This is some unsettling news.
According to a country report on Human Rights by the United States Department of State, Malaysia has had a total of 28,741 rape cases between 2005 and 2014.
Based on these alarming statistics, the report estimated that on average, 10 women are raped every day in Malaysia, with more than half of them being below the age of 16.
Source: indiatoday
The report also stated that according to police statistics, 4,807 domestic violence, 2,045 rape, and 1,590 sexual harassment cases were reported in the year 2014. Although, a lot more unreported cases are suspected to exist.
One of the reasons many women don’t report these incidences to the authorities is due to the “lack of sympathy from the largely male police force”, according to the study.
In the report, it’s stated that:
“Many government hospitals in most countries had crisis centers where victims of rape and domestic abuse could make reports without going to a police station. NGOs and political parties also cooperated to provide counseling for rape victims.”
In addition to that, women’s groups pointed out the inconsistencies of Malaysian courts when it comes to reprimanding rapists. For Malaysia, the maximum sentence for rape is 20 years in prison and caning. For marital rape however, this crime has a maximum sentence of only 5 years, with no minimum sentence.
Many women’s rights activists have also criticised the support services for rape victims, calling them inadequate and in need of much improvement.
In a statistics report released by Penang Women’s Centre for Change (PWCC), Malaysia has an average of nearly 3,000 incidences of rape reported each year between 2006 and 2015, clearly indicating that these numbers are not really reducing.
The figures are really worrying for Malaysian females who will question their own safety whenever their alone or happen to stay out late. Let’s hope the numbers will only decrease from here on out.
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