How equal are women in Malaysia?
Despite the Government's commitment to women's equality, the
monitoring of different state parties' obligations to equality
is essential. The State often does not have the same access as
NGOs to women 'on the ground' who experience discrimination. Women's
groups and NGOs in Malaysia have a vital role to highlight areas
where women continue to face discrimination - to lobby for changes
that will remove barriers to women's equality in all spheres of
women's lives.
Women, Culture and Religion
The different religions and cultures of Malaysia have many positive
aspects in women's lives. However, it is also the case that women
are discriminated against by their religions and cultures, which
perpetuate stereotyped gender roles and protectionist and patriarchal
attitudes towards women.
The “family” remains culturally at the centre of Malaysian life.
A 1999 WAO report, 'Monitoring the Fulfilment of the Malaysian
Government's Obligation to Women's Equality: A Baseline Report
on marriage and Divorce', shows how Malaysian women face much
discrimination in the area of marriage and divorce, through attitudes
towards expected roles of women, and through the formulation,
interpretation and implementation laws.
Within marriage, many women are expected to remain in the home,
as homemakers and mothers. If women are given the choice to work,
many are forced to give their salaries to their husbands. Many
women who work before marriage have been ordered to give up their
jobs when they marry.
The re-naming of the Ministry of Women's Affairs, reinforces
women's place in the home and family life, while women's other
roles in society become secondary!
Women who choose not to work also find themselves discriminated
against. For example, the Domestic Violence
Act (1994) does not protect individuals who live together
but are not married according to civil or customary law, or victims
of dating violence. In short, the Domestic Violence Act criminalizes
violence against women, but only if you are a married women.
Many other laws are not satisfactory in guaranteeing protection
against gender discrimination. Women's organisations, NGOs and
others have long campaigned for amendments to laws relating to
divorce, custody, maintenance, immigration, domestic violence,
property, and tax to safeguard against discrimination. To date,
only the Income Tax and Distribution Acts, and laws relating to
rape have been amended.
Several of the religions practised in Malaysia, including Islam,
Catholisism, Buddhism and Hinduism, deny women access to interpreting
and implementing their sacred texts. Such patriarchal structures
and practices contribute to women's lack of representation in
leadership positions. Women are also denied access to certain
sacred places and rituals, for example, if they are menstruating.
Such practices encourage negative attitudes towards women, including
disrespect and inferiority to men, and demean the status of women.
Stereotyped gender roles and protectionist and patriarchal attitudes
enshrined in religion and culture permeate through society, and
are reflected in the nation's schools, in places of work, in media,
government, laws and in the home.
School curricula, religious teaching material and media images
continue to stereotype women as homemakers when many women in
also Malaysia work and pursue careers.
Although the number of women members of political parties is
high, representation of women in decision-making positions in
the Government and other statutory bodies is poor, and falls well
short of the 30% women participation rate in Government targeted
in the 1995 Global platform for Action.
Women in Work
Women represent 36% of the Malaysian workforce according to official
statistics. However, half of this comprises women working as unpaid,
family workers.
Although the number of economically active women has increased,
the largest growth in women's participation has been in middle-
and low-level jobs, such as clerical and production jobs. And
while more women are entering professional sectors, this is largely
restricted to nursing and teaching professions.
In 1980, women accounted for only 7% of employers in the economically
active population of Malaysia. By 1990, female employers had still
only reached 8.5%, with men still comprising the vast majority
in employee status. Conversely, women continue the greatly outnumber
men in unpaid work, 64% women to 35% men in 1990. Especially in
the private sectors, women continue to collect lower wages than
their male colleagues. (1)
Women and the Law
The legal system in Malaysia is to a large extent derived from
the English legal system. Civil and criminal laws come under the
Federal Government's jurisdiction. State Governments determine,
among other areas, Syariah (Islamic) Law and Native Laws that
apply to indigenous groups. For Muslims, family laws, including
marriage and divorce laws, are governed by the Syariah Courts.
Overlapping between Syariah laws and civil and criminal laws
causes difficulties in the working of the law, and in the formulation
or amendments of laws. One example is the amendment to the Guardianship
Act to grant non-Muslim women equal rights to guardianship. This
right was not extended to Muslim women because Muslim women are
under the jurisdiction of Syariah Law.
The eleven year campaign for a Domestic Violence Act, which was
finally implemented in June 1996, posed similar problems in ensuring
that both Muslim and non-Muslim women would receive equal protection
and rights from this law. More on the Domestic
Violence Act and Conflict of Jurisdiction.
Women's Equality
Equality is enshrined in the Federal Constitution of Malaysia,
“All persons are equal before the law and entitled to equal
protection of the law” (Article 8 (1).
Yet the protection against gender discrimination guaranteed in
Article 8 (1) is not upheld in Article 8 (2),
“Except as expressly authorised by this Constitution, there
shall be no discrimination against citizens on the ground only
of religion, race, decent or place of birth in any law relating
to the acquisition, holding or disposition of property or the
establishing or carrying on of any trade, business, profession,
vocation or employment.” (Article 8 (2).
The absence of State sanctioned protection against sexual discrimination
in the Federal Constitution has failed to protect against a legal
system and social structures in which equality between the sexes
is apparent.
Women and men are not equal before the law, nor do the sexes
have equal protection of law. Women before the law continue to
encounter sexual discrimination, in the formulation of laws, in
lack of laws to protect women against discrimination, and in the
interpretation and enforcement of laws. Inequality, and a failure
to protect women against discrimination manifest itself in many
detrimental ways in all spheres of women's lives.
Pushing the Women's Agenda Forward
In 1999, women's organisations, NGOs and individuals came together
to raise awareness of the specific problems, issues and needs
of Malaysian women, with the aim of strengthening the voices and
roles of women in Malaysia, to promote equality between women
and men.
The outcome is the Women's
Agenda for Change, which examines the status of women in Malaysia
11 issue areas, and sets out Actions for Change.
The Women's Agenda for Change recognises the progress made by
women in the last decades. But, it also highlights the difficulties
and disadvantages women continue to face in many aspects of their
lives.
Violence Against Women is one shameful and glaring indicator
of inequality and discrimination and seriously inhibits women's
ability to enjoy rights and freedoms on a basis of equality with
men.
Sexual
Harassment of women continues to demean and degrade women.
It threatens women's safety, and jeopardises women's rights to
work.
In 1999, a Code
of Practice on the Prevention and Eradication of Sexual Harassment
in the Workplace launched. While the Code sends a clear message
on how society views Sexual Harassment, the absence of legislation
means women still do not have the legal means for redress in sexual
harassment cases.
Fives years on from its implementation, the Domestic
Violence Act (1994) has yet to make significant advances towards
eradicating domestic violence. While women's groups continue to
inform women of their rights under the DVA, we must also warn
women to be prepared for delays, inconsistencies and inaction.
Failures in implementation reflect a more pervasive environment
in which the rights of women are not always respected, or even
understood.
The Women's Agenda for Change continues to push the Women's Agenda
Forward in Malaysia in many areas of women's lives.
This is also your agenda. Use it to lobby:
- The government and institutions for their support in terms
of policy measures and actions.
- The politicians so that they will incorporate the issues and
recommendations into their election manifesto and, if elected,
their constituency programmes.
- The general public to raise their awareness on the issues
and challenges facing women in Malaysia.
Sources:
(1) Reviewing Malaysian Women's Status: Country Report in Preparation
for the Fourth UN World Conference on Women, 1994, Coordinated
by Jamilah Ariffin, Population Studies Unit, University of Malaya.
(2) Monitoring the Fulfilment of the Malaysian Government's
Obligation to Women's Equality: A Baseline Report on Marriage
and Divorce, October 1999, Women's Aid Organisation
(3) Women's Agenda for Change, 2nd Edition, 2000,
http://members.nbci.com/wa4change/english.htm
