"Erase the Violence" Campaign 

Battering: an ugly word, but it is the harsh reality of life for many Malaysian women.

A staggering 21, 343 cases of domestic violence and 11, 658 cases of rape have been reported to the police over the past six years, but sadly, this figure does not even include the many cases that are unreported and unrecognized.  In Malaysia, prevailing attitudes and a lack of concern have meant that for many years, the nation’s battered and raped women have very little alternative but to resign themselves to living in constant fear of violence.

Finally in 1982, Women’s Aid Organization (WAO) founded the first shelter for victims of domestic violence and rape - a home where Malaysia’s battered and raped women could turn to in times of crisis.  Since its founding, WAO’s Refuge has been providing shelter (an average of 100 women) and telephone counselling (an average of 1500 calls) each year. 

In 2007 alone, WAO received 1200 telephone counselling calls and received 100 women who sought shelter at the refuge from their violent situations. The national statistics in 2006 showed 3,264 domestic violence cases and 2,454 rape cases reported to the Police.

Continuous public education is key to reach out to women experiencing violence as well as to their family and friends who may be able to advice her to call for help.

“Erase the Violence” Eraser campaign is an innovative idea to reach out to the Malaysian public to spread the word that WAO is only a phone call away. We hope to reach out to schools, colleges, and the general public through this campaign.

The idea of the using an eraser (rubber) is the brainchild of Arc World Wide headed by Kien Eng and assisted by Valerie Chen and Theresa Tsang. The eraser is being sold to raise funds while at the same time raising awareness.

WAO thanks Arc World Wide which has been creating public education materials for WAO since 1997. Our thanks go to Faber Castell as well for providing us with 200 erasers.

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