# 1 Campaigning Against Rape
All Women's Action Society (AWAM)
Association of Women Lawyers (AWL)
National Council of Women's Organisations (NCWO)
Women's Aid Organisation (WAO)
Malaysia Trade Union Congress Women's Committee
Selangor Consumer Association (SCA)
University Women's Association (UWA)

In 1985, five women's organizations jointly organised a public workshop and exhibition on violence against women. More than 1,000 men and women attended the workshop, breaking the silence on violence against women. Key journalists were lobbied prior to the workshop, leading to extensive media coverage of the experiences of survivors of rape, myths held by society, the inadequate service provision for survivors and legal reforms.

A number of women's organisations were formed after this workshop, and in 1986 ten separate organisations agreed to form a Joint Action Group (JAG), coordinated by the All Women's Action Society (AWAM). The first action taken by the JAG was a public campaign against rape.

A series of activities were used to disseminate information on rape and to create public awareness of legal reform initiatives. AWAM initiated a traveling road show to present the issues of rape and domestic violence to communities through dramas, skits and workshop discussions. Street theatre, public opinion surveys, petitions, exhibitions at shopping malls, and seminars in educational institutions and with community groups were also used.

Training programmes were also developed to disseminate information and to equip communities and rape survivors on how to fight against rape. AWAM conducted programmes with marginalised communities such as women from plantation estates, fishing villages, and youth. The Association of Women Lawyers (AWL) provided a travelling legal literacy programme for plantation estates to teach people about the legal rights of a rape survivor and legal protections against rape.

Support from the media proved to be most helpful in raising public awareness, and increasing pressure on policy makers. In the middle of the campaign, media and public interest was heightened by the brutal rape and killing of a nine-year old school girl, Ang May Hong. In response, the group Citizens Against Rape was formed and held a one-day demonstration in front of the street where Ang May Hong was murdered. This event jolted the public, policy makers, lawyers and the police into action. Within a year, the laws related to rape were amended.

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# 2 Campaigning Against Domestic Violence
All Women's Action Society (AWAM)
Women's Aid Organisation (WAO)
Women's Crisis Centre (WCC)

At the same time as the Campaign against Rape described in #1, three women's organisations were also collaborating on a campaign against domestic violence. This began in 1987, when the Women's Aid Organisation (WAO) organised a public petition against domestic violence. Over one year, signatures were collected in shopping malls, through the mail, and with the assistance of other non-government organisations.

In 1988, AWAM organised a Mother's Day seminar to consult with community groups on a draft Domestic Violence Bill. To engage the support of policy makers, the Minister of Welfare was invited to officiate, and to receive the petition organised by WAO. The Minister gave her commitment that the draft Bill would be taken seriously, and subsequently a drafting committee was formed.

The committee, under the auspices of the Women's Affairs Department, involved participation from women's organisations, Islamic agencies, key police personnel, the office of the Attorney General, and senior lawyers from the Bar Council. The chairperson was the Deputy Minister of National Unity and Social Development, indicating a high level of government commitment toward the Bill.

Despite this, the committee debated the content of the Bill for more than one and a half years before it was finally enacted by Parliament in 1994. However, the Act was not implemented immediately because procedures had not been formulated. After one year, AWAM organised a public protest and urged the responsible Minister to speed up implementation. This resulted in an immediate review of the delays, and the Act was finally implemented the following year.

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# 3 One-Stop Crisis Centres at Government Hospitals
All Women's Action Society (AWAM)
National Council of Women's Organisations (NCWO)
Women's Aid Organisation (WAO)
Women's Crisis Centre (WCC)

A survivor of domestic violence often requires medical attention during the crisis period. In addition, she also often needs protection, safe accommodation, support, counselling, and legal assistance. Comprehensive assistance requires not only medical personnel, but also counsellors, social workers, legal aid providers and the police. Hospital-based One-Stop Crisis Centres (OSCC) are designed to make all these services available in one place, to all survivors of violence who seek help there.

One-Stop Crisis Centres began slowly in Malaysia, with the first established in 1986 at the University Hospital, Kuala Lumpur, as the result of a campaign against violence against women by women's organisations the previous year. The second was created eight years later at the General Hospital, Kuala Lumpur, in response to a campaign against domestic violence initiated by women's groups. Finally, after women's organisations lobbied the Ministry of Health to make the service more widely available, in 1996 the Minister directed all state hospitals to set up One-Stop Crisis Centres for women survivors of violence. By 1997, they were established in 90 per cent of government hospitals across the country.

When a woman presents at the Accident and Emergency Department of one of these hospitals alleging injuries from domestic violence, the OSCC arranges an immediate examination by a doctor, and treatment if required. Hospital social workers and volunteers from women's organisations are available to provide counselling, and a volunteer provides information and coordinates further assistance.

The National Council of Women's Organisations has recruited and trained a team of volunteer counsellors to provide assistance at OSCCs. It is presently finalising a Counselling Manual for OSCC volunteers to ensure that consistent training is provided nationally. In addition to the volunteer training, programmes are also being conducted by the All Women's Action Society and the Women's Crisis Centre to gender sensitise social and medical workers. These training programmes present a gender analysis of the causes of violence against women, a legal perspective on domestic violence and rape and introduce a gender-sensitive approach towards provision of services and case management by service providers.

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# 4 Monitoring Implementation of the Domestic Violence Act
Women's Aid Organisation (WAO)

In 1997, the Women's Aid Organisation (WAO) decided to undertake a comprehensive study to review the interpretation and enforcement of the Domestic Violence Act (DVA). This was the first review since the enactment of the DVA in 1994, and aimed to evaluate the impact of the Act on efforts to reduce domestic violence.

Information was gathered from documented case studies of WAO clients, discussions with WAO social workers, research reports, and media accounts. The review identified critical areas of concern, and recommended a number of improvements to the Domestic Violence Act.

Findings from the study have been presented to the media and during ad-hoc meetings with government agencies. As a result, some changes have already been considered and incorporated into the implementation of the Act.

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# 5 An Integrated Approach to Preventing Child Sexual Abuse
Women's Crisis Centre (WCC)

Over the three years from 1997, the Women's Crisis Centre (WCC) have developed an integrated approach to preventing child sexual abuse in the Penang region, targeting a range of key groups including teachers, principals, parents and children themselves.

The project began with a two-day seminar for 200 primary school teachers, organised with the Penang State Education Department. Presentations were made by experts in child psychiatry and psychology, representatives from the police and the Social Welfare Department, and medical and social staff from the General Hospital. The seminar covered gender, unequal relationships between adults and children, indicators of abuse, how to help victims and their families, laws to protect children and sources of help. The teachers also discussed how to incorporate the topic of sexual violence into the school curriculum.

Following the seminar, a series of eight workshops was held with the teachers who attended the seminar to further discuss how teachers could integrate what they had learned from the seminar into their school curriculum and school life. The teachers emphasised the importance of gaining the support of school principals to introducing the topic of sexual abuse in the schools.

The following year WCC focused on children, collaborating with a theatre group to present a drama road show entitled "Okay Not Okay" to 4,000 schoolchildren aged 9-11 in 20 primary schools. Combining drama with education, this focused on educating young children to distinguish between good touch (Okay) and bad touch (Not Okay) between adults and children. The show also aimed to teach the children that they are "Okay"; it is the abuser who is "Not Okay".

To complement the performance, 15,000 pictorial books designed to teach children to use their feelings when confronted with uncomfortable intimacy have been distributed to 230 primary schools. Educational pamphlets on "good and bad touch" have also been given to class teachers.

WCC then organised a one-day seminar for 200 primary school principals throughout Penang. This seminar built on the model presented to primary school teachers in the previous year, and aimed to sensitise the principals to sexual violence, and give them ideas on how to handle the issue in their schools.

WCC has also developed resource materials for parents and teachers to assist them to prevent child sexual abuse. Parents have a crucial role in educating their children so that they are aware of safety in schools. A simple information pamphlet, "Child Safety in School", has been developed which touches on the issue of child sexual abuse and provides tips and suggestions for parents. This will be distributed to some 10,000 parents each year when they register their children for the new school intake.

An information manual on child sexual abuse has also been prepared for primary teachers, containing basic information on child sexual abuse, indicators, protocols and procedures for disclosures and victims, and a list of resource agencies. One chapter, developed with a group of teachers, explores how to incorporate sexual violence awareness into the primary curriculum. Further teaching aids, references and training resources will be made available to teachers through a resource library on child sexual abuse at the Women's Crisis Centre.

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# 6 Using the Media to Educate the Public on the Rights of Muslim Women
Women's Crisis Centre (WCC)

In 1994/95 the Women's Crisis Centre conducted a series of media programmes on the rights of Muslim women under Syariah laws. Each half-hour programme covered a single topic, such as the rights of Muslim women in marriage, divorce, maintenance, or guardianship. WCC arranged for an appropriate resource person to give a short presentation at the beginning of the programme, followed by a phone-in session from the public.

The programme successfully encouraged public debate on the issues faced by Muslim women, stimulating the interest of both men and women. It also publicised the services of the Women's Crisis Centre, and increased the number of Muslim women seeking assistance from the centre.

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# 7 Lobbying for Reform of Religious Laws
Sisters-in-Islam, SIS Forum

The Sisters-in-Islam Forum (known as the SIS Forum) is one of the very few Muslim women's organisations actively advocating for the rights of Muslim women under Islamic (Syariah) laws. It has established a specific law reform project focusing on public education and lobbying for better legal protections for Muslim women. The project also attempts to sensitise Syariah lawyers, Kadis (Islamic judges) and Muslim counsellors to the discrimination and biases against women that exist in the Syariah laws, or in their implementation.

The public education components highlight issues specific to Muslim women, such as polygamy, legal protections, and the implications of the hudud laws. The organisation has published simple pamphlets such as "Can Muslim Men Beat their Wives?" and "Are Women and Men Equal before Allah?" to disseminate information to women who face abuse. It also responds to media on issues related to Muslim women so as to raise public awareness of their rights.

These general activities have been complemented by targeted lobbying that seeks review and amendments to the Syariah laws. This work is primarily carried out through meetings, seminars and consultations with key religious leaders, Islamic judges and Islamic academics.

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# 8 Services for Women in Rural Areas
Sarawak Women for Women

The Sarawak Women for Women Service provides a range of services for women facing violence, including young women from rural areas. As the only women's organisation providing support for rape survivors in Sarawak, SWSS lobbied for the creation of a Rape Survivor Support Group. Since 1989, this committee has brought together medical personnel, welfare officers and representatives from the police department to provide support for rape survivors. Rape victims are also assisted at a special room in the General Hospital that has been specially reserved for SWWS volunteers.

SWSS also has a Crisis Phoneline, which provides women with a listening ear, empathy and emotional assistance, assists them to explore ways to resolve their crises and encourages them to make their own decisions.

To complement these services, SWSS trains its counsellors and volunteers in its service philosophy, based on a gender understanding of the root causes of violence against women and the subordinate status of women in Malaysia. SWSS believes this philosophy is crucial to ensure that its counselling services support women to become independent decision makers, instead of being dependent and ill-informed.

The training is based on a Discussion Starter Kit, which covers gender inequality and its impact on every aspect of women's lives. The issues dealt with extend beyond violence against women, to the portrayal of women in the media; marriage; work; reproductive rights; women's roles; self-esteem; prejudices about women and men; and how to be assertive. The sessions are designed to provoke discussions on perceptions of the different roles played by women and men, and the ways their lives are shaped. The Kit has also been used in public seminars and workshops.

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# 9 Integrated Services for Battered Women and Children
Women's Crisis Centre (WCC)

The Women's Crisis Centre provides an integrated service for women in crisis and their children. Women can receive counselling, information and legal advice through a telephone hotline, or face-to-face in the drop-in centre. If requested by the woman, WCC will also counsel the abuser to make him more conscious that domestic violence is not a solution to marital problems, and that it can be a crime. The trained counsellors are drawn from various ethnic groups so that the service can cater to a wide range of clients.

For those women who need to leave home because of violence, WCC operates a shelter home where the women and their children can stay temporarily. Staff from the centre will accompany them to the police and hospitals to make official reports and to other agencies such as the welfare department or the Courts. By working with these government agencies, WCC is able to effect quick action for abused women and their children, and to ensure that abused women who go directly to these agencies are referred to WCC for counselling and shelter.

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# 10 Group Programmes for Abused Women and Children
All Women's Action Society (AWAM)

In 1997, the All Women's Action Society (AWAM) held a three-day programme for a group of 20 abused women to enable them to meet one another and share experiences with each other. A concurrent programme was held for 60 children from violent homes, which also aimed to help them meet and share experiences, and to give them a break from their normal activities. The children's programme was seen as particularly important and innovative, as services often tend to concentrate on counselling and supporting women, and fail to explore the feelings of the children.

The women's programme consisted of small discussion groups, and learning games that incorporated aspects of their lives and activities, such as mapping out the highs and lows of their life histories. Instead of conventional sit-down discussions, various group dynamics and participatory methods were used to break down inhibitions and allow the women to share, initially as individuals and then in bigger groups.

Many of the women reported a definite increase in their sense of self, feeling empowered because they had reclaimed something they had lost. They were able to share their strengths and weaknesses in handling their situations, and develop mutual support networks.

The children's programme consisted of games, group activities to create social interaction, and art and writing. Through these activities the children slowly began to lose their inhibitions and express their personal experiences and inner feelings. As with the women's programme, hearing other children express similar stories was therapeutic.

Following the programme, the women's group initiated a fundraising jumble sale, which raised more than RM2000.00 for AWAM services.

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# 11 Encouraging Community Action on Violence Against Women
People's Service Organisation

Since 1989, the Women's Section of the People's Service Organisations (PSO) has been working on plantations to encourage community support and action on issues related to women and the community. Its activities began with gender analysis workshops, which aimed to make the women (mainly Indian) aware of their subordinate positions as workers, mothers and wives.

The PSO office trains both male and female gender trainers, each of whom then train over 200 women across seven to eight plantations. The training covers issues which affect women's lives in plantations, ranging from specific issues such as the hazards of pesticides and their effects on women's health, through to general issues such as the position of women in society, relationships between men and women, violence against women, and the legal status of women.

The trainers follow-up with women through informal chit-chat sessions during the evenings or weekends. Initially this caused some problems, as it made the men in the plantation aware of the changes in the women. Some challenged the "interference" of PSO, while others decided to live with the changes. In other cases, the men also changed their attitudes on topics such as housework and violence.

As a way to include men and develop a broader understanding of the position of women, PSO has now organised community programmes such as "Relationships between husband and wife". Courses on how to cooperate with each other, sorting out grievances, and so forth are conducted for husbands and wives, and this has helped to further change the perspectives of both men and women. After separate counselling, the men and women are then brought together (if tensions still exist) for joint counselling, prior to joining a group discussion on the ways they have tried to handle their conflicts. This gradual approach has helped families to identify their problems and deal with them in a non-violent manner.

Community activities, such as an annual International Women's Day Celebration, have also been organised by various plantations. Public workshops on women's issues were initially met with reservation and hostility, but over ten years and with the constant groundwork carried out by community leaders, there is now openness, especially on the part of the men. Ways to improve the situation of women in the plantation estates are now being discussed and acted upon.

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# 12 Training Medical Personnel in One-Stop Crisis Centres in State Hospitals
Women's Crisis Centre (WCC)

Although all state and district hospitals in Malaysia have now set up One-Stop Crisis Centres (OSCC) to provide prompt medical service for battered women, resources have rarely been allocated for training. The Women's Crisis Centre (WCC) believe it is important that the medical staff who treat abused women should be sensitised to the issues related to crisis counselling, and took the initiative to look into the training needs of medical personnel at OSCCs. Since 1996, WCC has successfully conducted such training in various parts of Malaysia.

The training varies from two to four days depending on the availability of resource persons and the location. Group work exercises, role play, video presentation and workshop discussions are used to introduce the concept of crisis counselling, develop an understanding of the trainees' own values and beliefs in relation to working with women in crisis, and introduce basic counselling skills. Relevant agencies such as the welfare department and the police are invited to provide input so that participants learn about the protocols involved with the Domestic Violence Act, and the networking process with the different agencies and NGOs.

Building on these experiences, WCC intends to publish a manual on Working with Abused Women specially tailored for medical personnel. This will enable it to reach all hospitals throughout Malaysia.

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# 13 Campaigning Against Sexual Harassment
All Women's Action Society (AWAM)

Since 1995, the All Women's Actions Society (AWAM) has implemented a multi-disciplinary project against sexual harassment, incorporating policy development, gender analysis, networking with other agencies, research, data gathering and dissemination of information. Rather than taking on all the work itself, AWAM collaborates with other agencies wherever possible.

For example, AWAM is working with academics, family planners and the Family Planning Department through a committee overseeing a one-year research project on sexual harassment. It is also establishing an action-oriented network on sexual harassment comprising agencies which deal with survivors of violence, such as the Ministry of Human Resources, public and corporate sectors, lawyers, social service providers and employees organizations. This network is aimed at engaging key policy makers so as to ensure that polices are recommended and implemented effectively.

Another element of the campaign has been advocacy for legal reform. The Society lobbied for a Code of Practice on the Prevention and Eradication of Sexual Harassment in the Workplace, which has now been drafted by the Ministry of Human Resources. Its proposal for a Sexual Assault Act to address inadequacies in existing laws has also met with official approval.

A range of media strategies has been used, including a newspaper public opinion survey; television and radio interviews; and newspaper and magazine articles. To provide additional impact, AWAM tries to involve government agencies such as the Family Planning Department and the Ministry of Human Resources, particularly during interview opportunities. These media strategies will be complemented by an infosheet, "Violence Against Women Watch", which will monitor and provide up-dates on sexual harassment and actions taken by various agencies and organisations against such violence.

To directly influence the workplace, AWAM has conducted gender-sensitising training for manufacturing companies, hotels, educational institutions, public sectors and community groups on the issue of sexual harassment. The videotape and training manual produced for these sessions have been very popular with personnel managers from the corporate sector.

These elements are complemented by a telephone helpline, Telenita, which provides counselling and legal support for survivors of sexual harassment, and a part-time legal support service. The latter is operated in conjunction with the Legal Aid Centre, with assistance from legal aid students and senior lawyers.

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# 14 Establishing National Police Rape Squads
Police Di Raja Malaysia

In response to lobbying by women's organisations, in 1989 the Malaysian Police Force recognised that there was a need to review the attitudes, techniques and procedures of police officers handling rape survivors. The National Council of Women's Organisations coordinated a training programme presented by the Canadian Mounted Police, with contributions from women activists.

Officers from the Canadian Mounted Police shared the methods they used to deal with rape, covering the root causes of rape, how to develop positive attitudes towards rape survivors, how to build a conducive environment for rape survivors to make a report, and how rape squads had been established in Canada. One of the successful aspects of this element seemed to be that it was presented by (Canadian) male police officers to (Malaysian) male police officers.

The women activists introduced a gender perspective on rape and on violence against women in general. Active discussions with the police officers brought out some of the stereotypes about rape survivors, such as that women make false reports in revenge, or that they are raped because they wear revealing clothing. The debate established agreement that rape is a serious and growing crime against women and that more laws are needed to provide better support. Creation of a national Police Rape Squad was suggested as one way the police could provide support for rape survivors.

This idea has now been adopted by the Malaysian police force, and there is now a Police Rape Squad in most states of Malaysia. These aim to create a more conducive environment so that rape survivors (women and children) feel more comfortable making reports to the police, and to build up confidence of rape survivors so that they are more cooperative in providing evidence to assist in investigations. In addition, the squads aim to develop in police officers more positive attitudes and behaviours towards survivors of rape and incest, such as being more sensitive, supportive and encouraging.

The squads are mainly staffed by women police officers, with male officers playing supportive roles in the team. Procedures on how to handle rape cases have been created and disseminated to all state police departments. A special room is also meant to be set aside for rape cases, but this has not been possible in some police stations due to space.

Regular training programmes are conducted by the police department for police officers who are posted to the Rape Squads, focusing on how to investigate rape reports and general awareness of the legal provisions related to rape. The police department also invites in other resource people such as staff from AWAM, social workers from Universiti Hospital and academics.

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Dated: 22Nov2001