Syerleena Abdul Rashid said while the women, family and community development ministry reported 1,929 incidents like domestic abuse, incest and rape involving minors from March to October last year, data by police indicated a decline.

The ministry also noted a decline in the number of child abuse cases reported in the first nine months of last year (3,875), but police in some states had reported an almost 100% increase in incest cases during the movement control order.

“The uncertainty of information that is presented to us suggests a deficiency of how data is collected, and the scarcity of neutral reporting highlights the dire need for a cohesive response from the authorities as well as governing federal legislation,” the Seri Delima assemblyman said in a statement.

Syerleena added that Malaysian women were getting a raw deal when a minister like Rina Harun downplayed the importance of the federal government’s role in protecting sexual abuse survivors by suggesting that lodging police reports was sufficient.

She said such “delusions” were extremely dangerous as it ensured continuous misogyny and did little to encourage reporting of sexual abuse.

“The entire system needs an overhaul, along with the mindset as well. If the government is serious about tackling sexual abuse, then protection for women and children who come forward must be guaranteed.”

Syerleena said there must not be any further delay in tabling the Sexual Harassment Bill, adding that once a legislation was in place, it “sends out a strong message that the government will not tolerate abuse of any form” and would provide a sense of security for survivors to come forward.

Her comments come a day after PKR slammed Rina for failing to understand the importance of the bill.

PKR women’s chief Fuziah Salleh said the bill was meant to strengthen existing laws that were insufficient to deal with sexual harassment.