Incest numbers worrying
Statistics show that top offenders are fathers, stepfathers, uncles and brothers
THE number of incest cases fell from 304 in 2014 to 253 last year, but investigators are concerned that the number remains high. A police officer and a forensic criminologist say it’s vital to teach sex education in schools so children can differentiate between a ‘good touch’ and a ‘bad touch’.
WHEN Rania (not her real name) was 10, her then 17-year-old brother thought up a “game”.
All she had to do was lift up her dress and he would put something in her. That was how he started raping her.
Rania said: “At that time, I thought it was a fun game. He told me that it was normal and I should not tell my parents or people as it was a secret between us.”
She said the rape carried on for two years.
Rania, now 25, said the sexual abuse stopped when she realised that it was not “just a game”.
However, till this day, she could not summon up the courage to tell her parents or anyone about the abuse. She had merely put the past behind her.
On her relationship with the perpetrator, her only brother, she told the New Straits Times that she came from a broken family and her brother had not contacted their family following a disagreement with their parents in 2011.
Rania’s story is one of many incest cases that takes place in the country. Just like her case, many are believed to go unreported for a variety of reasons.
But, the statistics on cases that are reported are already shocking and alarming enough.
Federal police Sexual, Women and Child Investigation Division (D11) principal assistant director Assistant Commissioner Jenny Ong Chin Lan said the number of cases recorded varied each year, but, on average, there would be one case of incest reported every other day.
Based on statistics, the top offenders between 2014 and March this year were fathers, stepfathers, uncles and brothers. In some cases, a child may be sexually abused by more than one family member.
Though there has been a slight decline in the number of cases over the years, investigators are concerned that the number remains high.
A breakdown by states in the aforementioned period shows that Selangor and Sabah record- ed the highest number of cases.
In 2014, 49 cases were reported in Sabah, followed by Selangor (41) and Kedah (35).
In 2015, Sabah recorded 40 cases, Selangor (37) and Johor (26).
Last year, Sabah recorded an increase with 57 cases, followed by Selangor (35) and Johor (33).
In the first quarter of 2017, Sabah recorded 13 cases, followed by Perak (eight) and Selangor (seven).
On why Sabah and Selangor had higher number of cases compared with other states, Ong said it could be due to the large population and migration of population.
She said cases involving incest usually took between six months and two years to surface, adding that the delay in reporting was usually due to the fact that the victims were being controlled by the perpetrators.
“Sometimes, the perpetrator would threaten the victim. (For example), ‘If you tell, I will kill you, kick you’, or they may say that they will not give (the victim) an allowance.”
Ong said the victims were also afraid that nobody would believe them.
She said there had been cases where the victims confided in family members, but the matter was covered up to “save face”.
She said due to this attitude, the child continued to suffer at the hands of her abuser.
Ong said some victims did not come forward as they were financially dependent on the perpetrator.
“Sometimes the child knows that what is happening to her is wrong, but if she tells somebody, the whole (financial standing) of the family would collapse (once the perpetrator is arrested).”
In fact, Ong said, in most cases, the people who lodged reports on such cases were not the victims,
but their teachers.
She said victims often confided in friends or classmates, and they would bring the matter to their teacher’s attention.
In other cases, she said, it was the mother who lodged a report, even though the perpetrator was her husband or son.
In the past, many mothers covered up incestuous cases. However, Ong said, women now were more aware of where to go, who to turn to and their rights when dealing with such crimes.
On if most of the mothers who reported such crimes were financially stable, she said this was the case, adding that these women were also worried that their other children might have been victims as well.
On handling cases, she said she continued to improve her subordinates’ investigative skills by conducting in-service training annually.
“They are trained to conduct investigations and cyber investigations, to have specific skills on how to interview children and witnesses, as well as recording evidence at our Child Interview Centre.”
Ong said police had worked with the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry to update government policies related to women and children.
“We played an important role in coming up with laws, such as the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017.”
Police had also worked with the ministry to make use of Talian Kasih 15999, a hotline to refer any sexual abuse case to the force.
They also worked with telecommunications services providers and the Communications and Multimedia Ministry, specifically CyberSecurity Malaysia, to launch online child safety campaigns.
Ong said D11 had been working with non-governmental organisations to prevent incestuous crime from happening and to create awareness among women and children.
“We have held campaigns, such as the Women Awareness and Child Awareness campaigns to educate them on (the proper steps to take for) their own safety. Between 2015 and last year, we had conducted over 262 campaigns and reached out to 57,656 people.”
Ong said the campaigns were also held in rural areas.
She said it was important for sex education to be taught in schools, with emphasis on body parts, how to take care of them, limitations and how to avoid sexual advances.
She said parents, especially mothers, needed to be educated on how to explain to their children on how to take care of their bodies, especially the private parts, and how to differentiate between a “good touch” and a “bad touch”.