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Keratan Akhbar Pilihan End Rape Culture Cry Women S Groups
The call comes after police data revealed that rape cases did not go down during the COVID-19 pandemic despite the movement control order being in place. In 20...
Petaling Jaya, 22nd May 2022 - Women's organisations are calling for radical reforms to address rape, with proposals including educating social institutions to end rape culture, bolstering support for rape survivors by increasing funding for frontline response, welfare and medical services, and introducing new legislation.
The call comes after police data revealed that rape cases did not go down during the COVID-19 pandemic despite the movement control order being in place. In 2020, 1,378 rape cases were reported, and there were 1,390 cases in 2021 compared to the pre-pandemic figure of 1,453 in 2019.
The figures are likely the tip of the iceberg, as many more women who have been raped do not come forward to lodge police reports, said Association of Women Lawyers (AWL) exco committee member, Meera Samanther.
This is due to factors such as power imbalance between victim and perpetrator, survivor being prevented from seeking help and having little or no access to reporting processes due to their geographic location, especially within rural communities.
Education, gender sensitisation and awareness are crucial to prevent rape and incest, she said.
Read more on The Star article atttached.
