The DAP man cited women, family and community minister Rina Harun’s statement last month that the bill would be tabled at the next parliamentary sitting, and that a draft was being scrutinised by the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC).

“However, some seven months earlier in a Parliamentary written reply to Batu Kawan MP Kasthuriraani Patto on July 22, Rina said the said bill was ready to be tabled by the end of last year,” he said in a statement in conjunction with International Women’s Day.

“No explanation was forthcoming from the ministry as to why the said bill was not tabled at the end of last year despite Rina’s assurance.”

He added that the previous Pakatan Harapan (PH) government’s plans to present the bill to the Dewan Rakyat in 2020 had been derailed by the change in government.

“I call on the PN government to confirm that the bill will be tabled at the next sitting of Parliament without any further excuses or delay, which would be a fitting message for this International Women’s Day.”

He expressed disappointment in PN’s “procrastination” regarding the bill, as he believes it is likely to receive bipartisan support in the Dewan Rakyat.

In addition, he lamented the Malaysian penal system’s lack of a clear definition of sexual harassment, pointing to Singapore’s Prevention of Harassment Act 2014 as a better example.

“A wide range of acts can constitute sexual harassment, from physical harassment to stalking. As such, it is necessary for specific legislation to be enacted to address the problem.

“Moreover, sexual harassment is not only confined to the workplace and has been reported in cases involving the police and is common in households in the form of domestic violence.”