KUALA LUMPUR – Opposition lawmaker Fuziah Salleh (Kuantan-PH) criticised lawmakers for interrogating or judging rape victims on their attire or actions.
Speaking in the Dewan Rakyat today as part of the debate on the Anti-Sexual Harassment Bill 2021, Fuziah pointed out that lawmakers themselves need to stop blaming victims after several debaters brought up the issue of policing people’s clothing and supposed seductive behaviour.
Fuziah then cited outrageous rape cases in the country and asked whether these people and even animals had acted provocatively to invite rape.
“Even 74-year-old grandmothers are raped. 5-year-old children are also raped, and teenage boys are raped. In fact, even goats are raped, raped to death.
“Are we asking whether they are sexy? To me, these are irrational arguments and don’t reflect at all that we are to defend the rights of the people,” she said.
Earlier in her debate, Fuziah took the example of an exhibition in Brussels, Belgium in 2018 that displayed the clothing of rape victims.
The exhibition, titled “Am I at fault?”, was meant to highlight sexual violence.
“There were clothes worn by 5-year-olds with My Little Pony written on them. There were uniforms, sports clothing, and even some wore T-shirts.
“These were all clothes worn by rape victims. Are we saying that they asked for it?” she asked.
Fuziah said penalising victims would prevent more people from reporting such crimes.
She also said the bill is meant to be accessible to all layers of society, and lawmakers themselves should not impede its function to ensure justice for victims.
Earlier, Petaling Jaya MP Maria Chin Abdullah also spoke against victim-blaming, stating that the burden of proof of such crimes should be on the perpetrator.
The Anti-Sexual Harassment Bill 2021 proposes the formation of a tribunal empowered to hear and determine on any complaint of sexual harassment by any person. – The Vibes, July 20, 2022
