Home-wreckers or Prostitutes?

If you are female, and a foreigner, try not to hang around discos, karaokes or entertainment outlets. Malaysian enforcement officers and police could be overzealous in their duties and may misconstrue you as a prostitute and arrest you.

High Court judge Datuk V.T. Singham said enforcement officers should not be prejudiced against foreign women found at entertainment centres and brand them as prostitutes.

The law allowed women from foreign countries to enter Malaysia and enjoy themselves at entertainment centres, he said.

"If that’s the attitude, foreigners will not want to enter the country or go to entertainment centres because they would be scared of being arrested for so-called breaking the conditions of their visa."

On July 19 and 20, 14 women, 11 female Chinese nationals and three Vietnamese women were arrested and charged with breaking conditions of their visa as stated in their passports by entertaining customers at the Mikado Pub & Muzikal Hall at No 30-32, Taman Sentosa 2, Sitiawan, between 11.30pm.

Subsequently, the Seri Manjung magistrate’s court only took five minutes to read the charge to them and did not even check if the three Vietnamese women understood the charge.

The women appealed to the High Court to review their case.

The women, aged between 18 and 37, have already served almost two months’ jail since their arrest on July 19.

During yesterday’s proceedings, Singham observed that no evidence was tendered on the roles played by the 14 foreign women, whether they were at the door inviting customers into the entertainment centre or merely singing karaoke to entertain themselves.

"Even if they were seen with local customers, we cannot assume that they were entertaining them," he said.

He said there should be proper investigation before a charge was framed and urged law enforcers not to be overzealous but to conduct their investigation with a clear and open mind.

"It is adding salt to injury by saying that they were prostitutes," he said.

Deputy public prosecutor How May Ling conceded that the charge did not specify the condition that was breached.

She also conceded that while there was no evidence that the women were prostitutes, they were charged as though they were because of a comment by the prosecuting officer that they were "welcomed because they were tourists but were home-wreckers because they were prostitutes".

May Ling also said there was a discrepancy in the dates, as the girls were arrested on July 19 for a crime they allegedly committed later, as the charge sheet listed the time of the offence as between 11.30pm on July 19 and 11.30pm on July 20.

Counsel Ranjit Singh Sandhu objected to How May Ling’s application for a retrial, stating that the facts presented against them were not only irrelevant to the charge but also highly prejudicial.

The women entered the country legally and had valid travel documents when they were arrested, he said.

High Court judge Datuk V.T. Singham acquitted 11 female Chinese nationals and three Vietnamese women yesterday, setting aside their conviction and five months’ jail sentence for allegedly breaking the conditions of their social visit pass.