34 days into the Movement Control Order, 409 cases of domestic abuse have been reported to the police.
The Assistant Director of Sexual, Women and Child Investigations Division (D11) Bukit Aman, Superintendent Siti Kamsiah Hassan has said that victims of domestic abuse do not have to be scared to leave the house during the MCO. They will not be violating the MCO if they go out to seek for help or protection for their own safety, reported Sinar Harian. She adds,
“The public should also inform and report to the police if they see any aggression or criminal activities in their places of residence.”
Other than that, she has compared the statistics and said that during the 34 days of MCO, 409 cases have been reported. Another 34 days prior to that, 477 cases were reported. The cases during MCO were similar in the sense that they were triggered by one of these things: Misunderstandings, drug problems, cheating, hot tempers, etc.
The superintendent said that the cases will mostly be investigated under Section 323 of the Penal Code for causing injuries, Section 506 of the Penal Code for criminal intimidation and a small sum of the cases under Section 427 of the Penal Code for mischief.
No matter what, she urges the victims of domestic abuse to report their cases to the police for further actions.
There are many types of abuse and if you find yourself falling victim to any one of it, then you should definitely lodge a police report. However, if you’re not sure of what to do, you can always call the Women’s Aid Organisation at +603-79563488 or SMS/WhatsApp them at +6018-9888058, they operate 24/7.
Also read: Domestic Abuse Has Increased in Malaysia During MCO, But Why Is It So Hard For Women to Break Free?
