KUALA LUMPUR: Subpar enforcement and a lack of understanding of sexual offences are the major factors behind sexual crime activity in the country, according to the Women's Aid Organisation (WAO) and All Women's Action Society (Awam).
Responding to the recent controversy involving a school bus driver posting videos of students on TikTok, Awam's Amanda Shweeta Louis said despite various laws designed to curb sexual crimes against children, their effectiveness in preventing such offences remained in question.
The NGO's senior advocacy officer questioned whether the authorities' enforcement was rigorous enough to address the issue and if adequate resources were available to educate the public about the problem.
"Do such incidents reveal cracks in the legal system, where gender-based violence is still not taken seriously enough to prevent or deter future crimes?" Louis told the 'News Straits Times'.
WAO's Nazreen Nizam said there was a gap in awareness and understanding of what constitutes a sexual crime against children as comments made by social media users indicated that inappropriate behaviours towards children were normalised in Malaysian society, which reduced the likelihood of reporting or condemning such offences.
The WAO acting executive director said the public must recognise this form of behaviour as "grooming", a process commonly used by offenders to prepare a child for sexual abuse.
"Grooming often involves building a relationship with the child and, sometimes, their family, to gain their trust and break down the child's inhibitions. This makes the child more susceptible to exploitation and less likely to recognise the behaviour as abusive or to report it," Nazreen said.
Yesterday, a TikTok account showcasing a school bus driver's questionable behaviour towards children came under scrutiny after a concerned user raised the issue on X, formerly Twitter. The account, with more than 600,000 followers, posted videos of schoolchildren with unsettling captions, including one that says "harini crush kita buat homework" (today, our crush is doing her homework), sparking concerns. (https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2024/09/1101887/minister-orders-probe...)
Women, Family, and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri condemned the behaviour and instructed Social Welfare Department officers to lodge a report, saying such actions were unacceptable and could not be normalised.
Both WAO and Awam agreed that public, parental and governmental involvement was important to address the problem as "it takes a village to raise a child".
Nazreen said parents should familiarise themselves with related laws and social media policies.
She added that parents needed to be informed about the reporting mechanism, such as contacting police to report suspected criminal activity, reaching out to child protection services at the Social Welfare Department and informing school officials if the incident took place at school.
Louis said ongoing and open conservations between parents and their children were important, especially about children's safety, bodily autonomy and consent.
However, she said, a lack of time might prevent parents, especially those from marginalised and working-class backgrounds, from taking action, highlighting the need for collective public efforts.
"There must also be a conscious effort in integrating comprehensive sexuality education that consists of bodily autonomy, consent,and gender equality into the national curriculum. Teaching children to distinguish between a 'good touch' and a 'bad touch' from an early age is a strong recommendation."