Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today said greater media coverage on cases of sexual violence would encourage the public to stand up against such criminal activities.

According to Bernama , he said such cases should not be treated as isolated incidents.

If there were people who kept dismissing such activities as isolated cases, then the public would neither care about such activities nor do anything to help resolve it, he added.

He said the assumption that sexual crime should not be highlighted because there was nothing much that could be done to overcome it should not arise.

This crime has now become a trend and was very alarming and everyone was now talking about it and was trying to do something to check this problem, he said.

"It is not nice for us just to say... serves the person right, for not looking after his child."

"Society as a whole should be responsible and should look upon it as something which should not have occurred in their midst," said the premier.

He said measures should be taken collectively to reduce and eliminate altogether this sexual crime menace.

Abdullah was speaking to reporters before chairing a meeting on sexual crime with 50 representatives of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Putrajaya.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Radzi Sheikh Ahmad and Minister of Women, Family and Community Development Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil were also present.

Fast track basis

Meanwhile, the premier said he has directed the police to improve their investigation process pertaining to such cases and also suggested to the relevant parties to carry out rape and murder trials on a fast track basis.

"I have also proposed that convicted rapists and murderers be given punishment that commensurates with their offence," he said.

He said that the government would propose several amendments to present laws that govern rape and murder.

"Mohd Radzi and Shahrizat will help to arrange another meeting with NGO representatives so that their suggestions will be taken into account when amendments are drafted for laws governing the crime of rape and murder," he said.

The draft amendments would be more focused on providing for punishment that commensurates with the offence committed by rapists and murderers.

The premier said once the amendments were ready they would be tabled in Parliament for approval.