PUTRAJAYA, February 14 – The Penal Code (Amendment) Bill 2022 and the Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Bill (No. 2) 2022 regarding the offense of stalking have been presented for the first reading in the Dewan Rakyat on 4 August 2022, the second reading and the third on 3 October 2022 and was approved after receiving more votes than the 192 members of the House of Representatives who were present. However, following the dissolution of Parliament on 10 October 2022, this bill cannot be presented in the National Assembly at the same Parliament session and will need to be presented again in the Dewan Rakyat at the next session.
The Unity Government remains committed to creating laws regarding the offense of stalking. Since January 2023, I have held various engagement sessions with various stakeholders such as the Attorney General’s Department, the Legal Affairs Division of the Prime Minister’s Department, the Women’s Aid Organization and also the Malaysian Bar to re-examine the provisions of the two bills and get the views of stakeholders. As a result of all the engagement sessions, I have proposed improvements to the draft bill to ensure emphasis is given to this offense holistically and covering all aspects of legislation.
A Cabinet Memorandum regarding this bill will be presented to the Cabinet by YB Dato’ Sri Azalina Othman Said, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Legislation and Institutional Reform) in the near future. Subject to the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers, the two bills will be presented again in the Dewan Rakyat at the upcoming Parliament session.
