With laws/policies like this - no one will be afraid to commit a crime in the future. Attempt rape and get murdered by the victim; victim is sentenced. Break into a house and get murdered by the victim; victim is hung to death. Appointed as a teacher and molests students, teacher gets transferred, students remain in trauma. Justice is mere fantasy these days.

As a commoner, my question is as simple as - is molesting an act that could lead to rape, is it similar to attempted rape, is it a sexual abuse? If you answer yes to more than one of my queries, then why isn’t Section 354 of the Penal Code being applied in this case?

If parents are reluctant to expose the child’s identity, get the trial to be carried out without media interference, allow parents to accompany the child during interrogations and modify standards of procedures in a way that it doesn’t impair the child’s well-being.

Only when law/policies are amended according to practicality of life, will victims be brave enough to open up and lodge reports against offenders.

Schools, too, must provide parents with anonymous survey forms to be filled up and submitted monthly online in the aim to gather information on student-teacher relationship, the environment in the classroom - to detect early warnings and need for further observation. We are at times too grades-oriented, we forget that school is also a place that nurtures a child’s emotional intelligence and cultivates moral values.

This is severe - teaching is such a noble profession, you are the second custodian for the child after their parents, how can any of us forgive such a disgusting act by a teacher and worse still, allow him to walk free into another school and put the lives of other students at risk?

Why are we refusing to learn our lessons before a tragedy actually strikes and leave permanent damage on us?

Why is this teacher not sacked and imprisoned for his act?

Ninety-two percent of the readers in The Star Online had reacted as ‘angry’ towards the article on his transfer (via the emoticons at the end of the article), while 2 percent as ‘annoyed’ and 2 percent as ‘amused’. Still not a good survey outcome to reflect on your brilliant decision, Education Ministry?

We are yet to see you in full swing when it comes to drug dealings and gangsterism involving students within the school compound and you have now come up with this statement.

A recent US survey shows that every one in five girls and every one in 20 boys are being sexually abused daily, how long would it take for this frequency to occur here if we just ‘transfer’ the criminals instead of punishing them severely. British paedophile Richard Huckle had shown us just how vulnerable our system is and how poorly our children are protected here, and our next step is to encourage more people like him to lurk around freely in this country?

I’m in utter disgust to learn about the transfer - many have commented that it reflects on the relevant ministries’ inefficiency and incapability, to me, it shows that we have just lost sense over everything in this country. People will slowly start to completely lose faith in the education system, we will have no trust or hope that justice will ever be served fairly in Malaysia.

S GOPINATH is president of the Malaysian Indian Network of Entrepreneurs Association (1MINE).