MoE Investigation Has Yet To Find Evidence To Support Claims of Period Spot Checks in School

By Ameera Rosli  •  28 Apr 2021 in News

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A few years back, JUICE mentioned in passing how female students have been violated in school through ‘period spot checks’, and more recently, we wrote a report detailing the experiences of the various young women who have bravely spoken against this wrongful practice as the internet spiralled into a frenzy due to the issue emerging again on social media on April 16.

Despite the numerous claims of its prevalence in schools, the Ministry of Education believes that there is not enough evidence to suggest that this practice actually occurs.

Education minister Radzi Jidin probed into this matter by asking for information and a list of schools that have been said to conduct these spot checks on schoolgirls while they are having their period. He said in a statement, “If it happens, tell me at which school, so action can be taken.”

According to the minister, the ministry is investigating these incidents but so far, there is no indication that it actually happens. He told Bernama, “We’re drilling until now, we are checking one by one, we’ve asked all divisions and the answer was no (such practices existed).”

However, if the ministry finds evidence of such practice, further action will be taken to stop it from persisting.

Period spot checks are allegedly done at certain schools to check whether a student is actually menstruating or just using it as an excuse to skip fasting and prayers. The checks are invasive since teachers would grope the female students by their private parts to feel for a pad.

According to some of the women who have spoken out on social media, teachers even kept a registry and tracked each female student’s cycle. This is not only an encroachment of the student’s privacy but it is also inaccurate since young women, especially those just starting their menstruation, tend to have irregular cycles.

ICYMI, here’s our roundup of events leading up to the issue’s emergence on social media.