How many of you would believe that a seven-year-old child could whip up a fantasy of having been raped when she was aged four? And that too after watching pornography?

No one I am sure except the judge who threw out the case against a 49-year-old kindergarten operator. In March, a Sessions Court sentenced Ewe Peng Lip to 20 years in jail and ten strokes of the cane.

High Court judge Zamani Abdul Rahim overturned the judgment and said the child's testimony had discrepancies. The testimonies of her mother and grandmother were not accepted as they were based on what the victim had told them.

Zamani also ruled that there was no proof of penile penetration and it was "common knowledge" that children find it hard to differentiate fact from fantasy.

"We must not forget who is involved in this rape allegation, even if she is an adult, in which women have a tendency to exaggerate about a sexual act" - these were the words of the learned judge.