Stick to current statutory rape law, Wanita MCA tells Parliament

By Hafidz Baharom

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 20 Parliament should leave the judiciary to dispense justice instead of amending the Penal Code to remove judicial discretion in punishment for statutory rape cases, Wanita MCA said today.

The issue arose after two men found guilty of statutory rape had their punishment suspended, leading to a clamour for mandatory jail.

Wanita MCA national chairman Datuk Yu Chok Tow said judges should instead consider the trauma of statutory rape victims and refer to current provisions laid out in Section 376 of the Penal Code to dispense a mandatory imprisonment sentence.

We support that judges should give mandatory imprisonment if the defendant is found guilty.

However, we also agree that Parliament should not interfere with the judiciary and the judges freedom to dispense justice, Yu said when opening the wings 37th annual general meeting here.

Yu said that the recent ruling of courts to suspend punishment for two men found guilty of the crime former national bowler Noor Afizal Azizan and electrician Chuah Guan Jiu was due to consideration of the fact that no physical force or coercion was used.

However, whether or not the underage girls had the capacity to agree to sexual relations is a question worth exploring, she said.

Last week, Minister in Prime Ministers Office Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz told Parliament that the Attorney-Generals Chambers had been given the green light to amend the section of the Penal Code to remove judicial discretion, making a mandatory five-year jail term for those found guilty of statutory rape.

The amendment was to be rushed through Parliament in what the de facto law minister said was a move to protect young women immediately.

Continued here:

Stick to current statutory rape law, Wanita MCA tells Parliament