Thoughts from the #HentikanMY seminar
Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, Permata Programme patron “Malaysia is on the right track.
Some countries have the law but not the awareness. Now we have this awareness programme first, and then we work on a comprehensive law.” Datuk Sri Azalina Othman Said, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department
“There are lots of expectations from the public on the new act and I hope we’re able to come out with something holistic and comprehensive.”
Datuk Sri Najib Tun Abdul Razak,
Prime Minister of Malaysia “The government also suggests having a criminal court specifically to handle proceedings of child sexual crimes so justice is not only done, but seen to be done, and done swiftly.” Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department “There were a lot of questions and criticisms brought up, which is good, as it shows people are interested, and the awareness is there. We are glad to be part of this and hope to see this movement grow in the country to protect children from sexual abuse.” DSP Saroja Egamparam, PDRM “Based on the statistics from 2014 to 2016, there are a total of 7,842 cases of child sexual crimes and these are only the cases that PDRM received. Isn’t that worrying?”
Datuk Prof Dr Noriah Mohd Ishak, Director of Permata Pintar Negara “Counselling training is necessary for primary school teachers. They do not know the symptoms of a victim so they can’t detect if a child shows signs of being sexually abused.” Arfan Sulaiman, Children’s Division Director, JKM “(According to the newly amended Child Act 2001), we now have new provisions for the ministry to choose an eligible candidate as a protector for sexually abused children. Any cases of alleged child sexual abuse will be investigated thoroughly.” Donald Findlater, Director of Research & Development for Lucy Faithfull Foundation, UK “A justice system that doesn’t take into account the needs of victims isn’t a worthy justice system.” Datin Wong Poai Hong, Hon Chairman for Association of Registered Childcare Providers “Those who work with kids must be trained on child protection and know how to talk and discuss with them, rather than being authoritarian and disciplining them.” Madeleine Yong, Founder of Protect and Save the Children “We need five-day training programmes instead of five hours. Doesn’t matter if you have a PhD or you’re a pakar (expert), you need to understand the dynamics of child sex abuse.” Hetty Johnston, Founder & Executive Chair of Bravehearts Foundation Ltd, Australia “The interview process is traumatising (for a sexually abused child). Unless you have a properly trained social worker, it won’t work. It has to be in the best interest of the child so videotape it. Do not let the child repeat (the incident) time and time again.”