Pontian MP: Anti-sexual harassment education must start from kindergarten

 

PARLIAMENT | Efforts to address and educate the public against sexual harassment must start from the kindergarten level, said an Umno lawmaker.

Ahmad Maslan (BN-Pontian) said this is so the root cause of sexual harassment is addressed.

"Proactive efforts need to be done, through formal and informal education, from kindergarten to primary and secondary school, vocational institutes, universities, and the workplace," he said.

He said this while debating the anti-sexual harassment bill in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Meanwhile, Ahmad also asked how effective previous rules and regulations introduced by the government to address sexual harassment and provide remedies to victims have been.

Separately, Teresa Kok (Pakatan Harapan-Seputeh), while debating the same bill, raised the case of alleged rape jokes, as revealed by student Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam last year.

Kok said despite the shocking nature of the alleged jokes made by Ain's teacher, those in positions of authority, including the school's principal and police, did not take her complaints seriously.

Seputeh MP Teresa Kok

She said this case showed that gender sensitivity training needs to be made compulsory for the civil service, from teacher training institutes to police and military.

She added that complaints of sexual harassment should also be taken seriously by authorities. - Mkini