The Universiti Malaya Students Union (UMSU) has revived the call for the Sexual Harassment Bill, urging the new government to expedite the tabling of the bill.
The union claimed there were no updates regarding the bill since 2020 when Women, Family and Community Development Minister Rina Harun said it would be tabled that year.
“There is an increase in the number of sexual harassment cases related to children and women. Most victims do not feel safe and are afraid to lodge a police report.
“A survey conducted by the All Women’s Action Society (Awam) found that 59 percent of respondents did not report the sexual harassment they experienced.
“This illustrates that crimes of sexual harassment have been going on for a long time, but have been silenced and suppressed due to several factors,” it said in a statement today.
University students are more likely to keep quiet and not report sexual harassment due to the lack of laws protecting their rights, UMSU added.
As of now, victims of sexual harassment are only able to seek protection under the Employment Act 1955, Industrial Relations Act 1967, Occupational Safety and Health Act 1944 and the Penal Code (Act 574) which require a high burden of proof, making it difficult for victims to prove the allegations.
The burden of proof is a party’s duty to provide sufficient evidence to support their allegation and argument. The higher the burden of proof, the higher the evidence required to support one’s allegation.
UMSU said that the bill should have a clear definition in order to expand the coverage and for easier access to justice for victims. - Mkini
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