KUCHING: Disturbed by the number of incest cases recorded in Sarawak, a state minister took to social media account to obtain suggestions on ways for the government to overcome the problem.
State Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development Minister Datuk Fatimah Abdullah also vented her frustration on the recurrence of such cases via her Facebook account.
“Today on my way to airport, I felt sick and downhearted. Kept thinking how can we protect our young girls from becoming victims of incest, raped by their own family members,” she wrote.
An hour later, Fatimah uploaded another posting on her Facebook account, which read: “Kes sumbang mahram (incest case). Why? How to protect our young girls when the person, who are supposed to protect them become perpetrators themselves?”
The posting garnered active feedback from her Facebook friends and followers.
A Facebook user suggested for her ministry to issue a directive to all Village Security and Development Committee statewide to deliberate the issue on a weekly basis and conduct campaign to create awareness on the problem.
Another user suggested the ministry to intensify efforts in educating children on what is right and wrong, encouraging them to come forward if they became victim of sexual offenders in their family.
Meanwhile, State Criminal Investigation Department chief Datuk Dev Kumar believed the cases, which have been highlighted in the media, has compelled more sexual victims to come forward and act against their sexual assailant.
To date, Sarawak has recorded five incest cases. Two of the cases have been disposed by the Court.
The cases included the 57-year-old farmer and his three sons, who were slapped with a total of 335 years’ jail sentence after they pleaded guilty to committing incest with the former’s two granddaughters in Tebedu between June 1, 2011 and July this year.
The Sessions Court in Betong yesterday sentenced a farmer, 49, to 22 years’ jail and 20 strokes of the rotan after he pleaded guilty to having sexual intercourse and molesting his daughter, who is now 15, between September 2014 and July this year.
A magistrate court in Limbang today fixed four days for trial beginning Nov 20 to hear a case involving a 72-year-old senior citizen and four others, who were charged with 22 counts of committing incest and outraging the modesty of his granddaughter.
The other three accused included the victim’s father, 42, and three relatives aged between 16 and 21. The victim is 12.
Police had earlier today obtained remand orders against three suspects arrested in connection with two separate incest cases in Sibu and Sarikei.
In the first case, an unemployed man and his son, aged 53 and 25 respectively, who were arrested for allegedly raping the former’s seven-year-old granddaughter in Sibu, have been remanded for seven days.
A 38-year-old labourer, who was arrested for allegedly raping his teenage daughter, 15, in Sarikei has been remanded for five days.