Yayasan Chow Kit co-founder Hartini Zainudin told FMT she was deeply concerned about the numerous sexual harassment cases on Malaysian campuses, with recent incidents highlighting the persistent challenges in tackling the issue.
Apart from calling on campuses to improve their safety policies, she also urged them to implement transparent reporting mechanisms, provide protection for victims, and conduct mandatory training on professional ethics and respect.
“The institutional response to sexual harassment on Malaysian campuses is not just inadequate – it’s a systemic failure that perpetuates a culture of silence and impunity,” she said.
“Reports of students receiving no responses to their queries and complaints are horrifyingly all too common.
“They reflect a broader pattern of institutional negligence that leaves victims feeling abandoned and powerless.”
Hartini also said she was shocked to learn about the victimisation and vilification of whistleblowers who report sexual harassment cases to campus authorities, stating that she had seen this in two separate cases at an university over the past few months.
Touching on the widespread debate sparked after a professor at Universiti Malaya allegedly sent inappropriate pictures to students last year, she said there were concerns about transparency and accountability in the university’s investigation into the matter.
She said the UM case highlights how those in positions of power can abuse their authority, making students vulnerable.
Hartini said the fact that it required an investigation by the university’s integrity unit underscores the need for more proactive measures to prevent such incidents in the first place.
She noted that a 2021 expose about a lecturer’s predatory behaviour towards students at Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Dengkil points to a wider, systemic problem across multiple universities, suggesting that current safeguards are ineffective.
She also highlighted how another student at UiTM felt compelled to go public on social media to seek justice after expressing disappointment that the authorities had not taken action against the lecturer accused of sexually harassing her for more than a year.
“This shows a breakdown in internal mechanisms for addressing such complaints,” said Hartini.
“It has come to a point where I don’t know what to say to these brave young women any more.”