Azalina: Sexual harassment law has been ‘paused’ pending review

KUALA LUMPUR: Efforts to pass the long-awaited Sexual Harassment Bill on the last day of the current Dewan Rakyat meeting today will not come to pass as it has been deferred to a later date, says Pengerang MP Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said.

This comes after a high-level meeting between Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Rina Harun and Parliament’s bipartisan special select committee on women, children affairs and social development, including representatives from the Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG) and the Attorney General’s Chambers.

“We have agreed to ‘pause’ the Bill for the time being as the government wants to have a look at it again.

“Everybody at the meeting agreed that there is no point passing a half-baked law just for the sake of passing a law.

“Let us make sure the law is effective and works to protect against sexual harassment,” Azalina told The Star and Sinar Harian after chairing the meeting at Parliament House yesterday.

Azalina, who chairs the special select committee, said she decided to call for the meeting after considering the views of stakeholders and MPs that there was still a need to enhance details in the proposed Bill which was tabled for its first reading on Dec 15 last year.

“The minister also agrees that the Bill be looked at again to make the definition of sexual harassment more comprehensive,” she added.

She said the move would be in line with the King’s call for the need of having proper laws in place to deal with sexual harassment. Asked when the Bill would be brought up for its second reading, Azalina, the special adviser to the Prime Minister, said it would be likely be during the next Dewan Rakyat meeting in July.

Under the proposed Bill, sexual harassment could be verbal, non-verbal, visual, gestural or physical and directed at an individual. Also, a tribunal would be set up to hear alleged sexual harassment cases and empowered to direct an offender to issue an apology to the victim. Failing to comply with the tribunal’s order could land an offender two years in jail. The tribunal also has the power to dismiss alleged sexual harassment claims if deemed frivolous.

Association of Women’s Lawyers exco member Meera Samanther, who spoke on behalf of JAG, said she was glad that the Bill would be passed on a later date and not today.

“This is the first time where all parties including the drafters of the Bill were able to sit down together to make improvements. The Bill which was tabled last year is ineffective,” she said after the meeting.

Among the changes being sought is a wider definition of sexual harassment to include instances where it could lead to creation of a hostile environment not specifically directed a particular individual.

“This could be in the form of sexist remarks, lewd jokes or showing off pornographic material,” she said.