Treat sexual slavery problem seriously, govt told
Tony Thien | Jan 19, 09 11:49am
A Sarawak opposition leader has urged the police and relevant authorities to take the problems of sexual slavery and human trafficking in Malaysia seriously and not treat the victims as criminals.
 

penan baram women sexual abuse by loggers 220908 04State PKR wanita chief Ibi Uding said care and protection for the victims should be looked into seriously as provided for under the Anti–Human Trafficking Act 2007.

In a statement to Malaysiakini, she said young women are being lured to leave their home countries, ending up in the sex trade abroad and forced to live in fear and humiliation amidst mental and physical abuse.

"The activities  totally destroy the lives of these women," she added.

She said sexual slavery and human trafficking violate basic human rights and this form of commercial sexual exploitation is one of the most devastating and escalating practices of gender-based violence.

In Kuching , the Sunday Post on Jan 10 reported that eight foreign women were rescued from sexual slavery during a police raid on a house in Poh Kwong Park two days earlier.

Step up efforts

Commenting on this, Ibi Uding said she believes this is only the tip of the iceberg.

"Sexual slavery is one of the gravest forms of violence against women and PKR Wanita does not tolerate such forms of violence and exploitation and no society that purports to uphold gender equality should tolerate and accept the sexual commodification of women and girls," she said.

penan baram women sexual abuse by loggers 220908 05Her deputy Nurhanim  Moksen said PKR Wanita wants the police to go all out in order to detect and smash the syndicates responsible for these crimes.

In June, the government classified human trafficking as a transnational crime and with statistics showing that 2.7 million people are trafficked worldwide annually with 80 percent of them being women and children.

"In view of the alarming statistics, PKR Wanita calls for serious efforts to be taken by the police and relevant authorities to detect, investigate and halt sexual slavery and human trafficking," she said.

She also urged the relevant authorities to put in place a systemic response to cope with the rising cases.