Criminal Investigation Department head Mohammad Bakri Zinin told the Star Daily that domestic violence cases rose to 3,445 in November this year compared to 3,756 last year and 3,264 in 2006.

'I'm sure these figures are just the tip of the iceberg. Many more cases are not being reported to the police because it is so deeply embedded in our culture, making the problem almost invisible,' he told the paper.

Last year, activists with the Malaysian Chinese Association, a political party within the ruling coalition, said they would show the faces of abused Malaysian women publicly to shame their husbands. -- AFP