The Star
WOMEN everywhere marked the centenary of International Women’s Day on March 8. We hesitate to say “celebrate” the day because, while there have been many gains, there are still many barriers to overcome, and gender equality still seems infuriatingly far off.
After all, the battle for gender equality should be a fact of life, not just a day on the calendar.
Women’s groups here, like their “sistas” elsewhere, have fought on many fronts, such as equal pay, separate taxation laws, domestic violence and rape.
For that we applaud them.
It’s also thanks to them that there is increasing realisation that feminism is not a dirty word and that it’s not about angry women burning their bras.
After all, the battle for gender equality should be a fact of life, not just a day on the calendar.
Women’s groups here, like their “sistas” elsewhere, have fought on many fronts, such as equal pay, separate taxation laws, domestic violence and rape.
For that we applaud them.
It’s also thanks to them that there is increasing realisation that feminism is not a dirty word and that it’s not about angry women burning their bras.
Unfortunately, legal reforms alone do not transform the social clime. Attitudes, prejudices and the cultural atmosphere continue to exist long after legislature is enforced, and often spottily.
So although on paper, a woman’s status is enhanced, in actuality the state of her affairs remains unchanged.
In the World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap report on Malaysia, which ranks 98 out of 134 countries, the only areas in which women exceed men is in tertiary education enrolment and in life expectancy. In all other areas, women still lag behind men.
Women make up roughly half the potential work force of the country, yet represent only 36% of the actual labour force.
There is, moreover, a disproportionately large number of women in the informal sector, namely, women who run small food stalls or who are casual and subcontract workers, and who do not receive any worker benefits or health insurance.
Those who work as casual labourers among men encounter various forms of gender harassment – from receiving lower salaries than their male counterparts to being physically abused.
Professional women have it better, but are still discriminated against when it comes to promotions, especially to positions of responsibility, and in terms of equal pay. They are faced with the dilemma of having to choose between pursuing their careers or devoting more time to their families.
In politics, of a total of 71 in the present Malaysian Cabinet, there are only 10 women ministers and deputy ministers.
This represents a mere 14% of top political decision makers in the country, far short of the 30% target set by the United Nations (UN).
Violence against women continues unabated with almost daily reports of rapes, beatings and murders.
Muslim women, in particular, have not enjoyed the same rights accorded to their non-Muslim sisters. In the 1990s, several amendments were made to various Islamic laws that eroded the rights and protection granted to Muslim women.
For example, they still have to put up with polygamy, and as far as divorce is concerned, it is so hard for women to obtain it that some opt to lose their financial assets just to get their husbands to agree to a divorce.
Women work, take up roles in politics and the economy, and in some households are even the sole breadwinners, but the man-made laws have not moved in tandem to recognise these new realities.
As Kofi Annan, former secretary-general of the UN, said, “When women thrive, all of society benefits, and succeeding generations are given a better start in life’’.
Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil takes it even further: “It’s been proven that when you empower women, you empower her entire community. “Although women in Malaysia have achieved a great deal over the years, we cannot deny that there remains much to be done.
“Women still put their families first and neglect their own health; they often give up their careers because the environment in the work place does not cater for their complex needs. Companies can do a lot to improve women’s standing.”
And, indeed, companies with a conscience do pay attention to creating greater equality at work.
The Star, for example, is gender neutral. Women hold management positions.
In fact, Datuk Ng Poh Tip, The Star’s former group chief editor, was the first woman in Malaysia to hold the position in the industry.
Women reporters are also assigned hard political and economic stories and cover war zones and natural disaster areas. Right now, two of our women reporters are reporting on the turmoil in Libya and Tunisia.
So it is not all doom and gloom. Our daughters, brought up with the gains of the women’s movement, are growing up in a world where the equality of women in everything from education to the work force is accepted. They will continue to expect and demand a fairer, and an equitable, society – and they will get it.
The further good news is that there are at least one or two generations of men who have been raised by enlightened mothers (and possibly fathers) who have no hang-ups about treating women fairly, and seeing that as the norm.
But there are still people who scratch their heads and ask: What do women really want?
The answer: Women want what men have. The freedom to choose whatever life they want – not to be confined by ideas of what they should or should not be, what they can or cannot achieve. The right to be anything, to set their sights as high, as wide and as far as ideas and action can take them.
It’s as simple as that.
So although on paper, a woman’s status is enhanced, in actuality the state of her affairs remains unchanged.
In the World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap report on Malaysia, which ranks 98 out of 134 countries, the only areas in which women exceed men is in tertiary education enrolment and in life expectancy. In all other areas, women still lag behind men.
Women make up roughly half the potential work force of the country, yet represent only 36% of the actual labour force.
There is, moreover, a disproportionately large number of women in the informal sector, namely, women who run small food stalls or who are casual and subcontract workers, and who do not receive any worker benefits or health insurance.
Those who work as casual labourers among men encounter various forms of gender harassment – from receiving lower salaries than their male counterparts to being physically abused.
Professional women have it better, but are still discriminated against when it comes to promotions, especially to positions of responsibility, and in terms of equal pay. They are faced with the dilemma of having to choose between pursuing their careers or devoting more time to their families.
In politics, of a total of 71 in the present Malaysian Cabinet, there are only 10 women ministers and deputy ministers.
This represents a mere 14% of top political decision makers in the country, far short of the 30% target set by the United Nations (UN).
Violence against women continues unabated with almost daily reports of rapes, beatings and murders.
Muslim women, in particular, have not enjoyed the same rights accorded to their non-Muslim sisters. In the 1990s, several amendments were made to various Islamic laws that eroded the rights and protection granted to Muslim women.
For example, they still have to put up with polygamy, and as far as divorce is concerned, it is so hard for women to obtain it that some opt to lose their financial assets just to get their husbands to agree to a divorce.
Women work, take up roles in politics and the economy, and in some households are even the sole breadwinners, but the man-made laws have not moved in tandem to recognise these new realities.
As Kofi Annan, former secretary-general of the UN, said, “When women thrive, all of society benefits, and succeeding generations are given a better start in life’’.
Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil takes it even further: “It’s been proven that when you empower women, you empower her entire community. “Although women in Malaysia have achieved a great deal over the years, we cannot deny that there remains much to be done.
“Women still put their families first and neglect their own health; they often give up their careers because the environment in the work place does not cater for their complex needs. Companies can do a lot to improve women’s standing.”
And, indeed, companies with a conscience do pay attention to creating greater equality at work.
The Star, for example, is gender neutral. Women hold management positions.
In fact, Datuk Ng Poh Tip, The Star’s former group chief editor, was the first woman in Malaysia to hold the position in the industry.
Women reporters are also assigned hard political and economic stories and cover war zones and natural disaster areas. Right now, two of our women reporters are reporting on the turmoil in Libya and Tunisia.
So it is not all doom and gloom. Our daughters, brought up with the gains of the women’s movement, are growing up in a world where the equality of women in everything from education to the work force is accepted. They will continue to expect and demand a fairer, and an equitable, society – and they will get it.
The further good news is that there are at least one or two generations of men who have been raised by enlightened mothers (and possibly fathers) who have no hang-ups about treating women fairly, and seeing that as the norm.
But there are still people who scratch their heads and ask: What do women really want?
The answer: Women want what men have. The freedom to choose whatever life they want – not to be confined by ideas of what they should or should not be, what they can or cannot achieve. The right to be anything, to set their sights as high, as wide and as far as ideas and action can take them.
It’s as simple as that.
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