KUALA LUMPUR: The Sexual Offences against Children (Amendment) Bill will seek to expand the extra-territorial reach of Malaysia’s laws against child sexual offences committed outside the country.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said tabled the Bill for the first reading in Parliament yesterday.
The second and third readings are expected to be tabled during the current meeting.
According to the Bill, the proposed amendments will broaden the scope of the Sexual Offences against Children Act 2017 (Act 792) to allow Malaysian authorities to prosecute a wider category of offenders and offences committed abroad that have a connection to Malaysia.
Under the existing law, the Act applies to offences committed outside Malaysia by Malaysian citizens against any child.
The amendment proposes extending the law to cover offences committed abroad against any child by Malaysian permanent residents and individuals whose habitual residence is in Malaysia.
It would also allow Malaysian authorities to take action against any person who commits an offence outside Malaysia against a child who is a Malaysian citizen, a permanent resident or a person whose habitual residence is in Malaysia.
The Bill states that such offences may be dealt with as if they had been committed within Malaysia.
According to the explanatory statement, the amendment seeks to expand the extra-territorial application of Act 792 and offences listed under its Schedule where the victim is a child.
“This will enable the law to apply to a wider category of persons having connection to Malaysia, in respect of offences committed outside Malaysia,” it said.
The Bill also states that the proposed amendments would not involve any additional financial expenditure by the government.
