Chin Su Phin
KUALA LUMPUR: Senator Datuk Chin Su Phin has urged the government to ensure strict and effective enforcement in tandem with heavier penalties on several crimes under the Penal Code amendments.
It would be difficult to reduce or eradicate crimes if enforcers abuse their powers or were corrupted, he said when debating the Penal Code (Amendment) Bill 2013 at the Dewan Negara here yesterday.
He said Section 203A was to take action against persons who leaked information on police or enforcement operations against illegal immigrants, illegal gambling houses or massage parlors, and not on whistleblowers who provided information to enforcers on illegal activities.
Chin urged the government to clarify the facts to the public to prevent this from being sensationalized by irresponsible quarters.
He believed that the government was aware of the difficulty in prosecuting masterminds behind organized crimes with the amendment to Section 170.
However, he opined that the broad definition of a mastermind would cause many criminals to be released due to lack of evidence.
He agreed with the introduction of the new Section 375B on gang rape, but he pointed out that the new section did not include caning for the perpetrators. He also requested for a clearer definition of gang rape.
On a related note, Chin also agreed to the increase of penalty for raping pregnant woman from five to 10 years of jail time to five to 30 years of jail time under Section 376(2)(g). However, he hoped that the minimum jail time could be increased to 10 years.
He hoped that the government could guarantee a reduction in the crime index once these harsher penalties come into effect.