Nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) can play a role in helping to disseminate information related to domestic violence laws, especially to women in rural areas, said Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri.

She said the NGOs include Skuad Waja or women anti-crime squad which has a membership of about 350,000 nationwide.

“We hope that these NGOs can assist us in spreading the relevant information so that we can help (domestic violence) victims out there in terms of legal issues,” she told a press conference after officiating the Matahari (Increasing Women’s Resilience and Psychology) and Iris (Legal Literacy and Women’s Rights) programmes, here recently.

Nancy said the Matahari programme was aimed at encouraging women to improve their wellbeing through psychological strategies, positive thinking and emotional stability.

She said the Iris programme, on the other hand, focused on conveying information and sharing knowledge about women’s rights from legal aspects, proper complaint channels and assistance provided to victims of violence and discrimination.

According to her, a total of 506 domestic violence cases were reported through the Talian Kasih hotline last year compared to 468 cases in 2021.

Meanwhile, commenting on a news report involving a woman who claimed that she was denied entry into a police station because she was wearing shorts, Nancy said there should be no discrimination against any party.

She said it was understood that the woman went to the police station to lodge a report after being involved in an accident.

“It is inappropriate to deny access to any individuals to a police station regardless of how they dress,” she said. — Bernama