Kuala lumpur: A total of 608 out of 3,093 sexual crime cases involving individuals under the age of 18 recorded between 2023 and October this year occurred within school areas. Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) M. Kulasegaran shared these figures during a Special Chamber session in the Dewan Rakyat today.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, out of the total number of cases, 1,760 were recorded in 2023, followed by 1,041 in 2024, and 892 cases from January to October this year. During the same period, there were 3,601 arrests made - 1,194 in 2023, 1,348 in 2024, and 1,059 between January and October this year.
To address the issue, the Ministry of Education (MOE) has established the Institutional Safety Reform Committee. The committee is tasked with reviewing and strengthening safety measures in schools and includes experts from various fields, government agencies such as the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) and the Prime Minister's Department (JPM), as well as non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Among the improvements implemented by the committee under the Safe School Programme are safety audits conducted at the affected schools. Kulasegaran also mentioned the initiative to establish a national database for juvenile sex offenders. The Home Ministry is prepared to support the implementation of the National Child Data Centre (NCDC) through data sharing among various ministries.
However, the implementation is subject to Section 15 of the Child Act 2001 (Act 611), which prohibits the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) from disclosing any identification details, including photographs or information about minors, on any social media platform or public medium. Kulasegaran noted that integrating data on children's well-being, health, and education requires additional coordination among various agencies and must comply with legal provisions and data security protocols.
Earlier, during the session, Syerleena Abdul Rashid (PH-Bukit Bendera) raised a question regarding the government's efforts to tackle the growing crisis of juvenile sexual crimes in the country.