Kelantan Anti-Rape Campaign Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri to our

Women’s Centre for Change
241 Jalan Burma
10350 Penang, Malaysia.
Tel: 04-228 0342
E-mail: wcc@wccpenang.org
Facebook: WCC Penang
NEWSLink
Pusat Perkhidmatan Wanita
Seberang Perai (PPW)
67A, Jalan Perai Jaya 4
13600 Prai, Penang.
Tel: 04-398 8340/41
E-mail: ppw@wccpenang.org
Quarterly Newsletter of Women’s Centre for Change, Penang
April - June 2014
www.wccpenang.org
Internal Circulation
Kelantan Anti-Rape Campaign
Next stop was the Kota Bharu Mall, where a
colourful booth was set up with balloons and
flyers. The WCC and ReHAK teams spent
the next six hours handing out educational
pamphlets and balloons to shoppers. The
balloons were once again a huge hit, and
helped to draw many parents and children
to the booth.
The final stop was the pasar malam where
balloons and flyers were again distributed to
the passers-by. Interestingly, many of those
present were out-of-state tourists. By late
evening, the exhausted group headed back
for a well-deserved rest.
F
ollowing the reported horrific gang rape of two teenage girls by
over 30 men in Kelantan in May, WCC, as part of the Joint Action
Group for Gender Equality (JAG), partnered with a local NGO,
Reproductive Health Association of Kelantan (ReHak), to organise
a public campaign against rape. The campaign’s aim was not only
to inform Kelantanese about a public forum on Rape but also to
raise awareness on crucial issues such as rape, domestic violence
and child sexual abuse.
On Sunday, a forum entitled Bertindak
Terhadap Rogol: Tanggungjawab Bersama
(Act Against Rape: A Collective Responsibility) was held at the Gelanggang Seni Hall
in Kota Bharu from 9am to 1pm. Over 150
people made up of teachers, hospital staff,
religious department members, and various
other agencies turned up. A press
conference before the forum was held to
issue a call to the government and the
community to take action against the
worrying increased number of rape
A WCC team of six persons including WCC president Susan
Siew and staff members Melissa, Bee Yen, Hasanah, Bahirah and
Joshua flew to Kota Bharu on Friday, 20 June to facilitate this
campaign. Early Saturday morning, enthusiastic WCC and ReHak
teams turned up at a pasar tani (farmer’s market) to distribute
balloons displaying the message Hentikan Rogol! Ambil Peduli
(Stop Rape! Be Concerned!) as well as flyers and pamphlets on
violence against women to the market-goers and stall owners.
The crowd was fairly responsive and many took time to chat with
the team. The children loved the balloons which we were handing
out as quickly as we could pump them up!
Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri to our
Muslim members and friends!
1
happening in our country. Reporters from seven English,
Malay and Mandarin newspapers attended the press conference.
The forum began with a speech of the chairperson of
ReHak, Siti Hawa Ali, emphasising that rape was not just a
Kelantan issue but also a national issue. Other speakers
included representatives from the health ministry, the hospital, the police, the state education department, and
NGOs, namely WCC advocacy officer, Melissa Akhir. There
were many questions and comments from the floor, ranging from queries on how teachers can report sexual abuse,
the response time of the police in providing status updates
for investigations, and how to deal with and rehabilitate
underage offenders, to suggestions that more people join
up with NGOs to fight rape.
Overall, the team had a very productive weekend in
Kelantan. JAG hopes that the Kelantan campaign will
help kick-start more initiatives to combat rape and
draw the government’s attention to the severity of the
rape which has infected our nation.
Media Coverage: This letter was published in New Strait Times, the Sun Daily and Berita Harian.
Suffer the rape victim
Recently, a number of Malay and English language publications had widely reported a gang rape in Kelantan, where it
was surmised that more than 30 men were suspected to have raped 2 teenage girls aged 15 and 17 years, respectively.
Women’s Centre for Change, Penang (WCC), together with the Reproductive Health Association of Kelantan
(REHAK) are extremely concerned about the welfare of the two alleged victims, who are victims of what is suspected to
be the largest gang rape ever reported in Malaysia. The Child Act 2001 clearly states that any person below 18 years of
age is a child. The said Act also states that by virtue of their immaturity, every child shall receive full protection and
assistance in all circumstances.
Unfortunately we have found numerous breaches of the privacy of the younger child victim, where information which
identifies the child, who is believed to have suffered severe injuries from the alleged rape, has been widely circulated.
Her personal details have been spread by many news reports, and worse through social media such as Facebook. WCC
and REHAK are very puzzled how such details could be published when police investigations are still ongoing and confidentiality is of extreme importance. We believe that the proper focus and urgency here should be to treat the child’s
injuries, considering the probable severity of her physical and mental trauma, including that of her reproductive
health.
Such mass distribution of her personal details is very distressing as such a breach is not only a crime under the Child
Act, it further burdens the victim who should instead be supported to readjust to life in the local community. As a child
survivor of sexual assault, she deserves full protection and it is the duty of us all to assist her as far as necessary. This is
consistent even with Syariah principles, where Muslims are advised to respect the sensitivity of others and are prohibited from spreading information that could stigmatise others.
Further, WCC and REHAK are seriously worried over the handling of the elder child who has been reported to have
been put placed remand for a week. One news report contained a photo that clearly depicted the girl in handcuffs as if
she has been convicted of a serious crime. If the news reports are correct in that the girl had reported that she was also
raped, why is there a need for her as a complainant of rape to be arrested and detained? Even if there was suspicion of
her supposedly being an accomplice, it is unsuitable to continue to detain her under remand while the case and her
alleged report are being investigated, by virtue of her tender age.
Conversely, if there has been no physical examination conducted on the elder girl, WCC and REHAK suggests that the
child be referred immediately to the relevant hospital, as per the procedures of the One Stop Crisis Centre (OSCC). A
professional criminal investigation should proceed with the support of a medical examination, without it being necessary to detain the child concerned for a week. Such examination by a doctor is crucial and urgent especially for the collection of evidence, which is one of the pillars of any criminal prosecution undertaken. Further, there were no reports
that suggest this child is a hardcore criminal nor is she suspected to have committed a grave crime. Therefore, it is imperative that this child be released on bond to her parents or guardian as enumerated by the Child Act 2001 as soon as
possible.
The culture of disbelieving a child reporting rape, of wide spread circulation of the facts of a case while it is still under
investigation, or of “prison first, full investigation later”, must be stopped. If this is the effect when reports are lodged,
more segments of the public especially children will be afraid to report the crimes committed against them and thus
continue to suffer in silence. Is this the practice that we want established and continued in our society?
Melissa Mohd Akhir, Women’s Centre for Change, Penang (WCC) ,
Siti Hawa Ali, Reproductive Health Association of Kelantan (REHAK)
2
Service Updates
Service Training on Marriage and Divorce laws
The final two sessions of
the Service Volunteer
Training were attended
by some 20 WCC service
volunteers as well as new
social workers. The training dealt with the topics
of marriage and divorce
in civil and syariah laws.
On 12 April,Encik Ahmad
Munawir, a senior Syariah
lawyer, spoke about Islamic
Family Law (state of Penang) and its scope. He
explained in detail the dissolution of marriage such as
the concept of Talaq, Ta’liq, and Fasakh. The maintenance and matrimonial asset for ex-wives and children
under the Muslim law was also explained.
This was followed by Lalitha Menon, a practising lawyer
and WCC vice president, conducting the second session
training 0n 26 April 2014. She explained the procedures
in marriage and divorce in the civil laws and provided
actual cases as examples to help clarify and substantiate
the workings of the legal system.
Most of the participants agreed that the training helped
their understanding in dealing with civil and syariah
cases. The participants felt enlightened on the differences in maintenance under the civil and syariah laws.
Weekly Case Management
Since April, a weekly session on case management was
undertaken for the benefit of newly recruited social
workers and service volunteers. Facilitated by Annie
Yeap, former service coordinator, the purpose of the session is to equip staff to handle difficult cases better.
Given the type of serious cases WCC handles, a new
social worker may experience emotions and stress during the process of counseling but may not know how to
deal with it. Annie highlighted the importance of
self-awareness and how to deal with various emotions
while managing a case.
A new service volunteer, Siang Tat
shared: “It was an eye opener for
me to understand the extent of
work WCC provides to a
domestic violence victim. Each
case requires careful observation
and the social worker needs to see
the bigger picture of the case in
order to provide comprehensive
assistance to the client.”
Hospital Balik Pulau Training
WCC gave its first training at the
One Stop Crisis Centre (OSCC) in
Hospital Balik Pulau on 21 April
thanks to the effort of Dr Reddy
Mahendra’s. About 40 nurses and
doctors joined the training. WCC
staff Tasha Merican shared about
WCC’s core work areas and explained how WCC handles
cases pertaining to child sexual abuse and domestic
violence. She also shared a video by Women’s Aid
Organisation (WAO) on domestic abuse suffered by the
victims and their families, how they survived the
violence and how agencies assisted them to overcome
the violence.
Participants actively asked questions such as how do
they refer clients, about WCC shelter, how to apply IPO,
etc. We hope to come back to Balik Pulau Hospital to
continue sharing our services and educating more nurses
and doctors.
Sharing of NGO–Hospital Collaboration
WCC program consultant, Prema Devaraj presented a
paper at the NGO–Hospital Collaboration in Handling
Domestic Violence Cases at the first Scientific Meeting of
the Post Graduate Medical Education Society (PGMES),
held in Hospital Seberang Jaya. There were approximately 200 participants, but less than 10% had heard of
WCC and less than 5% had dealt with domestic violence!
Prema spoke about the level of domestic violence in the
community and the importance of victims of domestic
violence to be able to access help and support from the
hospital. She explained how One Stop Crisis Centres
(OSCC) for battered women and rape survivors in
hospitals across the country were set up upon the implementation of the Domestic Violence Act in 1996 . She
then shared the successful collaboration of WCC with
OSCC Hospital Pulau Pinang since 2008, which has
provided support to more than 600 sexual assault and
domestic violence victims. In 2010 this collaboration
was extended to victims of sexual assault and domestic
violence on the mainland at the OSCC Hospital Seberang
Jaya (OSCC-HSJ), which partnered with PPW to reach
more than 200 victims of sexual assault and domestic
violence.
Prema also highlighted the different types of support
provided by WCC and PPW, including counselling,
information giving, temporary shelter, legal information
and/or court support. She then outlined the challenges
faced by victims and the importance of interagency
cooperation for better client care.
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OSCC Interagency Meeting
An OSCC interagency meeting was held on 23 May,
attended by 40 representatives from the hospital, the
police and the welfare department. WCC was represented by Tasha Merican, and PPW (Pusat Perkhidmatan
Wanita) by Muniroh Mohd Yusoff. WCC and PPW
presented our statistics on cases being referred by
OSCC Hospital Seberang Jaya (OSCC-HSJ) and OSCC
Hospital Pulau Pinang (OSCC-HPP). At PPW, there was
an increase of cases being referred by OSCC-HSJ both
for domestic violence and sexual abuse cases whereas at
WCC, there was a drop of domestic violence cases being
referred but an increase of sexual abuse cases being
referred by OSCC-HPP. A few concerns were
highlighted at the meeting including:
● Hospital Sungai Bakap in Seberang Perai Selatan recorded one of the highest cases of domestic violence (100
cases) from January to December 2013.
●OSCC Hospital Seberang Jaya reported on a
serious case of sodomy, where the child victims and the
child perpetrator from a children home. When queried
on this matter, Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat
(welfare department) replied that the child perpetrator
was already transferred to a different place. PPW will
follow up on this case as transferring is not a good
solution.
WCC also shared our court booklet, ‘Surviving Court’,
which was recently translated into Bahasa Malaysia,
and encouraged those present to get a copy and share
with their clients.
After the meeting, we spoke to the staff of Hospital
Sungai Bakap to see whether we can run an awareness
program there. We were happy to receive three phone
calls from two different Hospitals and Pejabat
Kesihatan wanting to work with us.
Dialogues on Domestic Violence Findings
Three major reasons given by women why don’t leave
their abusive husbands are a) didn’t want to leave their
children, b) that violence is normal and c) didn’t want
to bring shame to the family. This was revealed at a
roundtable dialogue on Domestic Violence Against
Women (DVAW) organised by KANITA for 50 representatives from NGOs and academicians held at USM
on 22 April.
KANITA had conducted a country
prevalence study on women’s well-being and DVAW for
a total of 3440 respondents. The study showed that
abused women suffered multiple types of abuse like
emotional and physical violence while societal expectations and traditional norms made it difficult for women
to leave their abusive situations. Many of the findings
are commonly by experienced by clients seeking help
from women’s NGOs. Many of the respondent were
unaware of women NGOs as they are only found in a
few states of Malaysia. There were discussions on that
how the research findings can be utilised to lobby the
government for better policy actions on domestic
violence. WCC staff Loh Cheng Kooi and Tasha Merican
attended the dialogue.
Following the roundtable dialogue, KANITA organized another dialogue in Sungai Petanion
31 May to bring together
different communities including
teachers,
JKKK,
mosque
committees, hospital staff, YB’s
office members and NGOs to
discuss domestic violence. Six
staff members from WCC and
PPW also attended.
the main issues raised was the lack of NGOs operating
in Kedah, as well as the need for stronger communication between the different agencies.
The seminar began with the
sharing of domestic violence
research by KANITA and the dispelling of common myths about domestic violence. This
was followed by a video from WAO in which domestic
violence survivors were interviewed and shared their
harrowing experiences.
The WCC staff who attended felt the discussion
generated genuine interest in the participants about DV
issues, especially when coupled with the video. It was a
good chance to build awareness among local community leaders about the severity of DV and how it has
silently grown in our communities. The public seminar
was a great opportunity for us to interact and build
stronger relations with the various agencies present,
particularly OSCC Kedah, who was very interested and
impressed in the work done by WCC. To that end, we
provided OSCC with various materials and books about
the work carried out by WCC.
A panel discussion continued. The panelists
were representatives from the police, welfare
department and hospital. WCC advocacy officer Melissa Akhir was the NGO representative
on the seminar. The panelist discussed the various issues faced by the agencies in dealing
with Domestic Violence (DV) matters. One of
4
Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect (SCAN) Training
Keganasan terhadap kanak-kanak yang banyak berlaku
di Malaysia kian meningkat. Oleh yang demikian kerajaan telah menwujudkan SCAN di setiap hospital bagi
membantu kanak-kanak yang mengalami keganasan.
Keganasan yang berlaku terhadap kanak-kanak bukan
sahaja disebabkan penderaan fizikal, malahan emosi,
pengabaian dan juga seksual. Disebabkan keganasan
yang berlaku kian membimbangkan Hospital Pulau
Pinang telah mengadakan latihan SCAN setiap tahun
kepada kakitangan hospital bagi mendedahkan keganasan tersebut terhadap peserta yang hadir. Kakitangan
WCC juga turut hadir.
Panel yang menyampaikan taklimat adalah Dr Cheah,
Asp Rizaltumi (PDRM), Hamid Hashra (Pakar
Forensik), Dr Prabru Ramasamy (Pegawai Perubatan),
Dr Lai Fong Hwa (Pakar Psikiatrik), Tasha Marican
(WCC Penang) dan wakil dari Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat. Mereka membentangkankan ceramah berkenaan bidang
tugas yang dilakukan oleh jabatan masing-masing apabila berdepan dengan kes
keganasan terhadap kanak-kanak.
Pihak WCC Penang telah diberi kesempatan untuk mempromosikan bahan-bahan
WCC di ruang lega dewan. Sambutan yang
diberikan oleh para peserta amat mengalakkan dan
jualan buku juga adalah baik. Malahan, para peserta
mengambil kesempatan dengan mengajukan soalan tentang keselamatan kanak-kanak. Secara keseluruhan,
program ini memberi kesedaran dan melihat bagaimana
keganasan ini dapat dikurangkan.
Domestic Violence and Child Abuse Seminar
On 17 June, Pejabat Kesihatan Barat Daya organised a one-day seminar on
Keganasan Rumah Tangga & Penderaan Kanak-Kanak to 35 nurses. The objective of
the training was to equip the nurses on these topics. Senior project officer Tasha
Merican presented on the role of WCC in helping domestic violence and child abuse
clients. She showed an introductory video and an actual case from our VCD ‘Ok Tak
Ok’. Many of the participants were not aware of WCC’s existence but after the session,
they understood WCC’s role better. Also thanks to our intern, Arina Baharin, for
assisting us.
Women’s Empowerment (WE) Session
The Women’s Empowerment (WE) mapping session held on 10 May was initiated by our committee member, Mariam Lim. The half-day activity, facilitated by Dr Tan Sok Khim, formerly
from the USM School Education, allowed the participants to help clarify and better define the
concept of ‘WE’. It was interesting to see that people from different backgrounds have different
ideas of what women’s empowerment is and what aids in the progress of women’s empowerment
in a society.
Hasanah: “I have always been intrigued by mind mapping and women’s empowerment but
both concepts are quite hard to grasp without any proper guidance. The session edified me in
both area and assisted me in my understanding of what women’s empowerment is, what it
stands for and how it is affected by your upbringing and worldview. I thoroughly enjoyed the
session and many thanks to other participants for sharing their knowledge with me.”
Communication in Marriage & Family
On 14 and 21 June, WCC held two
separate talks entitled I vs We:
Communication in Marriage &
Family attended by 24 participants. The purpose of these talks
were to encourage better communication amongst families.
person should respond when conflict incurs instead of
just reacting impulsively to it. Overall the seminar gave
the participants the tools to reassess their marriage
work on their relationship so that they will be able to
build strong family communication.
Margarita Malayapillay, the facilitator, spoke about how we can re-discover ourselves and
our partner by searching deeply within us and reflecting
on why we talk and react in a certain way. People tend
to be defensive and at times hurtful in their reactions.
Most of the time, we want to change our partners and
not ourselves. But when two persons realize their own
weaknesses and agree to work on them can they form a
better “We”. These sessions touched on how each
5
Outreach Updates
Bijak Itu Selamat (Be Smart, Be Safe) Program
BIS Volunteers’ Training
On 5 April WCC conducted
our child sexual abuse
prevention training, Bijak Itu
Selamat (BIS), in Mandarin
to recruit more volunteers for
the
Mandarin
school
program. 10 persons from
both Penang Island and
Butterworth participated in
the training. In the first session, Ooi Say Tee, PPW coordinator, gave a broad under-
standing of what child abuse is.
Following that, WCC volunteer
Tang Kae Shih focused on the
myths and perceptions of child sexual abuse. They then demonstrated
how to carry out the BIS program
and shared some common questions from school children. The
volunteers showed interest and were
keen to go to schools to practise what they learnt.
SK Hamilton
SJKC Lin Khay
SK Hamilton has been regularly inviting WCC to conduct
BIS program. On 11 April, WCC team conducted the BIS
program for 63 Standard Five boys and girls at SK Hamilton. The children were taught the difference between
good touches and bad touches. The WCC team stressed
that children must seek help from a trusted friend or
adult whenever they feel confused, scared or threatened
by possible perpetrators. Much thanks to the school
Head, Mr Tan Teik Fong, and the school counsellor, Puan
Sandha,
for their
continuous support.
Following the training, the BIS program was conducted in SJKC Lin Khay in Sungai Petani on 14 April 2014,
facilitated by WCC staff Say Tee and Jolene Tan together with volunteers Jenny Tan, Yeong Li, Florence
and Lee Y’ng as observer. The program reached out to
120 students from Standard Five and Standard Six.
They found this program to be very interesting and the
school principal expressed that he would like their
teachers to
be trained
to
conduct such
programs
in future.
SK Chung Wah B
A team of six staff
members and volunteers
went to SK Chung Wah B
on 23 May to conduct the
BIS program for 109
students from Standards
Five and Six. The students
were in a celebratory
mood as it was their
Teacher’s Day celebration.
The WCC team played
cartoons and video clips
that educated the students on the differences between
good touches and bad touches. The enthusiastic students raised thought-provoking questions like “Why do
adults want to touch children in a bad way? “Why did
God created sex? Is it dirty?” “What happens when your
family member touches you the wrong way?”
Comments from a volunteer,
Recently, I delivered the BIS program in SJK (C) Chung
Hwa B for the first time after having trained and
observed past sessions in schools. During the talk, the
students showed a lot of interest towards the topic and
responded actively. This made me feel very happy as it
reflected that the students were actually learning
something extremely useful for their entire life. I hope
these kinds of beneficial talks can be carried out more,
not just for children, but also for the public, so people
will learn and have confidence in protecting
themselves.
Ewe Fang Yunn
Such questions show the importance of understanding
the child’s mind and experience. It indeed affirms the
importance of the BIS program in addressing what the
children’s concerns and questioning. In order to prevent
children from falling into the trap of perpetrators, or for
them get away from them, support from parents,
teachers and community play a crucial role as well.
6
Youth Programme
National Symposium of Adolescent Health Training
WCC staff Mangles and Jolene had the privilege to
attend the 10th National Symposium on Adolescent
Health called Adolescent Potpourri from 4 to 6 April. It
was jointly organized by Ministry of Health, National
Population and Family Development Board, Malaysia
Medical Association, Malaysia Pediatrics Association
and Malaysian Association for Adolescent Health. The
symposium aimed to update the knowledge of health
care workers and those working with teenagers on
issues and management of a myriad of medical and
health conditions commonly seen among adolescents. It
also covered diverse topics ranging from school health,
media, high-risk behaviours, diabetes, hematology, neurology and many other pertinent subjects.
The symposium highlighted a Global Health Survey
involving 234 high schools in 70 countries around the
world which showed that 8.3% of students have had sex,
and of these students, 50% of them were below 14 years
old. The Survey raised questions regarding these
youths’ high levels of exposure to sexual activity. Participants learnt that the rational, decision-making part of
the brain is not fully formed until the age 20. This generally explains why young adults are prone to high-risk
behaviour, are more impulsive and are more excited by
the reward than fearful of the consequences. So it is important for them to get proper guidance and correct information.
A question was raised as to why a girl child under the
age of 16 is not allowed to have sex under the statutory
rape law of Malaysia, yet child marriage is allowed. And
if the rational brain of this young child is not fully
functioning yet, then how can we approve and give them
license to give birth and raise a baby?
WCC staff Prema gave a presentation on Violence in Adolescent Wives at the symposium. She highlighted the
different concerns
pertaining to girl
brides
including health, education, poverty, dependency and
has abuse. Past research showed link beetween
domestic violence and child marriage. This research
shows that the higher the age of marriage the less the
incidence of domestic violence. She stressed that
marriage was not a safety net for young girls.
It is well known that
adolescent wives are
often more likely to
experience domestic
violence and less likely
to
take
action against such
abuse. In a call to stop
child marriages, Prema urged policy and
decision makers to act
in the best interests of
the girl child, taking
into consideration the
child’s rights and her
future .
Gender Talk
IPGM Talk
A Gender Sensitization talk was held at KDU Lecture
Hall on 16 October, with 50 students from the School of
Mass Communication in attendance. Topics covered included differences between gender and sex, problems
caused by gender inequality, and the link between gender
inequality and violence against women. At the end of the
event, WCC staff gave the students a chance to evaluate
the program.
On 24 April, WCC staff Mangles, Jolene and Arina
(intern) went to Institusi Pendidikan Guru Malaysia
(IPGM) to conduct a talk on cyber safety to the trainee
teachers. They explained the importance of being more
careful about what to post and share and outlined the
dangers of social media if unchecked. Questions were
raised on acceptable online behaviours and precautions
to be taken. The trainees also wanted to know more
about online dating precautions and practising privacy
settings. The majority of participants felt the program
was beneficial.
Of the 50 participants present, 30 answered the questionnaires given. The survey found that students had
learnt from the workshop the difference in meaning
between gender and sex. Most participants began the
workshop with awareness that being in a relationship
does not stop a person from being good to others, and
finances or expenditures can also be shared.
The participants found the workshop useful, with 87% of
students rating the program very good or good. Participants developed a better understanding about the term
‘mutual relationship’ and found the talk informative and
interesting. The talk sparked the understanding of equality among the participants who acknowledged that there
should be no more stereotyping and discrimination in
this new era. Some were keen to learn more about WCC
7
Cybersafety Training
WCC has been conducting our cyber safety program ‘Savvy Connection’ for three years, reaching out to more than
700 students per year. Every year, WCC runs this training to recruit more volunteers. This year, two training were
held on 15 March and 28 April for 10 participants, inclusive of new volunteers and staff. The participants stated that
the program is effective in educating young people on appropriate online behaviour, and with further support they
will be able to carry out the program.
SMK Sungai Nibong & St Joseph & CPS
Police statistics
show
that
more
than 70% of
rape victims
are below 18
years
old.
Therefore it
is essential
to work with
young people to educate them on how to become less vulnerable to
exploitative relationships and more capable of exercising
healthy choices in relationships.
In the past three months, WCC ran programs with SMK
Sungai Nibong, St Joseph Home and Children’s
Protection Society to raise awareness among their
students. A total of 90 students participated. Interactive
games and audio visuals were used to encourage the
students to actively participate during the talk.
At SMK Sungai Nibong, some students spoke about
dating and their confused perceptions of themselves and
their partners. Various myths and false expectations
clouded their judgments and led to a lot of unnecessary
hurt and pain. WCC’s sessions challenged and
encouraged
thoughtful
decision-making
about
relationships.
Training for Children Program Facilitators
This training was initiated for a group of 10 people from both PPW and WCC who are interested in conducting a
series of programs for children who have experienced breakdown of families or violence. The training consists of 10
sessions conducted by Leong Min See, a play therapist. Since 19 April, four sessions have been held. The
purpose of this training is to equip volunteers with a basic understanding of how to handle children and to expose
them to various activities and games which can be adopted in running
programs for children. These participants were also trained in how to
conduct assessments and reviews with parents. More importantly,
participants were trained to respond therapeutically and empathically to
children participants.
Overall, the objectives of the children’s program are to facilitate the
development of participants’ self-confidence, social skills and
communication skills through creative arts activities such as drawing,
story-telling and dramatic play. It has been targeted to organise a pilot
run to a group of children with deficiency in self-confidence, social skills
and communication skills sometime in September 2014.
Boys Module Discussion
by LPPKN
Concerned with the number of unwanted
pregnancies and the rising rates of premarital sex occurring especially among the older
teenagers and youth, the National Population and Family Development Board
(LPPKN) felt there was a need to address the issue of
how to make young men accountable and responsible
for their behaviours. WCC program consultant, Prema
Devaraj was invited to act as one of the facilitators and
resource persons in a closed door discussion on a module for boys aged 16 years and above, organized by
LPPKN in Kuala Lumpur on 11–12 April. The participants at this workshop came from a variety of agencies
including the police, the religious department, the education ministry, the health ministry, the women’s ministry, FRHAM, women’s groups, LPPKN and
kafe@teen. Prema shared WCC’s work and experiences
of working with boys.
Talk on Domestic Violence
Brahma Kumaris,
Thanks to Sister Helen’s
efforts,
Brahma
Kumaris
invited WCC to give a talk on
domestic violence (DV) for 20
of its members on 13 April.
Tasha shared information on
understanding gender and its
links to DV, the types of DV,
the impact of DV on women
and children, the cycle of
violence, and how and where
to seek help. Both women and
men
participated
actively
during the session.
8
Keganasan Rumah Tangga: Siapaku?
Pada 10 Mei 2014 Soroptomist International of Penang
telah menganjurkan satu program di dewan serbaguna,
Sungai Pinang yang dihadiri oleh 58 orang peserta.
Program yang bertajuk “Siapaku?” telah disampaikan
oleh Pegawai Kanan Program WCC, Mangles Subramaniam. Sesi ini tergendala untuk seketika, ekoran satu
tragedi dimana seorang lelaki di Flat Sungai
Pinang terjun dari tingkat 20 dan meninggal dunia
akibat cedera parah dikepala.
soalan tertumpu kepada pemberian nafkah. Ramai ingin
tahu apakah tindakan yang boleh diambil jikalau suami
atau bekas suami tidak memberi nafkah. Kehadiran
Klinik Mobil Legal Aid Centre (LAC) telah memberi
ruang kepada peserta untuk meminta bantuan nasihat
guaman daripada pihak LAC.
Perjalanan program terpaksa diubah mengikut
kesesuaian situasi yang telah berlaku. Oleh itu,
Mangles memberi penekanan terhadap cara
menangani stress dan betapa pentingnya bagi
seseorang untuk meminta bantuan dan cara
mendapat
sokongan
apabila
menghadapi
kemelut. Talian nombor agensi-agensi seperti
Befrienders juga telah dikongsi bersama para
peserta. Semasa sesi soal jawab, kebanyakan
Program Kesedaran Pencegahan Jenayah Dikalangan Wanita
Program Kesedaran Pencegahan Jenayah Dikalangan
Wanita telah dianjurkan oleh Persatuan Keluarga
Polis (PERKEP), AMANITA, Polis Diraja Malaysia Kontijen Pulau Pinang dengan kerjasama
Pusat Pengajian Sains Kemasyarakatan,
Universiti Sains Malaysia. Hampir 400
orang peserta telah menghadiri ceramah ini
pada 17 Mei 2014.
Tujuan program ini adalah untuk memperkasakan kaum wanita khususnya suri rumah
tangga dengan membekalkan kesedaran
tentang keselamatan diri dan cara untuk
berhadapan dengan situasi kecemasan. Mereka
akan dilatih menjadi ‘mata’ dan ‘telinga’ pihak polis
untuk mencegah jenayah di kawasan kediaman mereka.
WCC juga telah dijemput untuk memberi ceramah
bertajuk ‘Keganasan Rumah Tangga: Hak-Hak
Wanita’. Kenyataan seperti keganasan rumah
tangga adalah hal peribadi keluarga yang
telah menghalang para mangsa Keganasan
Rumah
Tangga
(KRT)
daripada
mendapatkan bantuan telah dikemukan
dan dicabar dengan menjelaskan bahawa
undang-undang
Negara
Malaysia
mengenalpasti KRT adalah satu jenayah
dibawah Akta Keganasan Rumah Tangga
1994. Selain itu, tip-tip pratikal untuk
membantu mangsa keganasan rumah tangga
juga telah diberi kepada para hadirin.
Program Kesedaran Terhadap Keganasan Rumah Tangga
Pada 10 Mei 2014 pihak Pusat Khidmat Kadun
Padang Lalang di bawah mandat YB Chong Eng dengan
kerjasama dari Persatuan Kesedaran Hak Wanita Bukit
Mertajam (WRAA) telah menjemput pihak Pusat
Perkhidmatan Wanita (PPW) untuk memberi ceramah
kesedaran kepada komuniti terhadap keganasan yang
berlaku terhadap wanita.
Objektif utama program adalah meningkatkan
pengetahuan dan kesedaran para peserta mengenai akta
Keganasan Rumah Tangga dan isu-isu berkaitan
serta memberikan maklumat dan informasi
kepada komuniti bagaimana untuk mendapatkan
bantuan. PPW pegawai social, Muniroh Mohd
Yusoff memberikan ceramah tersebut.
kesedaran dalam menangani isu gejala sosial yang
dihadapi.
Kehadiran seramai 26 peserta telah melengkapkan
program ini dan turut dirasmikan oleh Ahli Majlis
Pembandaran Seberang Perai, Pulau Pinang iaitu Mr.
Ho Leng Hong, manakala PPW di wakili oleh Mr Lim
Kian Leong dan Cheryl Tan sebagai sukarelawan yang
turut membantu.
Fokus penganjur mengadakan program bertajuk
Kehidupan Bahagia Di Tangan Mu di kawasan
yang sewajarnya diberi perhatian iaitu di Flat
Desa Wawasan kerana keadaan sosial komuniti
yang
dikatakan
agak
bermasalah
dan
memerlukan suntikan perubahan dan program
9
Sexual Harassment Talk
On 28 May, WCC staff Prema and Mangles conducted a
two hour session on sexual harassment organised by the
Legal Services Unit at University Teknologi Petronas
(UTP) in Tronoh, Perak.
About 60 students and lecturers attended the talk. When
asked whether they thought sexual harassment took
place in UTP they all said no. However short questionnaire participants had filled prior to the start of the session showed that at least 1 in 8 had experienced some
form of sexual harrasment on a campus related activity.
Participants were surprised that sexual harrasment was
far more common than they had thought. Prema conducted an interactive session with participants that saw
many questions being asked and doubts clarified.
One of the participants voiced his opinion that most girls
ask for it. There were howls of disdain at this view point.
Mangles then used case studies to further explore the
understanding of the participants on sexual harassment
and steps to overcome it .
At the end of the session participants expressed their
satisfaction with the session and a group of students
came forward wanting to volunteer with WCC.
While participants were very clear about forms and
categories sexual harassment, some had difficulty
understanding the difference between flirting and sexual
harassment.
Time Management Crash Course
Due to WCC’s multitasking work, staff often faced the
challenge of time management in coping with their
various work areas. On 5 and 12 June 2014, WCC
volunteers Joel Wallach and Gael Metcalf gave two
sessions on how to manage time effectively. The aim was
to introduce some strategies for maximizing time
management, identifying one’s priorities based on your
goals and eliminate procrastination so as to reduce the
stress level of a person in planning her/his workload
effectively.
WCC staff found it useful because the techniques of
managing time effectively will help them deal with tasks
more efficiently. Some of them realize that many of their
tasks were actually time wasters that could be delegated
to other people. With regards to WCC’s work nature, the
importance of team work and planning were highlighted
at the end of the session.
Throughout these sessions, the staff were taught how to
prioritize their tasks. They learned how to evaluate the
current workload and how to manage it better through
identifying time wasters. The trainer also shared the
techniques of “chunk, block and tackle” in managing
large projects. At the end of the session, the trainer
shared how to personalize best practices for effective
time management by writing to-do lists before you start
your work for the day.
Volunteers' Introduction to WCC
Volunteers' Introduction to WCC is held monthly to introduce new volunteers
to WCC and its work. The introduction, which provides volunteers with some
insights about what to expect while volunteering for WCC, lasts for an hour
and briefly covers the history of WCC, its mission and vision, and any upcoming programs. On 10 May, Poh Lerk Shih, a volunteer, led the session
and explained how volunteers can engage with WCC in upcoming projects or
programs. During the
introduction new volunteers get a chance to start
building a good and longlasting relationship with
WCC.
10
Advocacy Updates
Feminist Legal Theory Training
On April 24 to 28, Melissa Akhir participated in the Asia
Pacific Regional Feminist Legal Theory and Practice
(FLTP) in Phnom Penh Cambodia. This training aimed
to build a community of feminist activists, lawyers and
implementers who are skilled in order to advocate for
progressive, rights-based feminist
legislation and policies at local and
national levels. Together with 29
other participants (both men and
women) from the Asia Pacific as far
as Uzbekistan and Fiji, this was a
wonderful opportunity to actively
learn from each other’s experiences
and realities in the struggle for justice and equality, as well as the developed knowledge base of the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development, the organizer.
The training began with contextualising sessions focused
on how in reality, the concept of gender, culture and
prejudices have shaped our lives. A practical example
was how the participants had to outline on how they
realised the first time they treated differently due to
their gender. Subsequent sessions moved further on the
dynamics and the ideologies both for and against the
women’s struggle for equality that exist within
communities, the larger society and finally the between
countries. Finally the training focused on the practical
aspects of the legislative agenda
and the structural and cultural
realities that come into play in
enforcing the laws.
It was both heartening and
sobering to discover that feminist friends from across oceans
share similar concerns and
successes in using the law to
further women’s rights in the face of this rapidly developing world where women frequently play the role of
saviour and the sacrifice. Bringing this discovery back to
advocating for women’s rights with WCC, thankfully and
hopefully this will further fuel our strength towards
gaining the full recognition and realisation of rights in
Malaysia.
Sensitising Prosecutors to the Plight of Crime Victims
On 29 April, Melissa was invited by National Legal &
Judicial Training Institute (ILKAP) to train 12 young
Deputy Public Prosecutors (DPPs) who were handpicked
from several State Prosecution Unit. The training
entitled “The Gift of the Gab” aimed to enhance the
litigation skills of these prosecutors who are intended as
specialists in handling criminal cases in court. Melissa
spoke on the “Demeanour of Witnesses”, emphasising
on understanding the actions and reaction of crime
victims and their families after the crime, when they are
made to assist with investigations and to attend court
trials as witnesses.
Starting with the classic legal principles on the handling
of witnesses, the training progressed to why the proper
and sensitised handling of crime victims is crucial in
order to secure conviction. Modern approaches using
research done to support the complicated aspects of
evidence in sexual crime trials, and helpful special
measures such as helping victims get familiarised with
the court system were explored with the prosecutors.
Despite how inexperienced the DPPs were or how “new”
the concept of victim advocacy was to them, it was an
especially enlightening experience to discover how
receptive the prosecutors were to what WCC was
propagating, to the extent that several DPPs suggested
that WCC initiate court support services as far as Kelantan and Sabah!
Victim Advocacy Dialogue
As a follow up to the interagency dialogue last year,
WCC once again held a meeting entitled Victim Advocacy Dialogue. Eleven representative from different institutions and enforcement agencies attended the half day
dialogue on 21 May 2014.
Majority of the representatives present acknowledged
that in reality, there is a serious lack of victim advocacy
in this country. The dialogue has created a platform in
improving victim advocacy in helping the victim to seek
justice towards the violence that they have experienced.
The dialogue was divided into two sessions. In the first
session, representative from three government agencies
namely the public prosecutor office,
police and welfare department were
invited to present their feedback on
cases they have handled in 2013 and
where victim advocacy in court was
done. The discussion in the second
session was on recommendations,
measures and solutions in improving
the support for victims during the
process of court trials for all parties
involved.
11
Medicolegal Workshop
WCC staff Melissa Akhir
and Joshua Teh attended
the OSCC Medicolegal
Workshop on 17 June 2014
held at Hospital Pulau
Pinang. The majority of
the attendees were junior
medical officers. The two
speakers for the workshop
were Dato’ Dr Zahari B.
Noor, a forensic expert
from the GH and and Pn.
Siti Fatimah Bt. Talib from
the DPP office.
has shown that rape victims often display counterintuitive behaviour or may not appear to be emotionally distressed from the sexual attack. She then advised the doctors to record only if the patient appeared sullen, depressed or withdrawn and not otherwise. Some of the
medical staff also raised the issue of medical reports and
notes being leaked and how this could be countered.
Dato’ Zahari spoke mainly
about evidence-gathering
procedures, obtaining consent, and attending court
as an expert witness. A few
of the doctor raised the
issue of avoiding subpoenas and being unable to
attend court trials be due to their schedules.
One of the points which they drew from the exercise was
to avoid putting any facts unrelated to the patient’s
medical condition in the report. They were advised that
any history which they wish to take down (such as who
the assailant was, where the assault occurred, what time
the assault happened) should only be written in their
personal notes and not in the official report.
WCC proposed that the subpoenas could be left with a
representative should the doctors be unavailable at the
time. Some of the doctors were justifiably worried about
attending court, and it is hoped that the answers provided to them during the course of the workshop would
have helped the prepare themselves should they be
called as an expert witness by the court in future.
Pn. Siti Fatimah then spoke about the role of medical
expert witnesses in court and what was expected of
them. She requested that the doctors record the appearance and demeanour of rape victims who come to them
for treatment. WCC raised the fact that much research
In the afternoon, a mock trial was conducted with Pn.
Siti Fatimah as the prosecutor and Joshua as the defence
counsel. Role-playing doctors were called up to court as
expert witnesses. The mock trial was really beneficial, as
the doctors were made to realize the importance of the
information placed in their medical reports.
A few of the doctors said that the workshop had been eye
-opening for them with regard to being witnesses in
court and preparing their medical reports. We believe
that this continued
relationship and communication between
WCC and OSCC can
better support victims
of sexual assault and
domestic violence.
AWL Activist Series
On 20 June 2014, Melissa Akhir and Joshua Teh went to
Kuala Lumpur to participate in the Association of
Women Lawyers (AWL) activist series, which aimed to
increase awareness of human rights issues within the
country. The talk was attended by almost 80 participants, made up of a mixture of criminal lawyers, civil
lawyers, NGO members and staff, and law students.
Melissa delivered a talk entitled “Silent Suffering – The
Need for Victim Advocacy” with the first part focusing on
why victim advocacy and support for vulnerable victims
was crucial towards upholding the cause of justice. The
latter portion of the talk focused on the part to be played
by lawyer-activists in assisting vulnerable victims.
Several participants shared their frustration in dealing
with the police and courts when assisting vulnerable victims, and acknowledged that our legal system is not victim-friendly. After the talk, our materials were on sale
and well received, and four individuals signed up as volunteers for WCC.
The talk was met with great enthusiasm, with numerous
questions from the floor concerning issues with the
current legal system and queries on how the system
could be improved. Among the issues raised was
whether there existed a comprehensive list of mental
health professionals that lawyers could call as expert
witnesses or for assistance in court cases.
12
NGO Role in Helping Victims of Violence
On 8 May, WCC was invited to speak at a workshop organized by the police entitled “Peranan NGO Dalam
Membntu Mangsa-mangsa Wanita dan Kanak-kanak”.
Melissa, Mangles, Joshua and Arina, an intern were in
attendance at the Hotel Sentral Seaview where the workshop was held. In the one hour slot allocated to WCC,
Melissa and Mangles highlighted the different types of
help offered by WCC to vulnerable victims. Melissa
stressed on how WCC’s role is in providing advice and
assistance requested by clients, and that we do not do
any investigative work of our own. The importance of
clear communication between the various
agencies was also highlighted.
Nevertheless, others were more receptive to the talk,
took notes, and asked pertinent questions and gave good
suggestions. Among the suggestions were that WC ensure that ensure all victims who are put in the shelter
have been properly checked by a doctor beforehand to
record any bruises or injuries.
It is hoped that through workshops such as these, the
communication and understanding between WCC and
the police can be raised to a new and better level.
The response from the police was varied. Some
were openly hostile, and questioned WCC’s
legitimacy, and whether WCC were under the
government. One policeman also raised some
debatable points, including his desire for all
communication with WCC to be via letters and
that domestic violence victims who were
alleged unfaithful were justifiably harmed.
Client Story
Break the silence!!
The abuse started as early as the first week of my marriage life. Our marriage was
arranged by both our families.
For the past 10 years, I’m unable to tell which is worse, as almost everything felt horrible.
He had beaten me up at home and in public. He even tried to bargain me off to strangers
for RM 50 by the road side. He had raped me before. Whenever he hits me, he had a tendency to tear of my clothes both in public and at home. And once, he stripped me off naked
and pushed me out of the house. Even now that we have divorced, he has taken away my
kids without a court order and I don’t have any access to them. I don’t even know where
they are.
It was after 10 years before I decide to leave. It was my fear that stopped me from leaving:
the fear for my children’s future, the fear of my family dignity and the negative perception in the local
community. But then it reached to a limit which I can’t take anymore as the abuse escalated and the pain was
intolerable.
Till now, I’m unable to convince my family that all the choices I made are right. To make matters worse, he
spread rumours to our families that I had an affair. Due to the rumours, sometimes it stopped my family from
supporting me. Actually he’s the one who had another woman whom he has now remarried. Luckily my close
female friend did help like drive me to the hospital when he had beaten me.
I hope my story would encourage the others to voice out against the abuse they have to face, at the earliest
point possible, so they do not have to suffer for years in silence as I did. They should know
that we should be bold and independent to fight for ourselves, in seeking for justice. Also
that there would be women’s groups like WCC who can help us if we ask for help.
I hope the public will understand that domestic violence may happen to anyone within a
family, even your own mother, sister, brother or son. Therefore I hope there will be more
empathy and willingness to help, for example; to call police emergency numbers when you
suspect violence is happening, when you hear your neighbour being beaten or thrown out of
her house naked. Violence is not a marital issue, it is a crime.
13
WCC Media Coverage
Numerous issues have been raised following Izwan Abdullah’s alleged abduction of his 6 year old son. Yet
in the midst of all the discussions and arguments on the Constitution, conversion and custody, it is important that
we do not lose sight of the most important issue at hand – that the safety and wellbeing of two innocent children
hang precariously in the balance.
S. Deepa, the mother of the children, has spoken of how this is not the first time Izwan has abducted their
son. She claims he abandoned the family back in 2012, but returned to make off with both children in April last
year in order to convert them to Islam. In August, he then attempted to remove her son again from the salon
where she worked. When Deepa tried to stop him, he assaulted her with such severity that the Court granted her
an Interim Protection Order (IPO).
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, of which Malaysia is a signatory, makes it an obligation to
protect the interests of children, which Malaysia then enacted in the Child Act 2001. The Act lists crimes that
children are to be protected from, and prohibits criminal acts such as abandoning children or exposing a child to
actions likely to cause emotional injury. Considering the background of this case, Izwan’s alleged actions,
particularly in assaulting Deepa in front of their son and subsequently forcibly abducting the child, are clear
breaches of the protection granted to children.
Urgent action is required when handling child offences to ensure that children are protected from harm
as much as possible. To this end, Section 110 of the Child Act empowers the police to arrest a person without a
warrant if he is reasonably suspected of committing an offence against a child, including any likely reasonable
suspicion of a father causing emotional injury to his own child. It is thus inexplicable that both the InspectorGeneral of Police (IGP) and the Home Minister have steadfastly refused to initiate any police action against Izwan
for abducting his son. The IGP’s astonishing “a father doesn’t kidnap his child” statement appears to be wilfully
ignorant of the law, particularly when the Child Act does not distinguish between perpetrators who are family
members or strangers. The IGP’s statement that it is caught between civil and Syariah jurisdictions is both
incorrect and an excuse for inaction as once the matter becomes a criminal one, the police have a duty to act.
There is also the issue of the custody orders issued by both the High Court and Syariah court. In 2013, the
Cabinet had declared that it is illegal for a single parent to convert their children without the consent of their
spouse. However, Izwan still chose to illegally convert his children without Deepa’s knowledge, which has led to a
myriad of problems. The law must be clear in our dual legal system that any parent who wishes to convert out of
the religion of the marriage should first be required to resolve the existing marriage in court before conversion.
This will remove any issues of which court has proper jurisdiction in dealing with marital and custody issues.
This incident has shone a spotlight upon deep-rooted problems and issues within our national
institutions. The Federal Constitution places child protection under both state and federal jurisdiction, emphasizing the importance of ensuring the child’s right to be free from harm. The decision to form a Cabinet committee
to look into the conversion and custody issues is welcome. However, government institutions, particularly the
welfare department and the police, must act urgently to ensure that the children are placed in the hands of the
parent who can best ensure their well-being. The longer we wait to resolve this matter, the greater the emotion-
14