Rape laws adequate, reforms only when problem uncontrollable
The government today declared rape laws in Malaysia as adequate and that they would only be reformed if rape became an uncontrollable problem.
The issue of rape laws was raised in Dewan Rakyat when Lee Kah Choon (BN-Jelutong) asked if the existing law could be revised to alert residents in a neighbourhood to the presence of a released convicted rapist living in their area.
Parliamentary secretary in the Prime Ministers Department Noh Omar however said that such laws would be discriminatory to the individual and bar him from living a normal life.
"If such laws were adopted, we could be removing the rights of the ex-convict," said Noh.
The imposition of castration for repeat offenders was also discussed in the light of the inadequacy of punishment prescribed by the Penal Code, which at the moment is a minimum of five years imprisonment and a maximum of 20 years.
Sufficient penalty
"The penalty now is sufficient, and we cannot simply introduce penalties which may actually be in contravention of human rights," Noh said.
A coalition of non-governmental organisations including All Womens Action Society (Awam) is pushing to amend laws relating to the offence of rape, including the Penal Code and the Evidence Act.
Awam has stressed that many provisions, including the definition of rape, is far too narrow to adequately punish perpetrators of the crime.
In earlier interviews with malaysiakini , Awams vice-president Manohary Subramaniam said the society was pressing for reforms to rape laws that were antiquated or inadequate.
These include heavier penalties for aggravated forms of rape such as custodial rape perpetrated by law enforcement agents (police, military, etc.), or any social or religious figures; gang rape; and rape by a perpetrator who has a sexually transmissible disease.
The society is also seeking to amend laws relating to rape of minors. The existing law requires the unsworn statement of a child witness to be corroborated, which means another adult must substantiate the young victims allegations of rape.
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