Malaysian minister denies allegations of raping Indonesian maid

Malaysian minister denies allegations of raping Indonesian maid

2011-01-06 10:57:10 GMT+7 (ICT)

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA (BNO NEWS) -- Malaysian Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim on Wednesday denied the allegations that state he raped his Indonesian maid four years ago, local media reported.

Opposition political parties and an Indonesian labor activist group made allegations that Malaysian Information Communication and Culture Minister Rais Yatim, 68, raped his Indonesian maid in 2007, Malaysian state-run Bernama news agency reported.

"I refute the allegations, whether they are about raping any individual four years ago (2007) or any other allegation, raised by bloggers on the Internet or by any political entity," Rais said as the allegations made by the activist group made their way to several Internet blogs.

"All written material, reports, extracts and speculation, including illustrations and photographs, published in any blog or website on the Internet so far on the allegation of misconduct or rape of any individual are ill-favored, malicious and libelous, having been fabricated without any valid legal basis," he said.

In addition, Rais said the allegations have been raised in an attempt to discredit the government as Malaysia's upcoming general elections approach.

Former editor in chief of the daily Malay Mail, Ahirudin Bin Attan, through his blog, Rocky's Bru, argued that a diplomatic document linked to the case exists and was connected with WikiLeaks.

However, Rais stated that "the allegation of rape as published by the blogger has no connection whatsoever with the so-called WikiLeaks exposure."

Meanwhile, the Indonesian Foreign Ministry on Monday said that the case would not be investigated because there is no official complaint lodged with the Indonesian Embassy.

"Since there has been no report, there is nothing we can do to follow up the case," the Ministry told the Jakarta Globe.

As the controversy continues, an August 2007 press release from Migrant Care called for the investigation of an alleged rape, identifying the victim as Robengah and described the rapist as a "Malaysian senior minister." Furthermore, it stated that the victim was afraid of filing a lawsuit due to possible repercussions.

But Rais has remained firm, denying all allegations.

"Any report from abroad or within the country relating to the allegation of the rape of a certain individual in the blogs, websites or other Internet media is a political manifestation intended to destroy my credibility as a member of the Malaysian government administration, where my record of service has never been tarnished by any misconduct in almost 40 years," he stated.

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