting at? We no longer live in the Middle Ages and teenage pregnancies are accepted as part and parcel of what happens in society today. Even the conservative group Gift of Life has come out with its vociferous support and this should give an indication to all and sundry that the subject with which we are dealing is not taboo, it is a reality.

As a nation, we should look at ourselves introspectively and ask whether we are getting that message across. We are not saying that young people should irresponsibly go out and have sex willy-nilly, having babies as a by-product.

But what we are definitely saying is that, in a country where there is no legal abortion (again, we are only stating what is fact), young women in such a predicament have the right to know that there is support and help at hand. Some might receive this from their families, if only they allow them to help. Those that do not, need to know that there are organisations that are able to help them, first of all to come to terms with the fact that they are going to become a young mother and, secondly, to help them fathom out the next step.

There are many alternatives: children can be given up for adoption, they can go into foster homes, some may be reunited with their mothers after a period of separation, while others may return to their mothers straightaway – with the help, support and monitoring of qualified people.

Many people reading the tone of this editorial may judge it to be callous. But we need to face facts. The kids of today are not the kids of yesteryear, or even just a few years ago. Like it or not, a percentage of them are going to have unprotected sex and they are going to procreate.

So what is the state, and parents for that matter, duty bound to do? We must push on with a safe sex campaign. There was a campaign aimed at abstinence, but, again, this did not work. Statistics about single mothers do not lie – numbers are on the increase. We must push the idea that using condoms drastically reduces the risk of pregnancy (and sexually transmitted diseases for that matter). We are not in the best position to recommend how this should be done, but we are sure that the powers that be can really make a difference, if, and only if, we take our heads out of the sand.

But most importantly, and this is key, no young mother or mother-to-be should feel that her only option is to dump her child in a shoebox. Despair is a horrible thing. It drives normally sane and collected individuals to actions they would normally never even consider. We have a collective duty to fulfill in this regard.