On child porn and policy thoughts

The news of a Malaysian student in the United Kingdom being charged with owning kiddie porn was shocking to say the least, but more shocking is the development that our government seems to be supporting this criminal act by granting the student placement in a local university to complete his studies.

That being said, we do need to have a proper discussion in terms of policy on what are the rights of a child. Insofar as our laws are concerned, kids are granted rights to education and protection from abuse by parents, even human trafficking.

Vaccination is there, healthcare in so far as dentistry and a free milk scheme, which I hope is still around.

My information might be a tad outdated since the youngest in my immediate family is 26 this year.

So when you talk about a paedophile being granted a second chance by an organisation called the People's Trust Council, or in Malay the Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara), you can imagine just what it tells the Malaysian people.

It tells people that Malaysia's own trust fund supports paedophilia, regardless of how the rest of the world think it sick, disgusting and a criminal act.

And yes, I agree it speaks volumes when a paedophile is given a second chance, while people who criticise the government are suddenly left without such a fight for their intellectual prowess.

Of course Malaysians are outraged and pissed off, but I don't think they're pissed off enough. And here is why.

At what age do you consider a child an adult?

For most, it is when they reach puberty. For others, it is until they move out of the house, regardless of age.

For others still, it is on getting their first job regardless of whether its a white collar salaryman or a counter clerk at a 7-Eleven.

Government wise, I have no idea. They can get married at 16, drive at 16, only smoke at 18 and drink or go to night clubs at 21.

In fact, I do believe Unicef even defined the age to be higher since it has now set an age floor of 24, I believe, in collecting donations.

So yes, it is a confusing array of ages, but it is what it is.

Now, with that in mind, what do we legally have against child pornography? To be fair, the Attorney-General is correct in saying we have no legislation against it.

We do have a green barrier in procuring pornographic materials courtesy of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, but that is about it.

Should we have an act of law against pornography and another specific to child pornography?

Yes.

Do we need a register to allow people to refer to sex criminals living in their residential area?

I agree. But first, let us properly define a few things as a nation.

At what age do you consider a child no longer a child? And what constitutes an offence that would require registration on a sex offender list?

The first one is a two fold question because according to shariah marriage laws, underaged children can marry with parents consent.

So what do we do with that if it violates the age of statutory rape?

And would statutory rape, even in the case of a small age gap and consent, trigger registration on a sex offender list?

The second question is a bit trickier in Malaysia. For one, adultery according to shariah law is a crime. Would we be registering adulterers to this list.

More to the point – and this is a political minefield – would someone charged with having anal sex with another man, or even a woman, be considered a sex offender even with consent?

This was the first red flag raised in my head when Zairil Khir Johari suggested such a list be compiled because like it or not, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is in jail for such a charge.

I am all for such a list, but I would say Malaysia should not be too hasty in implementing something so important on a whimsy of outrage.

I know I sound like an Ent from Lord of the Rings, but we really need to answer all these questions from a neutral point of view.

There should be a duration for someone to be on the sex offenders registry so that it does allow a second chance at life and a period of rehabilitation, if it is possible.

Is it even possible to rehabilitate?

Of course lawyers will read this and probably say justice delayed is justice denied, but the truth of the matter is we haven't a clue on this because we had had close to nothing in discussing this openly since the days of Dr Hartini Zainudin and her Chow Kit Kids continuous fight of recognition.

I for one will admit that this is venturing into unknown territory for myself, which was why this piece took quite a while to write.

On one hand, I do not agree with Mara insisting on giving this guy a second chance. But on the other hand, our nation's laws do not have anything against child porn or even child marriages.

In fact, we even backed up a couple who were charged for abusing their kids awhile back in a country where it is considered a criminal act.

Of course, it reeks of the old school mentality of wanting to deal with our problems and our people ourselves, regardless of the political and international ridicule that happens in between.

To be frank, it sounds too much like communist Russia in Tom Clancy novels.

There is perhaps truth in fiction.

And while I myself may have been brainwashed by too many episodes of "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit", I've now reached the point where I would like to question the policy before we deal with the fictional reality that is portrayed in such a television show.

Honestly, I believe more Malaysians should. – May 8, 2015.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.