Malaysia – Ain Sabrina Yusof publicly reported being asked to lift up her shirt by a police officer who had stopped her at a Jalan Duta roadblock. Other women have also recently come forward with similar stories, which seems to point to the fact that this is nothing close to an isolated incident.
Ms Yusof, a 24-year-old data analyst, took her experience to Twitter under the handle @sabiyusof and explained, “At that time, I had forgotten to bring my license…after that, he insisted on exchanging contact numbers with me despite me telling him I was uncomfortable. He gave me his phone and asked me to give him a missed call in front of him.”
Ms Yusof reported how disgusted she felt by this incident to Free Malaysia Today, saying “I was not only sexually harassed, but forced to give him my number. I was threatened with a fine if I did not comply. What an abuse of power. I feel disgusted that women are seen as objects and we as the rakyat should feel protected. Instead, we are abused like this.”
Taking it beyond written words, Ms Yusof also shared her experience in a series of Instagram stories. A recording of the videos have made rounds even on other messaging and social media platforms like Whattsapp and Facebook.
According to Free Malaysia Today, the official Twitter account of the Malaysian Police recently responded to another user’s tweet after she shared a screengrab of a Whattsapp message reportedly sent to her by a policeman who she claimed had also stopped her at a roadblock.
*roadblock*
polis: nak gi mana ni
saya: beli barang dapur jap
polis: ok berenti tepi jap*polis jot down semua information, nombor ic, nombor phone, lesen*
polis a few mins later: pic.twitter.com/wiamTvoDpg
— azie (@nnnadzifah) February 11, 2021
The woman, who has the Twitter handle @nnnadzifah, reported that after stopping her at a roadblock, the policeman she encountered took note of her details including her mobile number and her license plate. The screengrab of the policeman’s message to her later on shows him claiming that he wanted to get to know her better.
The tweet has encouraged other women to bring their similar roadblock stories to the light of day.