CJ: Sharp increase in sexual offences against children during pandemic

PUTRAJAYA: There was a steep increase in sexual offences cases against children in the past two years during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Chief Justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat said, based on the statistics, the number of such cases increased by almost 42% between 2020 and 2021.

"Sexual offences against children are a serious problem and, in this regard, the judiciary has had dialogues with the executive about establishing more sexual crime courts to hear these cases.

"This will entail an increase in the number of posts allocated to the judiciary to sit in these courts.

"We hope this step helps to bring down the numbers," Tengku Maimun said in her speech at the Opening of the Legal Year 2022 at the Palace of Justice here on Friday (Jan 14).

On June 22, 2017, Malaysia saw its first special court to deal with cases involving sexual crimes against children in Putrajaya. It was also the first of its kind in Southeast Asia.

In April, 2018, the second special criminal court on sexual crimes against children was opened in Kuching, Sarawak.

It was understood that the judiciary is looking into opening similar courts in Johor Baru and Petaling Jaya.

Meanwhile, street crime cases have been on the steady decline between the period of 2017 and 2021.

Tengku Maimun said statistics showed that last year recorded the lowest number, with a 57.5% drop in the number of registrations.

"Perhaps the imposition of the various movement control orders and the resulting lockdowns left no one on the streets to commit such crimes which might explain the reason for the drop," she said.

As for corruption cases, Tengku Maimun said the number of cases registered between 2017 and 2021 have not been consistent, with some years recording more cases than the other.

The total number of cases registered in 2020 and 2021, however, showed a small increase.

"As corruption is a scourge in society, it is important that this area is closely monitored as it is a measure of the nation's health and image, both domestically and internationally," she added.

On drug cases, Tengku Maimun said there was no major change in the numbers, hinting at the ineffectiveness of harsh sentences in curbing the crime.

"In fact, there was only a very slight increase in registrations between 2020 and 2021 - about 1.8%. The number of cases registered between 2017 and 2021 seem to be the same.

"It appears that the deterrent sentences imposed for these types of offences including capital punishment have not been effective in curbing this category of crime," she said.

The Chief Justice also said that the number of commercial cases has been on the decline between 2017 and 2021.

While the drop from 2020 to 2021 was a mere 6%, only 55,305 cases were recorded in 2021 as compared to 119,258 in 2017.

"This is an alarming drop of about 53.6% over a short period of 5 years.

"Commercial cases are of significance, as they are, to some extent, an indicator of the country’s economy as disputes are some measure of active business and trade," she said.

The Opening of the Legal Year 2022 is an annual event in the judiciary calendar. There was a lapse of one year in 2021, as the event could not take place due to the pandemic.