KUALA LUMPUR, March 29 — The Penal Code’s amendment required to make stalking an offence was passed unanimously in the Dewan Rakyat today following two rounds of debate.
After the Anti-stalking Bill was passed unanimously in October last year, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Ramkarpal Singh presented his case and addressed amendments recommendations in his winding-up speech.
Ramkarpal said that the Penal Code (Amendment) Bill 2023 debated today aims to insert a new section 507(a) to provide for the offence of stalking, including acts that are considered an offence and to provide for a maximum penalty of three years imprisonment or a fine or both.
Dewan Rakyat Speaker Datuk Johari Abdul then called for a voice vote which saw the bill passed without any resistance.
In its second reading, Ramkarpal said stalking has serious implications for victims’ mental health as a result of being harassed and stalked.
He said the results of a survey by a research company and the Women’s Aid Organization (WAO) found that stalking was common in Malaysia, with 36 per cent of respondents saying they have been stalked and made fearful, 12 per cent threatened, and 17 per cent injured.
“The results of the survey also found that stalking has a negative impact on people’s daily lives in terms of economy, social, recreation and child care matters.
“While 69 per cent of Malaysians believe that stalking is an offence. Thirdly, foreign countries have already taken the initiative in creating laws related to this behavior,” he said.
He said the changes in the Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Bill 2023 would help reduce the risk of crime victims being stalked, extending to them the protection currently limited to parties of a marriage.
“This amendment is implemented with the aim of providing legal protection to victims of stalking crimes through protection orders issued by the court.
“This amendment was also made based on the philosophy of curbing the crime of stalking and at the same time, will be able to reduce the anxiety, fear and trauma of the victim,” he said.
Section 507(a) states that whoever repeatedly by any act of harassment, intending to cause, or knowing or ought to know that the act is likely to cause distress, fear or alarm to any person or the person’s safety, commits the offence of stalking.
Meanwhile, subsection (1) states that the act of harassment may include following a person in any manner or by any means, communication or attempting to communicate with a person in any manner of by any means, loitering at the place of residence or business of a person and giving or sending anything to a person in any manner or by any means.
Further, whoever commits the offence of stalking shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years or with fine or both and for final clarification the section uses the word ‘repeatedly’ which shall refer to at least two occasions.
