The Selangor government wants to nip the problem of zina (illicit sex) in the bud rather than deal with the aftermath, which is why it seeks to prevent unwanted pregnancies rather than end up like Malacca where a school has been built specially to care for the high number of young unmarried girls getting pregnant.

“Prevention is better than cure, as we see where a special school selangor anti-zina campaign halimah and khalid ibrahim had to be built in Malacca to accommodate teens, victims of unwanted pregnancies, who still want to study,” said state exco member for education, higher education and human resources development Dr Halimah Ali ( left in pic ).

The problem of illicit sex, she said, is becoming increasingly serious, leading to problems in addition to unwanted pregnancies and births leading to baby-dumping and the spread of venereal diseases.

“I myself experienced this. A baby barely several hours old was dumped right across the road from my clinic. Of course, this was way before I become an assemblyperson,” said the former general practitioner.

She blamed youths caught up in the 'culture' of celebrations and those parties that seek to profit from these 'celebrations'.

Halimah named Valentine's Day, Merdeka Day and New Year's Eve as being the traditional days when couples meet up and engage in illicit activities.

selangor anti-zina campaign convoy As such she said that the anti-zina campaign will be targeting these days and serve as a wake-up call for youths as to the serious repercussions that may arise from their actions.

"This (is the culture of) ‘disposable love’ that we need to dispose of from the state," she stressed.

Halimah was giving her opening speech at the launch of the third in the anti-zina campaign series in Dataran Shah Alam today.

The campaign was launched today by Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim, who flagged off the anti-zina convoy made up of some fifty vehicles and motorcycles from police, local governments, NGOs and state government departments.

Khalid blamed the black metal, goth, punk and skinhead sub-cultures for the spread of casual and illicit sex, but which he said may be part of their culture of protest.

'Educate, not punish'

Halimah, however, assured those in attendance that the anti-zina campaign will be an educational process, not an enforcement drive.

“We want to educate not punish,” she said.

Agreeing with her, Khalid said that is why they have instructed the volunteers to be tactful on their rounds.

selangor anti-zina campaign poster From 8pm tonight, campaign volunteers will be canvassing hotspots identified as venues where couples congregate on Valentine’s eve tonight, distributing leaflets and advice to youths.

She stressed that the campaign is not an enforcement activity, although after the awareness drive, there will follow later this evening enforcement operations by the Selangor Islamic Religious Department, police, anti-drug agency and immigration department.

The enforcement operations, is separate from the state government’s awareness campaign, she stressed.

The convoy then drove for 30 minutes around the state capital of Shah Alam before breaking out into groups based on districts to conduct the campaign in their separate areas.

This is the third campaign against illicit sex after the previous two runs sought to dispense the same message on the previous New Year’s and Merdeka Day.

Also present were exco member Yaakob Sapari and Telok Datuk assemblyperson Philip Tan, along with mayors, local government YDPs and other state officials.