CLOSE to 20 per cent of sexual offences involving minors in Malaysia between 2023 and October this year occurred within school grounds, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) M Kulasegaran revealed in Parliament today.
“Out of 3,093 cases of sexual crimes involving individuals under 18 years, 608 cases, or 19.65 per cent, were recorded in schools,” he said during a special parliamentary session addressing efforts to tackle the rising crisis of juvenile sexual offences.
Kulasegaran reported that total sexual offences involving minors numbered 1,160 cases in 2023, 1,041 in 2024, and 892 from January to October this year. Meanwhile, overall crimes involving individuals under 18 years reached 3,601 cases during the same period.
He highlighted steps taken by the Ministry of Education, including the establishment of a Special Committee for Reforming Safety in Educational Institutions. The committee integrates expertise from academics, government agencies such as the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM), and non-governmental organisations, including UNICEF.
“So far, the committee has met twice to discuss and propose improvements for safer school programmes,” Kulasegaran said.
He added that 1,253 schools have undergone safety audits between 19 August and 17 October this year. An initial allocation of RM3 million funded the installation of CCTV in 200 schools to monitor high-risk areas, with an additional RM5 million earmarked for further installations.
Kulasegaran also announced plans to appoint 600 MySTEP personnel as assistant hostel wardens to enhance student safety and ease the workload of current warden staff. - November 13, 2025
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