Malaysia's minister for women's affairs has urged the national police force to have at least one woman officer in every station to deal with rape or sex-abuse victims.
Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, minister for women and family development, said most victims of sex crimes were more comfortable relating the details to a female officer, Malaysian newspapers reported Friday.

Her request was made to Federal Police Commissioner Kamarudin Mohamad Ali at the launch of a legal rights and health education program for women that both were attending Thursday.

Kamarudin said recruitment of women would be increased to 15 percent of the force from the current 12 percent.

But the 15 percent ceiling would not go higher because ``women have certain limitations in relation to the job,'' the Star newspaper quoted Kamarudin as saying. He did not elaborate.

A police spokesman, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the reports.
Kamarudin said more than 10,000 of the country's 86,000 police officers are women and a Women's Care Unit has opened at the police headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, staffed by people trained in psychology and counseling, the New Straits Times newspaper reported.

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