Saiful not like a normal sexual abuse victim…

ARCHIVES 2012

By admin-s On Sep 5, 2012

“I feel the victim would want to quickly have a shower to remove the perpetrator’s body smell. In some cases of sexual abuse, the victims would scrub their bodies until nearly wounding themselves, to remove the smell,” said Trowell, who is a Queen’s Counsel.

tumpang sekole…?

For Mark Trowell, an experienced Australian criminal lawyer, alleged sodomy victim Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan does not strike him as a “normal” sexual assault victim.

The author of ‘The trial of Anwar Ibrahim Sodomy II’, which has been on the bookshelves since last week, said it appeared Saiful loved to hog the media limelight and he did not mind it – not at all like any other sexual assault victim.

Trowell, who is also an observer for the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and LawAsia in courts around the world, said it was also not normal for a sexual assault victim not to have a bath for two days.

“I am made to understand that a Muslim, after sexual intercourse, is required to have the ritual bath before he or she can perform prayers. So, the question remains as to how Saiful did his prayers.

“In my 25 years of experience in criminal law, I have never seen someone not bathing for two days to preserve forensic evidence.

“On the contrary, I feel the victim would want to quickly have a shower to remove the perpetrator’s body smell.

“In some cases of sexual abuse, the victims would scrub their bodies until nearly wounding themselves, to remove the smell,” said Trowell, who is a Queen’s Counsel.

Familiar with Malaysian customs

The senior lawyer, who provides reports for the IPU from the trials he observed, has worked extensively both as defence counsel and prosecutor in Australia.

Interestingly, Trowell did have some connection to Malaysia – his father lived in Ipoh during the pre-Merdeka era and as such, the West Australian lawyer is familiar with Malaysian customs.

His reports helped the IPU – the world organisation of Parliaments – to take an informed stand on Anwar’s Sodomy II trial.

Trowell’s 306-page book is published by Marshall Cavendish Editions and was released at all major bookstores in Malaysia last Wednesday.