NAJIB SHOULD NOT REMAIN AS MINISTER OF WOMEN, FAMILY AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT IF HE DOES NOT TAKE WOMEN'S RIGHTS SERIOUSLY

It is hard to understand why Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak
would choose an occassion such as National Women's Day to insult
Malaysian women and our efforts to achieve equality.

Najib, who is also Women, Family and Community Development Minister,
was quoted as saying there is "no need for a women's rights movement
in Malaysia." According to him, equality has already been given from
the start.

Najib further revealed just how out of touch he is with the lives
ordinary Malaysians, especially women when he used the example of an
elite golf club in the United States that restricts women membership.
Women in Malaysia, he says, are free to join any club.

What he fails to understand is the struggle for gender equality is not
about gaining admission to elite country clubs. Instead, generations
of Malaysian women have been struggling to address the lack of women
in decision-making positions, such as Parliament, State Assemblies,
corporate boardrooms and the civil service. We have been fighting to
ensure women receive equal pay as our male counterparts. We have been
demanding for women to be treated by society with respect and dignity.

In these areas, Malaysia remains very far behind the rest of the
world. Despite making up half the population, less than 10% of Members
of Parliament are women, while only a small fraction of candidates for
public office are female. The recent spate of lenient sentences for
those found guilty of statutory rape also served as a reminder how
much further we still have to go in pursuit of justice for women in
Malaysia.

To make matters worse, Najib's view on women's rights is apparent not
only from his words, but also deeds. This can be seen in the continous
reduction in budget allocation given to the Women, Family and
Community Development Ministry.

In 2010, it received RM2.4 billion in budget allocation. The following
year it was reduced to RM2 billion, before being slashed to RM1.9
billion in 2012. For 2013, the ministry will have to make do with even
less: only RM1.8 billion has been allocated in the recently announced
budget. One would think with Najib helming the ministry it would be
given priority in terms of funding, but clearly the opposite has
happened.

In stark contrast, Pakatan Rakyat allocated RM4.5 billion in its
shadow budget, which will include a National Women's Contribution Fund
and childcare allowance.

The Fund will operate as a social safety net for five million women
homemakers, and cost RM3 billion a year to operate. In the event that
they widowed, disabled or divorced, they will be able to fall back on
the fund for their needs.

Najib's statment today is a shameful step back in the movement towards
gender equality and representation. However it has certainly made
clear to the public that he does not regard women's rights as
important. This is why he should not remain as Minister of Women,
Family and Community Development.

YB ELIZABETH WONG
Executive councillor, Selangor State Government