Malaysia asked to stop caning practice

By Harry Oldfield

Malaysia has been urged to stop the practice of caning. 

A Human rights group has reported that using caning as a form of judicial punishment has reached epidemic proportions in Malaysia. The group has urged that the practice should be outlawed.

Using caning as a punishment in Malaysis is legal for over 60 different offences. Blows and strikes are administered to the body with a long cane. Amnesty International has reported that many of the victims of the abuse are refugees.

Amnesty International has released estimates that at least 6,000 refugees and 10,000 prisoners are subjected to the treatment every year. The government of Malaysia has argued that caning is both a legal and an effective way of deterring criminal acts and behavior.

Amnesty International has argued that the practice is an inhumane treatment. The human rights organization found that the practice promotes not only physical damage but also psychological damage to the victims and should be banned in the country.

Amnesty International further described that the practice of caning shreds the victims flesh and leaves scars that reach all the way to the muscle tissue.

The use of caning in the country was originally introduced by British colonial regulations. The practice dates all the way back to the 19th century. Amnesty International has reported that the increasing influx of migrant workers in the country has caused the practice to become more widespread as government officials use caning as a form of punishment in prisons.

Malaysia does not recognize the refugee status and many who have fled to Malaysia from their homeland suffer the caning before being deported.