Bad cop, no doughnut!

The most important question now is how many other rapes have been committed by policemen which may have gone unreported?

COMMENT

Earlier yesterday MARAHans (Malaysians Against Rape, Assault & snatcH) were congratulating Sargeant Veeratehsigan, 53, for getting recognised for his 50 arrests and recovery of 300 vehicles without taking a single day off in the last five years.

He received a certificate of appreciation and RM100 in recognition of his feat and we were lamenting the fact that the financial payout was very miserable.

Then the news broke that the three policemen Constable Nik Sin Mat Lazim, 33, Corporal Syahiran Romly, 21, and Corporal Remmy Anak Dana, 25, were charged in the Sessions Court Butterworth with two charges each of raping and forcing oral sex on an Indonesian woman.

The rash actions of these three black sheep have brought disrepute and embarrassment not only to upstanding police officers like Veeratehsigan but also the PDRM in general and the nation in particular.

Aren’t police recruits aware that the highest standards of character and moral uprightness are expected from them at all times?

The alleged gang-rape of the Indonesian woman by three Malaysian policemen had shocked the nation and raised many questions such as did the other policemen on duty not intervene to prevent the sordid act?

Again, if the other policemen on duty were only aware of the rape later, why did they not report it? And the most important question – How many other rapes have been committed by policemen which may have gone unreported?

The three policemen arrived in court in their orange colored lock-up attire, heads covered with their shirts at 2.15pm, escorted by three police officers, with about 30 other officers on stand-by.

Session Court judge Nabishah Ibrahim read out the charge under Section 376 of the Penal Code for rape and Section 377C for forced unnatural sex – which allegedly included oral sex – at a police station in Prai, Penang last Nov 9.

The trio, who have been suspended from their duties, claimed trial and Justice Nabishah set Dec 12 for statements to be taken from witnesses. Deputy public prosecutor Suhaimi Ibrahim asked that the accused be remanded pending trial as he argued that if they were freed on bail, they may tamper with the witnesses as they were known to the trio.

He also applied for the victim’s statement to be taken under Section 396 of the Criminal Procedure Code at a date earlier than the trial so she can return to her country.

If found guilty, the trio face a maximum 20 years’ jail term and whipping. Justice Nabishah set bail at RM25,000 each, and the three accused would have to report to the nearest police station on a monthly basis. They would not be confined to barracks. However, she warned them not to harass the witnesses.

Another rape incident

This latest incident of rape has received the attention of Foreign Minister Anifah Aman mainly because of widespread protests by Indonesians outside the Malaysian embassy in Jakarta.

In a separate case in Seremban, police are investigating a man for allegedly raping his Indonesian maid. During her ordeal the 15-year-old was tied up and left without food for four days.

As it is, relations between Malaysia and Indonesia have been tense over frequent reports of worker abuse in recent years, and these two new cases certainly aren’t helping.

The cases have caused anger in Indonesia, and the Malaysian government has duly condemned the acts.

Relations between the neighbours have been tense over frequent reports of worker abuse in recent years leading to Penang Indonesian consulate acting consul-general Sofiana Mufidah being present in court for the three policemen’s rape case.

The police are already under fire over fears of rising crime as personal tales of abduction, assault, snatch thefts and robbery go viral online via social media and trigger disbelief of official claims that crime has reduced significantly in recent years.

Not helping also are politicians who are ever eager to beat the drums to gain mileage for themselves, with Lau Chiek Tuan, the Bukit Mertajam Barisan Nasional co-ordinator holding a press conference where the 25-year-old Indonesian woman broke her story to the press and media.

Not to be outdone, the Penang state government has promptly called for the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) to be set up to prevent cases like these, with Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng meeting with the acting Indonesian consul general Sofiana Mufidah to say that the state government will stay in close contact with the Indonesian consulate to provide their assistance.

While neither MARAH nor I personally have any motive to profit from writing about this sorry episode, all I can say is that given the policemen’s relative young ages, let’s hope for all our sakes that the learned judge doesn’t decide they have “bright futures”.

Visit MARAH Facebook here

Dave Avran is the founder of MARAH (Malaysians Against Rape, Assault & snatcH)