Yesterday (7 Feb), the Kuala Terengganu Magistrate Court sentenced Mohd Shahril Md Ross to 26 months in jail. The man was charged for assaulting and threatening his wife, reported Astro Awani.
The wife was reportedly beaten up because she had asked the husband to send their child to school.
Shahril, a 38-year-old businessman, pleaded guilty to the two charges against him before Magistrate Abdul Hayyi Salim.
According to the charges, Shahril had slapped and punched his 38-year-old wife in the head and face as well as delivering kicks to her body, causing injuries. He also threatened to kill the victim with a knife.
Source: Astro Awani
The crime was committed in the couple’s home in Gong Badak, Kuala Nerus last year on Feb 8.
Domestic violence is a social ill of public concern and Malaysia does recognise it as an issue, as seen in the institution of the Domestic Violence Act 1994 in 2012. However, despite laws against it, domestic abuse has been on the rise with a total of 15,617 reported cases between 2014 and 2017.
In fact, domestic abuse consultations more than doubled in 2017, reported Women’s Aid Organisation (WAO), an organisation that’s been battling violence against women in Malaysia since its founding in 1982.
Mohd Shahril has been charged under Section 323 of the Penal Code for deliberately causing injuries and Section 506 of the same sentence for criminal intimidation.
Any of our readers who are victims of domestic violence can get help by contacting WAO – you may SMS or WhatsApp TINA at 018 988 8058 or call the WAO Hotline at 03-7956 3488 for assistance.
For the rest of us, the fight continues to make Malaysia a just and righteous country for everyone residing here. What other laws do you feel are necessary for our country? What are other social ills do you think we must battle? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
Also read: Report: Over 50,000 Sex Crimes & Domestic Violence Cases Recorded in M’sia Since 2013
