What about the pimps and kingpins?

Watching the news on TV reminded me of the thousands of similar scenes we have viewed on the screen over the years, especially over the past few years when the media began to focus on the growing problem of undocumented migrants arriving in Malaysia. A good proportion of these unfortunate people, who for various reasons find it necessary to land on our shores without going through the proper channels, are young women or adolescents who quite often are victims trapped in prostitution syndicates, having been deceived by false promises of employment in various legally recognized professions.

Keep in mind, I call them, ‘victims’. They are not the perpetrators of the crimes committed against them - crimes of violence like rape, sexual abuse and being used like chattel for financial gain. Many of them are at risk of dying from AIDS and contracting other sexually transmitted diseases. It is a risk that no normal person would voluntarily want to expose themselves to, but it has been thrust upon these women by opportunists whose greed places no value on human life or dignity. Such inhuman practices are not confined to the pimp or the syndicates running these prostitution rings.

Regrettably, the media plays up the lewd aspect of this inhumanity by flaunting pictures and photographs of these women in various states of ‘undress’ in its reports of police or immigration department raids. Whether it be “Siasat” by NTV7, RTM News or “999” on TV3, pictures aired are all too familiar.

I feel great pity for these victims treated so inhumanely by the illegal and legal forces in society. One cannot help but wonder what perverse ideas these scenes create. To see young women only in their underwear being ordered out of bed by a group of tough male officials, then being gathered in a room as they are, cowering on the floor or in corners, trying to preserve their modesty by covering themselves or hiding their faces with their hands or their long hair. Clearly, these women are not the ones flaunting themselves.

They have not been given the chance to dress decently or cover themselves adequately before law enforcement officers and the press crowd in to invade their privacy. The media and law enforcement victimize them as well, adding more than insult to injury.
The media seem so fond of exhibiting such scenes. What is the message conveyed? Are they trying to pass judgment on these victims without evidence? Or is it simply a circus, giving the public a cheap thrill, totally in bad taste?

Even last year’s reporting of rape and murder cases was not treated with any consideration for the feelings of the victims’ families, relatives and close friends or for the reputation of the victims themselves. Quite a few of the daily newspapers shamelessly publicized details of these cases, which should have been heard in camera.

Where respect for decency should have been upheld, the media exhibited their tendency to treat women as nothing more than sex objects, reducing the news report to the level of indecent entertainment. The newspaper photograph of a male forensic expert giving evidence in one of these well known cases will never cease to disgust me. His name is not important, but Dr. so-and- so’s picture showed him with a fatuous smile on his face when giving evidence of his findings from the pathological investigation of the dead woman. Were these findings so amusing, when a heinous crime had been committed?

In contrast, western media like the BBC or Channel 4 in the UK never film raids of brothels even though these are reported. If pictures are necessary, the focus is on the suspect (the pimp) who has committed the crime of ‘living on immoral earnings’, a criminal offence under English law. Newspaper reports of trials of sex offenders often aim to portray the horror and revulsion society feels at the offence, and sympathy for the victims, who in some cases can be children. Western media reporting on such issues shows a high level of sensitivity and respect, which our media would do well to emulate.

So, is the increase in sexual crime surprising when the media appear to promote negative attitudes and values towards women, who are very often the victims. A question remaining unanswered is what happens to the pimps and kingpins of these prostitution syndicates? Have they been brought to justice? There is very rare or perhaps no wide publicity about the arrests of these real criminals. Neither are there reports of their having been brought to trial. Does the media have nothing better to do than to further victimize the victims and perpetuate sex discrimination?