From wolf-whistles to workplace aggravations, harassment is no longer an annoyance that must be tolerated in silence. It is now a recognised legal wrong in Malaysia. This article explores how recent reforms have transformed the legal landscape. These include the Penal Code (Amendment) Act 2025, the Anti-Sexual Harassment Act 2022 and judicial recognition of a tort of harassment. With new criminal offences, civil remedies, and survivor-centred tribunals, Malaysia is finally acknowledging the psychological harm caused by harassment. But legal change must be matched by individual and collective accountability. The struggle for dignity, safety and justice continues.
Harassment is more than just inappropriate behaviour.
It has been defined as “a persistent and deliberate course of unreasonable and oppressive conduct, targeted at another person, which is calculated and does cause that person alarm, fear or distress” (Lord Sumpton in Hayes v Willoughby [2013]).
What makes harassment especially harmful is that it is often repetitive and targeted. This leaves victims feeling powerless and emotionally distressed.
Recent incidents reported in the media have drawn public attention to the damaging effects of harassment in everyday life.
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University students have reported being followed, photographed, or messaged repeatedly by fellow students despite filing complaints.
Female journalists and politicians continue to face online abuse, including explicit threats and sexist slurs.
In schools, bullying and name-calling – often dismissed as mere ‘teasing’ – have had devastating consequences, including depression and suicide attempts among teenagers. In one case, online harassment led to the suicide of a young person.
These examples show how harassment – whether in the physical world or online – can have serious emotional and psychological consequences.
To combat this, Malaysia now has a growing body of laws. These offer both criminal penalties and civil remedies to victims.
This article examines how harassment, including sexual harassment, is dealt with under the Employment Act 1955, the 2025 amendments to the Penal Code, the Anti-Sexual Harassment Act 2022, and the judicial recognition of a tort of harassment.
Psychological harm, criminalisation of harassment
Harassment, including sexual harassment, has only slowly been the subject of legal protection.
Malaysian laws have advanced in this area through the Employment Act 1955, amendments to the Penal Code, the recognition of a tort of harassment, and legislation aimed at addressing sexual harassment.
The slow development of anti-harassment laws was mainly due to the difficulty in defining harassment and the harm it causes. This is especially true when that harm is not physical.
Traditional criminal laws focused on physical harm. They left psychological harm – such as alarm, fear and distress – largely unaddressed.
However, medical advancements in the treatment of mental disorders and the medical diagnosis of these conditions have overcome evidentiary difficulties in establishing non-physical harm. These have led to the creation of new laws targeting various forms of harassment, including bullying and sexual harassment.
Penal Code (Amendment) Act 2025
The amendment to the Penal Code was passed by the House of Representatives on 10 December 2024 and then by the Senate on 16 December 2024.
Aimed at curbing bullying, it introduces new offences addressing harassment, intimidation and psychological harm. These include online manifestations such as cyberbullying and doxing.
These provisions reflect an emerging right to psychological safety. They recognise that harm is not limited to physical injury or reputational damage.
The amendment act creates eight new categories of offence (Sections 507B to 507F). Two are based on threatening, abusive or insulting words or acts that cause – or are likely to cause – harassment, distress, fear or alarm to a person (Section 507B), even if they are not directed at any specific person (Section 507C).
The punishment may extend to three years or a fine, or both, under Section 507B, and one year’s imprisonment or a fine or both under Section 507C.
Section 507D(1) makes it an offence for anyone to use threatening, abusive or insulting words or acts towards any person. This applies when they know the words or acts will cause the person to believe that harm will be caused to himself or herself or any other person. The offence under this subsection is punishable with imprisonment for up to a year or with a fine or with both.
If the words or acts are made towards a person intending to provoke that person to cause harm to himself or another person, that will constitute an offence punishable. The punishment is the same as under Section 507D(1).
Section 507D(2) extends the punishment to 10 years with a fine if the person who is provoked attempts to commit suicide or commits suicide as a result of such provocation.
Section 507E focuses on doxing. It makes it an offence to publish or make available someone’s personal information with the intent to harass, intimidate or cause distress. The penalty for this offence is imprisonment for up to three years, a fine, or both.
Sections 507F(1) and 507F(2) address the publication or circulation of information with the intent to cause harm.
Section 507F(1) makes it an offence to circulate or publish someone’s identity or information. The intention must be to cause them or their related persons to believe they will be harmed. Section 507F(2) expands on this. It makes it an offence to publish, circulate, or make available such information, knowing it is likely to facilitate harm to the person or their related persons. Both subsections carry penalties of imprisonment up to one year, a fine, or both.
Section 507G introduces a new definition of harm, broadening its scope to include psychological harm. While not defining harassment, the new provisions criminalise conduct that results in harassment of another person. The new provisions fill gaps in existing laws that did not previously address emotional distress caused by harassment, intimidation, and the online publication of personal information (doxing).
Sexual harassment
Sexual harassment, once narrowly understood as a workplace issue affecting women, is now recognised in Malaysia as a broader societal harm. It can affect individuals of any gender, including men and transgender persons.
This form of harassment is rooted in power imbalances and can occur in diverse settings. These include workplaces, educational institutions, public spaces, and online.
The psychological and emotional toll on victims is profound. It ranges from anxiety and depression to long-term trauma.
From workplace regulation to a dedicated statute
Malaysia’s legal response to sexual harassment has evolved significantly.
Initial legislative protection was introduced in 2012 through amendments to the Employment Act. These amendments imposed a legal duty on employers to investigate complaints of sexual harassment in the workplace. They must take disciplinary action against the perpetrator if the complaints are proven.
A major leap forward came with the enactment of the Anti-Sexual Harassment Act 2022 (Asha). This provides a more inclusive, accessible and victim-centred framework for redress.
Judicial recognition of a tort of sexual harassment
In a landmark judicial decision, the Federal Court recognised sexual harassment as an actionable tort (Mohd Ridzwan Abdul Razak v. Asmah Hj Mohd Nor). This ruling empowers victims to pursue civil claims for damages and injunctive relief, independent of statutory mechanisms.
Both the Employment Act and Asha adopt a gender-neutral definition of sexual harassment. It encompasses any unwanted conduct of a sexual nature, whether verbal, non-verbal, visual, gestural or physical. This conduct must be reasonably offensive, humiliating or threatening to a person’s wellbeing.
The Federal Court elaborated on this in Mohd Ridzwan, noting that sexual harassment includes:
Verbal and physical overtures such as sexual innuendos, comments and remarks, suggestive, obscene or insulting sounds, implied sexual threats, leering, ogling, displaying offensive pictures, making obscene gestures…all of which share the air of seediness and cause disturbance or annoyance to the victim.
Expanded remedies under Employment Act
Under Section 81F of the Employment Act 1955, employers are legally obligated to investigate sexual harassment complaints lodged by employees. If the complaint is substantiated, the employer may:
- Dismiss the perpetrator
- Downgrade the perpetrator’s position
- Impose other disciplinary measures, including suspension without pay (not exceeding two weeks)
In addition, Section 13(2) allows complainants to terminate their employment without notice if the employer fails to act on the complaint. They can still claim termination benefits.
Employers must also display notices about sexual harassment to raise awareness and foster a respectful workplace culture.
Relief under Asha
Asha establishes the Tribunal for Anti-Sexual Harassment. This offers a more accessible and informal avenue for redress.
The tribunal hears complaints from any person, not just employees, and operates outside the traditional court system.
The tribunal may order the following forms of relief:
- Monetary compensation or damages up to RM250,000 for emotional distress, reputational harm or other losses
- Written or published apologies from the perpetrator, especially if the harassment occurred publicly
- Participation in rehabilitative or educational programmes to prevent recurrence
- Other appropriate orders, including interlocutory directions to protect the complainant during proceedings
Awards must be complied with within 30 days and are enforceable as court orders. Non-compliance may result in criminal penalties, including fines or imprisonment.
New era for anti-harassment law
The recognition of harassment as both a criminal offence and a civil wrong marks a transformative moment in Malaysian law.
By acknowledging psychological harm and expanding legal remedies, these reforms shift the focus from reactive punishment to proactive protection.
The Employment Act now empowers employees to demand accountability from their employers. Asha offers a dignified and survivor-centred path to justice.
Together with the judicial recognition of harassment as a tort, these developments signal a growing commitment to psychological safety, gender equality and human dignity.
Malaysia’s legal system is no longer silent on the emotional toll of harassment. It is beginning to speak – firmly, clearly, and with the promise of redress.
For these laws to be transformative however, they must be publicised through educational programmes. These should be conducted in schools, colleges, universities and the workplace.
Only then will there be a general understanding and appreciation of the laws to alter behaviour amongst both perpetrators and victims.
UK Menon
Co-editor, Aliran newsletter
10 August 2025
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Well done Kumar Menon for a very well written article. Chosen bits of this should be included in secondary school syllabi so that the seriousness of not understanding this is not lost on coming generations