- only 3?

Wednesday, 4 November 2009

PEKAN: A teacher who taught religion, amongst other subjects, was sentenced to three months’ jail and a RM13,000 fine by the Magistrates Court here for molesting two nine-year-old female pupils four years ago. Magistrate Emma Shahriana Ali meted out the punishment on Shaharudin Mat Hasan, 38, from SK Belimbing here, after finding him guilty of having molested the nine-year-olds at the computer laboratory of SK Sri Makmur, Pekan in August 2005.

He had kissed the girls besides fondling their breasts and private parts. He was charged under Section 354 of the Penal Code for the offences and was liable to be jailed a maximum of 10 years or fined or whipped or any two of the above.

The accused was arrested on Oct 17, 2005, charged on Oct 25, 2005 and was relased on RM6,000 bail before being transferred to SK Belimbing. Shaharudin, who was represented by counsel Muhd Hisham Abdul Rahim, appeared nonchalant when the sentence was read out to him (The Star - 02/11/09)

***

He gets three months, but the girls will have a life time of trauma to undo. He spends three months locked up, but the girls will spend forever trapped with the thought of what he did to them. He lost 13k in fines, but the girls has lost their innocence.

There won't be any counseling for the girls. No such resource. Certainly not in Pekan. The family will have to help the girls undo the effects of such an experience on their own.

Why do I have this nagging feeling that this fella will repeat what he did?

- urban poor

Thursday, 29 October 2009

PETALING JAYA: The Government has decided to set RM3,000 as the poverty line for the urban poor based on feedback from people living in major urban areas such as Kuala Lumpur.

This is according to Federal Territories Minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin whose ministry is to be renamed Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Ministry, in efforts to improve the lives of the urban poor.

“If you have three children and your household income is RM3,000 or below, you’re almost at the poverty line,” he said, adding that many lower income families had more than four children and still needed to pay for their cars, houses and other mortgage payments. Therefore, a new set of criteria to eradicate urban poverty is in the pipeline, he said. “The number of urban poor and slum dwellers in the cities is rising,” said Raja Nong.

“There is no social safety net for such people, including single parents with three to five children living in low-cost flats.” (The Star - 26/10/09)

Real examples please -

HOW does a family with a household income of less than RM3,000 per month spend their money? MALAY MAIL spoke to three families who fall under the “urban poor” category, and based on their expenditure breakdown, it appears that they have barely enough to survive the high cost of living in the city.

MIKE LIEW works as a technician for an electronics appliances store in Subang and earns a monthly salary of RM1,800. The 28-year-old is the sole breadwinner for his family — consisting of his wife, a housewife, and a one-year-old baby.

BREAKDOWN OF LIEW’S EXPENDITURE - Household income: RM1,800

• House rent - RM400
• Car installment - RM500
• Petrol and car maintenance - RM200
• Utility bills - RM100
• Food expenditure (rice, cooking oil etc.) - RM250
• Baby (clothes, milk powder) - RM200
• Entertainment - RM100
• Monthly savings - RM100

FIRDAUS ABU BAKAR is van driver for a security company, and earns RM1,100 every month, which is inclusive of his basic pay and allowances. As his wife is a full-time homemaker, the Firdaus family, which also consists of two daughters below the age of three, solely relies on Firdaus’ salary, which really isn’t much.

BREAKDOWN OF FIRDAUS’ EXPENDITURE - Household income: RM1,100

• House rent – RM400
• Car petrol – RM150
• Utility bills – RM50
• Food expenditure – RM200
• Children’s expenses (milk powder etc) – RM200

G. NARAYANASAMY, 46, suffered a car accident in 2005 that left him disabled and not able to walk. Due to his permanent injury, he is not fit for work. That was when he decided to set up a small electrical repair shop, while his wife shares the same shop lot for her tailoring business. “Our business is very uncertain, sometimes it’s okay, sometimes it’s really poor. “The bottomline, however, is what we earn is barely enough to feed our four children (between 11 and 17 years old). “My eldest son had to quit school because I couldn’t afford to spend on him — and that just spells how bad our situation is.”

BREAKDOWN OF NARAYANASAMY’S EXPENDITURE - Household income: RM1,500 – RM3,000 (varies, depending on business)

• Shop rental – RM1,500
• House rent – RM400
• Food expenses – RM500
• Children’s school expenses – RM300
• Utility bills, home – RM50
• Utility bills, shop – RM150
• Car petrol – RM100

- sickening retaliation

Sunday, 25 October 2009

GEORGE TOWN: The 17-year-old schoolgirl, whose father splashed acid on her and her mother while they were sleeping, does not know that her mother is dead and that her eyesight loss is permanent. Tan Hui Linn, a Form Five student, who sustained 60 percent burns on her face and upper torso, is still warded at the Penang Hospital’s intensive care unit in a stable condition.

Her brother Jun Hong, 20, when met at the hospital mortuary Sunday, said he was afraid to tell her she was blind and their mother dead as she was likley to become emotional and agitated and this might aggravate her situation. “How is she going to cope, especially with the SPM examination which is coming soon? She is a bright student who scored 7As in her PMR examination,” he said.

On Saturday, Jun Hong’s mother Cheong Swee Lin, 50, and sister were sleeping in their Jalan Batu Lanchang home when his civil servant father came in at 3am and splashed acid over them. Cheong was badly burnt on 80 percent of her body and she died about 10 hours later. (The Star - 25/10/09)

- when will stupid parents learn?

Saturday, 24 October 2009

KLANG, Fri: An 8-year-old girl on her way to a grocery store was lured with RM5 before she was grabbed and raped by a man on a motorbike on last night in Sungai Pinang near here. The girl was walking to the grocery store near her home with her 7-year-old cousin when the man, wearing a helmet, stopped his motorcycle by the roadside and offered the victim RM5 to follow him. It is understood that when the girl tried to take the money, the man grabbed her and fled, leaving behind her cousin, who then told the victim's parents what had happened.

District police chief Assistant Commissioner Mohamad Mat Yusop when contacted confirmed the incident. He said the girl was found in Meru, about five kilometres from the place where she was taken at 10.30pm, by a policeman who lived in the area.

"We received a call from the victim's father about 9pm and alerted the police in the area about the missing girl. "She was found walking in the area in a confused state and was then taken to the Meru police station where she was reunited with her family," he said.

Mohamad said the victim could not remember what had happened after she was taken by the suspect and only remembered waking up in a parked van with the suspect about an hour later. "At first, we thought it was just a kidnap case but at the police station, the victim complained of pain in her private part when she went to the toilet. "This morning, she was sent to the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital (HTAR) and it was found that there were signs she had been raped," he said.

Mohamad said the victim was unable to describe the suspect as she was still traumatised and could only say that the victim was either a Malay or a Bangladeshi. (NST - 24/10/09)

***

When will stupid parents learn? 8 year old kid accompanying a 7 year old kid alone to the stall at night? Who is protecting who? Haven't we heard enough abductions, rape, kidnap, murder to learn that we need to start being responsible parents?

- willing to intervene

GEORGE TOWN: A teenager who was allegedly abducted and raped was rescued by an MCA politician when she sought help at the North-South Expressway’s Slim River rest area. The 19-year-old girl from Kelantan bumped into Perak MCA party adviser Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan, who drove her to the Slim River police station at about 1pm on Thursday to lodge a report.

When contacted, Ong said he was on his way to Tanjung Malim at the time. “When I reached the Slim River toll plaza, I saw a blue Proton car with a Malay man who seemed to be arguing with a Chinese girl. “The girl then opened the door and ran for help. I confronted the man and he claimed that the girl was his girlfriend and she had been sleeping with him. “I asked the girl if it was true and she burst into tears and said she was threatened into sleeping with him,” he said.

The girl had earlier told her two abductors that she wanted to use the bathroom at the rest area.

The girl’s ordeal began after midnight on Wednesday when two men who claimed to be policemen went to her hotel room in Trang Road here where she was staying with her two sisters and a male friend. State police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Wira Ayub Yaakob said the men took her away after claiming the girl was needed to help in an investigation. However, they drove her to a hotel in Alor Setar where she was raped.

He said they then drove off towards Kuala Lumpur but the girl told them that she needed to use the restroom. When they stopped at the rest area, she ran out and sought help from a Chinese man, who turned out to be Ong.

“One of the culprits, aged 36, immediately went to the same police station to lodge a counter-report, claiming that he did not rape the girl but had paid for her services,” DCP Ayub told a press conference at the state police headquarters yesterday. He said the man, who had 13 previous criminal records, was arrested with another person at about 3am yesterday at Seri Manjung. (The Star - 24/10/09)

***

Key lessons learned -

1. Do not trust anyone who claims to be a police officer. Even if they are wearing a uniform.

2. Do not follow anyone claiming that you are needed for any investigation. You do not need to follow. You are only required to comply when you are arrested for a crime. I found this in the Malaysian Bar Council website -

A. POLICE STOPS YOU

A1. Not in uniform, ask for identification - Say: “Please, show me your Police authority card”.

A2. If he shows you - Red : Suspended Police Officer. He has no authority to do anything to you. Walk away. Blue : Rank of Inspector and above. Yellow: Below the rank of Inspector. White : Reserve police

A3. Note his name and ID number

A4. If he is in uniform - Note his name and ID number on his uniform. Note the police vehicle number plate of the patrol car or motorcycle.

B. POLICE QUESTION YOU WHEN STOPPED

B1. If he ask for your identification - Only give your name, ID card number and address.

B2. If the police ask other questions - Politely ask “Am I under arrest?”

B3. If you are not under arrest, you may walk away/refuse to follow him back to the Police station or anywhere else, if asked.

B4. The police cannot arrest you just because you are a potential witness and want to take a statement from you (112/Witness Statement).

C. POLICE ARREST YOU

C1. Ask: “Why am I under arrest?” - An arrest is unlawful if you are not informed of the reason.

C2. Do not resist an arrest - The Police have the right to use reasonable force to arrest you if you resist.

C3 Ask: “Which Police station are you taking me to?” The arresting Police Officer must immediately take you to the nearest Police station and no other place.

C4. What to do when arrested - You have the right to call - Relatives & Lawyer.

C5. Inform them
- you have been arrested;
- the time, place and reason of the arrest;
- the Police station you will be taken to


3. From the above guidelines given by the bar council, i reckon if we find a little courage (not easy tho) to ask loads of questions, appear like we know what our rights are, the bogus cops would hopefully leave you alone.

4. Another easy said than done - but if you are in trouble, keep making a big scene of things. Get other people's attention. As much as I generally do not like politicians, three cheers for this one who bothered to -

- Be observant to his surrounding
- Cared enough to find out
- Willing to intervene
- Took time and made the effort to protect

post trauma troubles

Monday, 12 October 2009

A FORM Two student claimed that she became addicted to sex after being raped by a 40-year-old man.

The girl, who only wanted to be known as Roslina, related to Metro Ahad that since the incident, she would have sex with up to eight partners at the same time in the storeroom of her school. She said she lost her self-esteem after being raped by the man, who was never arrested despite a police report being lodged against him by her family.

“I skipped school, smoked cigarettes, drank alcohol, and got more and more into sex,” she said in between tears. She said she became addicted to sex, hence her penchant for having multiple partners at the same time.

According to her, this went on for four months before the school authorities expelled her and the other students who were caught in the act. (The Star - 12/10/09)

***

How do we treat our victims?

1. No action against perpetrator despite a police report.
2. No counseling services to help her cope with the trauma of rape.
3. No intervention services offered despite seeing her inability to cope.

Oh yes, we did do something - we expelled her from school.

- the right to an identity

Saturday, 3 October 2009

BACHOK: A poor student faces the risk of being barred from taking her Penilaian Menengah Rendah (PMR) examination next week, all because of her parents' failure to report her birth 15 years ago. A brother who is due to take his Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) next year might also face the predicament because of the same problem, while an elder brother missed school because of poverty and the lack of proper identification papers. Haryani Ismail, 15, is studying in Form Three at SMK Pak Badol while her younger brother Hazwan, 11, is in Year Five at SK Pak Padol here. Their mother Zawahir Mat Daud, 54, said another 11 children, now aged between 25 and 40 years, have identity cards.
(NST - 01/10/09)

***

This is common. We have a staff member mainly trying to help sort out birth certs and identity card problems. Loads of stupid parents who just take such things for granted. They don't realize that this potentially can cause loads of problems for the kids.

If the mum is also dead, the kid will need to find proof that he was born by Malaysian parents. Even then, it's years and years of waiting.

Just to add salt to the wound - Early this year, we had a case where this parents from the slums forgot to register their kid's birth. So, with a bit of help, we managed to bring the family to the stage where all they needed is a signature from the doctor who delivered the baby.

The doctor asked for RM3000 per signature.

***

Article 7 (Registration, name, nationality, care): All children have the right to a legally registered name, officially recognised by the government. Children have the right to a nationality (to belong to a country). Children also have the right to know and, as far as possible, to be cared for by their parents.

- irony

SETIU: A 24-year-old teacher was slashed on the shoulder and left hand when he was attacked by a man with a machete in Kampung Selamat early Monday. The teacher was returning home about 1.30am when the driver of a car rammed his vehicle into the former's motorcycle. A passenger in the car then alighted and slashed the victim several times but the teacher managed to escape.
(NST - 01/10/09)

***

Anymore incidents of such nature, they should probably rename the village.

- MTV EXIT

Thursday, 1 October 2009

Article 34 (Sexual exploitation): We should protect children from all forms of sexual exploitation and abuse including prostitution and involvement in pornography.

Article 35 (Abduction, sale and trafficking): We should take all measures possible to make sure that children are not abducted, sold or trafficked.

Article 36 (Other forms of exploitation): Children should be protected from any activity that takes advantage of them or could harm their welfare and development.

- slow train coming

Wednesday, 30 September 2009

KUANTAN: A woman was overcome by emotion and collapsed outside the Sessions Court yesterday after she learnt that her husband was sentenced to 15 years' jail and five strokes of the rotan for raping a friend's daughter. Her husband, Adam Syed Mohd, 37, a businessman from Kampung Lang Kiri, Kuala Rompin, earlier received the sentence after he was found guilty of raping the underage girl at Mei Wah Hotel in Taman Tanjung Gemok, Kuala Rompin, about 7pm on Jan 17, 2006. The victim, who lives in the same village, was then 15 years and two months old. Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Mahadi Abdul Jumaat pressed for a deterrent sentence as rape cases were on the rise, with 140 cases reported in the first eight months of this year.
(NST - 30/09/09)

KUANTAN: Khairul Anuar Abdullah, a 21-year-old lorry attendant from Tanjung Gemuk in Rompin, was sentenced to nine years' jail and three strokes of the rotan after he pleaded guilty to sodomising an 8-year-old. He committed the crime in a vacant house in Taman Warisan 2, Tanjung Gemuk, about 7.40pm on Aug 31. In mitigation, Khairul, who was unrepresented, begged for leniency, stating that he had to support his mother and three younger siblings. He also promised not to repeat the offence.
(NST - 30/09/09)

***

Just in case you are feeling a little positive after reading the two above news report -


PUTRAJAYA: Two men who had a rape charge hanging over their heads for eight years, walked free yesterday. The Kajang Court for Children, sitting here yesterday, acquitted the duo, aged 15 and 16 years at the time of the offence, without calling for their defence. Magistrate Tuan Faizal alias Amrin Noor Hadi, the fifth trial judge to hear the case, said the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case. The prosecution had called four witnesses. The accused were alleged to have raped the girl, then 8 years and 6 months old, in a settlement in Balakong in March 2001. The two, who are now factory workers, dropped out of school after the incident became public knowledge. T. Anandan, who appeared for the accused, had submitted that his clients should be acquitted on grounds that the charge was vague because the date and time of the said offence was not stated. He also said the medical evidence did not conclusively prove that the two had sexual intercourse with the victim.
(NST - 28/09/09)

- another one missing

Tuesday, 22 September 2009

KULIM: Police are seeking the help of the public to locate a 12-year-old pupil who went missing from her school here 15 minutes before the Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) examination on Sept 8. Kulim OCPD Supt Ghuzlan Salleh urged those who knew of the whereabouts of S. Ashwini, a Year Six pupil of SRJK (T) Kulim, to contact the nearest police station.
(The Star - 22/09/09)

KULIM: A schoolgirl who aimed to score 7As in her Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) has gone missing from school – just 15 minutes before the examination began on Sept 8. The distraught parents are now looking for their daughter S. Ashwini, a pupil of SRJK (T) Kulim. Mother P. Devi, 32, said several school teachers had seen their daughter talking to two women in the school compound on the day she went missing. The factory worker said the teachers told her that they did not suspect anything as they thought the strangers were family members. However, a teacher who noticed that Ashwini was absent during the examination, alerted the headmaster who informed the family. “I have approached several mediums and also a bomoh, who told me that my daughter is somewhere near,” she said in an interview at the family’s home in Taman Jelutong yesterday. (The Star - 19/09/09)

***

Sigh, with all their "super powers" you would hope that they can tell you something a little more informative. As for the rest of us normal folks, let's just be on the lookout.

- rape is a serious matter

Friday, 18 September 2009

KUALA LUMPUR: Rape is a serious matter and officials must be careful when making statements, said Women, Family and Community Minister Senator Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil. “I will communicate this to the people concerned,” she said after attending the Baraqah Ramadan Programme organised by the ministry at the Social Institute of Malaysia yesterday. (The Star - 17/09/09)

***

Huh? What does she mean? One can only speculate since this news report is so stupid. Maybe what she wanted to say was that rape is such a serious matter and therefore she needed to sit on her backside for about one year carefully thinking of the correct statement to make on the Penan issue.

Wait a minute, has she made any important statement on the issue yet? Wow, rape must really be a serious matter then.

- penan girls are not worth much huh?

Friday, 11 September 2009

MIRI/ KUCHING: Sarawak police say they would not be able to nail the loggers who raped and sexually abused Penan women and girls in timber concession zones despite a government report that confirmed these crimes -- not unless they get detailed information.

The Women and Family Affairs Ministry has confirmed that these crimes -- first uncovered by the Bruno Manser Fund on its website, then highlighted by local media -- had taken place, but police said they need detailed information that can lead them to these rapists.

The head of the Criminal Investigation Department in Sarawak, Senior Asst Comm 2 Huzir Mohamed, told The Star on Thursday that the police need more detailed and specific information like names, dates and places. “We need the names of specific victims, where they can be found, more accurate information on the dates and places of the incidents and descriptions of the people who had committed these (sexual crimes). “We need to interview these victims. If the report is too general and not precise, it will be difficult for us to probe effectively.

“The ministry must furnish us with more details,” he said when was asked whether the police could launch an investigation to pinpoint the rapists following the ministry’s public disclosure that there had been numerous cases of rape and sexual abuse against Penan girls and women in Ulu Baram in northern Sarawak.

The 111-page report was compiled by a special committee set up by the ministry on Oct 8 last year. (The Star - 10/09/09)

***

If you read the report, you will find the following information -

1. The task force headed by the then minister, Ng Yen Yen had a whole bunch of people with her including the police.

2. The task force terms of reference includes investigating the sexual abuse allegations of the penan's women folk.

3. The report highlighted stories of nine children who were repeatedly raped or sexually harassed by the loggers.

4. Out of the nine, 3 of then bore children as a result of the rape.

In the report, you also find the stupidest recommendations made -

1. Create a co-curriculum activity to teach on personal safety, sexual harassment in schools.

2. Have an awareness campaign.

3. Increase the awareness among the parents on education, health and personal safety.

4. Have a sensitization orientation program for new teachers on the challenges faced by the Penans.

5. Include elements of penan culture in our school curriculum.

6. Choose trustworthy drivers.

7. Increase teaching assistance who can accompany the kids home.

Now seriously. What stupid recommendations are these? Kids were raped. Shouldn't the recommendations be about protecting the kids from the perpetrators? Shouldn't it be about prosecuting the perpetrators? Shouldn't it be about restoring the lives of those affected?

What instead do we have? Education programs for the kids and their families? Are we saying that it is their fault for getting themselves raped? They were not smart enough or educated enough to avoid being raped? Not smart enough to choose trustworthy drivers? How do you choose a trustworthy driver from a pool of rapist?

They include a representative from the police in the task force and now you have this statement saying that they cannot use the report to prosecute the perpetrators? They are also sitting on their backside waiting for the ministry to furnish them more details. Isn't that the duty of the police?

Lets not even get into the fact that the report is almost a year old! Whose backside was sitting on it? And why?

If the flames of hell can be inflicted upon people immediately.. a lot of people will be turning black.

- quick job

Tuesday, 8 September 2009

KUALA LUMPUR: A 27-year-old woman was being raped by two men in a shed when a passer-by, who heard her screams, alerted the police who rushed to the scene and rescued her.

The woman, who works as an Internet cafe supervisor, was believed to have been abducted from her workplace in Jalan Raja Laut sometime after midnight yesterday. The suspects drove the victim to a Puncak Alam shed, near Jalan Gombak Lama, before taking turns to rape her.

Gombak OCPD Assistant Commisioner Abdul Rahim Abdullah said when police arrived around 7am, the suspects fled into the nearby bushes. The victim was found naked in the shed. “We immediately cordoned off the area and tracking dogs from the police K9 unit were brought in to locate the suspects who we believe are still hiding in the bushes,” he said. (The Star - 08/09/09)

***

Strange how people use words such as - Rushed! Rescue! Immediately! The poor girl was abducted at around midnight. Sadly raped multiple times from the time of abduction at around 12am to her immediate rescue about 6 to 7 torturous hours later.

Well, maybe the passerby heard the screams at 6.59am. The police arrived around 7am. Hmmm. . ..

- child trafficking: all roads lead to home

Monday, 7 September 2009

PETALING JAYA: Child trafficking is still a serious threat in Malaysia despite the efforts of the government and aid agencies to stem the crime, says a Unicef report. According to the study titled “Child Trafficking in East and South-East Asia: Reversing the Trend,” Malaysia has developed or amended laws and policies to combat child trafficking but enforcement has generally been weak. It said this was due, in some part, to insufficient resources, limited capacities, poor coordination, or a lack of leadership. ...

Child trafficking is a major concern across South-East Asia due to various factors including internal conflict as well as a demand for child prostitutes, pornography and cheap labour. The countries here are both source and destination centres for child trafficking.

In Malaysia, the persisting issues are the sizable population of refugee and migrant children, and stateless children who are vulnerable to exploitation and trafficking due to inadequate protective laws and policies. “It is time to stop confronting trafficking as a separate issue and address it more systematically along with other child protection issues,” said Anupama. (The Star - 06/09/09)