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Citing the case of air hostess Beatrice Fernandez as one example, Women’s
Centre for Change vice-president Zarizana Abdul Aziz said discriminatory practices
based on gender remain unprotected under prevailing laws.
<p>Speaking on the need for a gender equality law, she said the federal court,
labour laws and class arguments based on collective agreements offer no protection
for victims of gender discrimination.</p>
<p>Fernandez was sacked in 1991 for refusing to resign after breaching her contract
by getting pregnant. She lost a 14-year battle against Malaysia Airlines in
March last year when the country’s highest court rejected a petition to
review the employment terms deemed restrictive towards female employees.</p>
<p>“Does a gender equality law cover the private or public sphere? What about
religious and inheritance rights, and cultural norms?” asked Zarizana,
noting that pukul sayang (beating a wife because of love) is an excuse commonly
used by abusive husbands of her clients.</p>
<p>“In our negotiation for rights, where are we heading? Justice should be
the objective and worldview of any person regardless of religion or cultural
background, which are arguable.”</p>
<p>She was speaking at a one-day ‘Gender Equality Seminar: Swedish Experiences’
jointly organised by the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry and
the Swedish Embassy in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.</p>
<p>Zarizana, a Penang-based lawyer, said Malaysia has not met its international
obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women (Cedaw) to streamline national laws.</p>
<p>“Cedaw calls for the repeal of all discriminatory laws but we see that
the debate is still going on (as to) whether house-husbands are unIslamic and
the issue of misyar marriages which were not well-received by Sunni scholars
previously.</p>
<p>“It is a big deal when women are asked to surrender their rights (as proposed
in misyar marriages).”</p>
<p><b>Exploratory journey</b></p>
<p>At a press conference after opening the seminar, minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil
said the government will start exploring the timeliness of formulating a gender
equality law.</p>
<p>“We will hold dialogues on whether the time has come to have such a law.
There will be open discussions on this and once that is decided, the matter
will be referred to the cabinet.”</p>
<p>But the minister remained non-committal on the government’s seriousness
about legislating gender-based rights.</p>
<p>“Yes, the time is now but this (consultation) is only the second step
after the amendment to Article 8(2) of the Federal Constitution (to include
gender as a prohibited ground for discrimination),” she replied to a question
on a time-frame for drafting the bill.</p>
<p>“It’s still a very long journey. What’s important is to formulate
a law based on our own mould. And please remember that gender equality is not
only for women, it is for both women and men.”</p>
<p>Asked if she anticipated any resistance to the idea particularly from Islamic
authorities, Shahrizat said “no, so long as it is fair and just”.</p>
<p>“Yes, there is a need to engage the Syariah authorities. We will set up
a committee for the purpose of exploring the suitability of such a law.”</p>
<p>She said it will be chaired by ministry secretary-general Faizah Mohd Tahir
and comprise religious groups, non-governmental organisations and political
parties.</p>
<p>At one point, the minister took great pains to caution the media against quoting
her as announcing a new draft law, but instead to report that the ministry was
just “embarking on a journey to see if Malaysia is ready for it or not”.</p>
<p>“If what we present at the end of the day is fair and just, I don’t
see why there should be any resistance.”</p>
<p><b>Swedish history</b></p>
<p>The morning session had two Swedish speakers sharing their country’s experiences
in becoming the world’s first gender-balanced society which currently has
50 percent women in Parliament.</p>
<p>Inquiry on Gender Equality Policy chairperson Gertrud Astrom explained the
concept of gender mainstreaming and how national policies had been reorganised.</p>
<p>“It is not easy to formulate and more so to implement. The problem is
over-planning where a lot of time is spent on too many plans until there is
no energy left for implementation.”</p>
<p>She said gender issue is a political issue and must remain so if any changes
are to take place in policy-making.</p>
<p>“The question to ask is, how do different policies meet the needs of men
and women equally? In Sweden, gender equality means giving women and men equal
power to shape society and their own lives.”</p>
<p>Gender equality has been a political norm in Sweden since 1972, she said, adding
that there were no quotas in the Swedish Parliament.</p>
<p>On the issue of cultural and religious barriers raised during the question-and-answer
session, Astrom, a gender equality expert with 25 years experience, said that
some traditions have to be discarded if they prove to be oppressive.</p>
<p>Stockholm County Administrative Board special advisor on gender equality Dennis
Kullman said men would have to get involved in these issues in order to become
a more equal society.</p>
<p>“Equal rights is also a question of human rights and the equality between
women and men are one of our national goals.”</p>
<p><b>PM as catalyst</b></p>
<p>Universiti Malaya Vice-Chancellor Rafiah Salim proposed an alternative approach
with a comprehensive structure putting the prime minister as the agent for change.</p>
<p>“Gender mainstreaming must be on the prime minister’s agenda, not
under other ministries because all strategies and efforts will not happen if
there is no top ownership of the idea.”</p>
<p>Disagreeing with the top-down approach, All Women’s Action Society executive
director Honey Tan said it was vital to ensure that the grassroots understand
the implications of gender issues.</p>
<p>“The PM himself has acknowledged that some quarters are unhappy with women’s
advancement in society and are using culture and religion to stop that,”
she said, quoting from Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s statement in a news report.</p>
<p>One participant suggested that more men are targeted for sensitisation programmes
on the actual meaning of gender equality to prevent women empowerment from being
a pointless pursuit in this area.</p>
<p>About 300 people attended the seminar including government officials, ministry
staff, diplomats, women’s activists, social workers and academics. Also
present were Swedish Ambassador to Malaysia Helena Sangeland and Chief Judge
of Malaya Siti Norma Yaakob.
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