Marriage will prevent statutory rape, says PAS cleric

PETALING JAYA: With the rising concern over the number of statutory rape cases in Malaysia, a PAS Islamic cleric has suggested that marrying off youths is the best way solve the problem.

In a Facebook post on Wednesday, PAS ulama council’s information chief Datuk Dr Mohd Khairuddin Aman Razali said that parents should goad their children into getting married while the Government should help facilitate this.

“Marriage is the most potent solution prepared by Islam in curbing this social ill. Society, specifically parents, must encourage and facilitate the marriage of their children.

“While the Government must help provide incentives to lessen the burden of couples planning to get married,” he said.

Khairuddin added that the prosecution of statutory rape offenders should be aligned with Syariah law.

“The definition of rape, prosecution and trial methods as well as the punishment of the guilty and the rights of the victims should be reviewed and aligned with Syariah criminal law laid down by Islam,” he said.

He added that it was very important to give greater emphasis to Islamic social mannerisms between men and women.

Khairuddin was referring to the statistics recently revealed by Bukit Aman concerning the breakdown of rape cases which showed that of the 1,794 cases reported this year, 920 of them were statutory rape.

Khairuddin said what he found most troubling was that 90% of these statutory rape cases were consensual.

He cautioned against the futility of focusing on sex education or reproductive health education solely from legal, health and safety perspectives as they may unintentionally encourage rape, as was seen in the West’s “safe and healthy sex life” campaigns.