The power of your words over ‘OKU’: The harm of careless headlines

By Beatrice Leong

The recent news from Batang Kali – where a young man was arrested for sexually assaulting a schoolgirl in a mosque – serves as a stark reminder of how swiftly headlines can shift public focus from the gravity of a crime to the suspect’s disability status.

When reports chose to highlight that he is an OKU [disability] card holder with a learning disability, absent of any real context, it felt like a blunt instrument wielded against an entire community.

In an instant, complexity gave way to a single label, and once again, disability was cast in an accusatory light – fuelling prejudice and confusion for everyone who shares that label.

The offence itself is grave – this was a sexual assault in a place of worship, committed against a minor. Naturally, our attention should remain on the survivor’s wellbeing, and on the urgent need to protect children and other marginalised individuals.

Instead, the suspect’s disability status became the focal point, capitalised on by sensationalist headlines. In doing so, the media perpetuates harmful myths, as though disability and deviance are intertwined.

Time and time again, we continue to wield disability as clickbait – draining it of nuance and compassion, and ignoring that disability, in all its myriad forms, is simply part of human diversity.

Too often, we are framed as either criminals, battered or dead – or else we become the object of “inspirational porn”, as if these extremes are the only narratives that define the lives of people with disabilities.

The very word “OKU” [less abled person] used so casually, in bold print, casts a long shadow on all who hold that card. Individuals with invisible disabilities – such as learning difficulties or autism – suddenly find themselves portrayed as potential threats, their everyday struggles twisted into a single, damaging stereotype.

Disabled activists like me, families who have fought for a place at the table, forging a path toward acceptance, are thrust back into uncertainty.

And many who genuinely need the OKU card for support and resources hesitate to apply, wary that the stigma might eclipse the benefits.

Meanwhile, the child’s experience appears almost relegated to a grisly backdrop – blurred images and truncated details do little to restore her dignity or address how such violence could occur within a sacred space.

As a society, we must be more conscientious, and as media professionals, more imaginative: we can report on injustices without sensationalising a child’s trauma for shock value. We can illuminate the complex responsibilities that lie in addressing such crimes, instead of drowning them in lurid headlines.

We must also separate a person’s choices from any disability they might have. Autism, learning difficulties or any other condition do not predispose a person to crime.

When I consider my own diagnosis, I think of how my perspective might shape the way I weigh a decision – sometimes with more deliberation, sometimes with less ease – but never with an inevitable pull towards wrongdoing.

To suggest that criminal acts occur “because of a disability” is to rob us of our individuality, to flatten the rich tapestry of human behaviour into a single, misguided trope.

Surely we can champion supported decision-making for those who need it, without painting everyone with the same broad brush.

What can we do instead?

First and foremost, we must refuse to sensationalise a perpetrator’s disability status. Instead, we can:

• Provide balanced, contextual reporting – emphasising that a suspect’s disability does not reflect on others who share the same condition
• Use headlines and storytelling tactics responsibly, resisting clickbait and avoiding any conflation of disability with criminal intent
• Preserve the dignity of survivors by adopting sensitive language, ensuring that details shared are necessary, respectful and mindful of the child’s wellbeing
• Recognise our collective power as narrators – journalists, filmmakers, social media voices – and commit to fair, evidence-based coverage that informs rather than inflames prejudice
• Offer resources or expert perspectives in reporting, showing the breadth of disabled communities rather than reducing them to a single headline

We must also guard against overgeneralising the experiences or behaviours of people with disabilities.

In Malaysia, the Content Forum actively disseminates guidelines and engages the public on precisely these issues. Yet headlines continue to trample upon the dignity of the disabled community in pursuit of extra clicks. The time for better practice is now, not later.

Ultimately, these events transcend one specific case; they speak to our responsibility in an era of instant dissemination of digital information. Filmmakers, journalists, influencers and everyday social media users all mould how the public perceives disability, crime and accountability. We cannot shy away from the gravity of that power.

We can do better. We must safeguard the child and refuse to feed a media cycle that thrives on spectacle.

Let us not burden an entire community with the wrongdoing of one individual.

Let us start journalistic reporting that is ethical and empathetic, that honours both survivors and the true complexity of disability, and that resists the lure of shallow, lazy stereotypes.

Our words, once unleashed, can either affirm or diminish an entire group of people. So choose affirmation. Because in a world where so many voices remain marginalised, the words we use shape not only headlines, but the very hopes and fears of those who read them.

Beatrice Leong, an autistic woman, is a gender-disability rights advocate and independent documentary filmmaker dedicated to reshaping public perceptions around disability. Through her advocacy, storytelling and film work, she challenges stereotypes and promotes inclusive policies. By weaving empathy and lived experience through storytelling into her work and advocacy, she pushes for a world where every individual’s worth is both recognised and respected.

The views expressed in Aliran's media statements and the NGO statements we have endorsed reflect Aliran's official stand. Views and opinions expressed in other pieces published here do not necessarily reflect Aliran's official position.

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