Malaysia-Increase in Gender Violence, Rape, Domestic Abuse; Young Women; Migrant Women; Trafficking

Baradan Kuppusamy

KUALA LUMPUR, Mar 9 (IPS) - Malaysian women this week marked their achievements in many areas but were uniformly worried over a sharp rise in gender related violence - especially rape and domestic abuse.

''Reported incidences of violence against women are only the tip of the iceberg,'' said Irene Fernandez who heads TENAGANITA, a leading human rights organisation. ''Many cases go unreported because of fear and a conservative value system that pervades our society.''

Even the government is alarmed by the statistics which show that 6.6 women are raped everyday and is urging victims to come forward and report so as to ensure that the perpetrators are punished.

Shahrizat Jalil, minister for women, family and community development, told a gathering of women to mark International Women's Day on Mar. 8 that the number of rape cases in the country had doubled in the last six years, from 1,217 in 2000 to 2,341 in 2006.

''Statistics are showing an increasing trend. What is sad is that most of the victims are below 15 years old,'' Shahrizat said at the forum. She agreed that abuse of women was often concealed because women were ignorant of their rights or were mistakenly acting in accordance with cultural practices.

''For too long, women who were beaten up or violated felt that they were in the wrong ... They are accepting of it as a stereotype, as part of the culture of this country,'' Shahrizat said. ''It is not, I want to say very clearly -- violence has never been a culture in this country,'' she added.

The government has promised to unveil a new national policy on women that will open an 'exciting era for women'.

The All Women's Action Society or AWAM, a grouping of women's non government organisations (NGOs), said rising violence against women is a primary concern of many women's groups. "Violence against women has escalated, going by reported cases alone. Besides rape, incidences of domestic violence have also increased year-on-year,'' said Honey Tan Lay Ean, executive director of AWAM.

''There are many shortcomings but making the situation worse are political and religious leaders whose attitude towards women is patronising at best and repressive at worst,'' she said.

In recent months the country has been rocked by demands from Islamists to force women to wear chastity belts to protect their virginity, to set up snoop squads to spy on courting couples and to punish undergraduates who they claim were promiscuous.

Feminists also used the occasion to demand stern legislation against what they describe as a "little understood" form of violence -- marital rape. Human rights activists however argue that the law is inadequate because marital rape is not considered a crime in Malaysia and fails to recognise the complexities.

With nearly three million migrant workers in the country, mostly from impoverished Asian nations, Fernandez said there was a need to focus on violence against women migrant workers. "They are the most vulnerable of all women in the country and are constantly at the mercy of the uniformed authorities," she told IPS.

''In 2006 alone we handled more then 200 cases of violence against women migrant workers," she said. "It is frightening to note that the violence is being carried out with impunity both by state and non-state actors.''

TENAGANITA has rescued 128 domestic workers, all severely and systemically abused, she said. "In fact it is torture, isolation and total servitude. This can happen because domestic workers are unrecognised and unprotected," Fernandez said, calling for major changes in government policies towards women domestic workers.

According to the United Nations and other experts Malaysia has emerged as a major centre for trafficked women from across Asia and as a transit point to receiving countries in Europe.

Human rights NGOs have extensively documented the plight of trafficked women for prostitution who are physically assaulted and raped multiple times by different men and by traffickers.

The research showed trafficked women forced to consume drugs and alcohol and become dependent users with severe health and psychological problems.

''The women are locked up or confined and closely monitored by syndicate members. The sex trade has expanded with millions of dollars made from these women with the support of certain enforcement agencies who work hand in glove with traffickers,'' Fernandez said and urged the authorities to pay heed and enact a comprehensive law against trafficking of women.

''The government must show strong political will to ensure perpetrators of violence against women especially against women migrant workers and trafficked persons are made accountable," she added.

Behind the country's economic miracle are the foreign workers and low-paid and over-exploited Malaysian women, said Kohila Yanasekaran, activist with JERIT, a coalition of NGOs.

''Even in the male-dominated parliament, lawmakers, in their speeches, poke fun at women in a very disgusting and crude way,'' she said. Only about ten percent of legislators are female.

''Equal recognition for women is lacking at every level of society -- in the media, the laws, and the workplace and even in universities and government administration,'' she said.

There was a glimmer of hope however on Thursday when lawmakers made their rounds of public places and distributed roses to women.

It was seen as a recognition that Malaysian women were finally coming into their own, at least politically, because they now form a significant vote bank that can make or break governments. (