Young women must claim their space
As published in The Sun
UNIVERSITY students are still waiting for the University and University Colleges Act to be abolished, or at least amended to suit the 21st century.
The Act has been used to curb student activities, particularly to prevent student involvement in party politics. However, over the years the Act has acquired new jurisdictions to include student participation in organisations and movements with broader interests. The result is a generation of removed and apathetic young Malaysians.
Meanwhile, a 23-year-old Egyptian girl finds herself in the thick of action in Malaysia. Hadil El-Khouly is in town to lend a hand at the Musawah meeting in Kuala Lumpur this weekend.
Musawah is a global movement for equality and justice in the Muslim family. The meeting will see some 200 Muslim scholars and activists from 49 countries come together to launch the movement and discuss ideas on how to reform Muslim family law.
Hadil arrived from Cairo in December to assist the organisers with Arabic translations for their meeting materials as well as to strategise on integrating young women into the movement.
“It’s important for young women to have experience in activism, in this case, in the Islamic context. Our experiences and challenges may differ from the older generation, for example on issues relating to identity and acceptance within the Muslim community. A body like Musawah can also promote multi-generational dialogue,” she said.
As a student at Cairo University from which she graduated in law, Hadil was active in student organisations promoting equality and justice for women. At 18, she threw herself into the “real world” working with the Centre for Egyptian Women’s Legal Assistance.
“Starting work young forced me to manage my time between school and work. But the experience was liberating,” she said.
She said the women’s movement in Egypt is, as a whole, a visible and strong one. The student organisation she was involved in promoted equality and justice for women, but was conscious not to exclude men.
Their activities would ride on the general human rights platform (where women’s rights are an integral part) which included male students.
Women in the Arab world are reluctant to identify with the English term “feminist” even though they have an active women’s rights movement.
As writer Tala Al-Ramahi said in the UAE-based publication The National, even progressive Arab women “would be weary of the word, most probably because it carries with it Westernised connotations of what a woman is expected to be.” They would prefer to identify with the kind of activism that is more relevant to their own cultural context. Moreover, another major criticism of “feminist” groups is that they tend to hold dialogues only among themselves.
Hadil said that for the cause to succeed, women’s groups cannot afford to isolate men. After all, when it comes to legislation men would have to vote for women’s rights too.
That is precisely what Musawah is trying to achieve: reform in legislation. Muslim family law in many countries has not changed from the classical legal framework. This framework does not take into consideration the daily realities of Muslim women today. Malaysia, for example, is a good case study.
While Malaysia remains one of the more progressive Muslim countries, its position as a leading nation in providing just Muslim family laws has been surpassed by countries like Morocco, Turkey and Tunisia. We can claim back our position in the Muslim world by supporting Musawah’s international law reform movement to end discrimination against Muslim women across the globe.
Hadil sees immense potential for our country to play a major role in the movement. Malaysia’s strength, she said, is in the diversity of her people.
She said young Malaysians must have the desire to be part of the decision-making process and young women especially, must integrate and dare to take risks. Most importantly, they must claim their space because no one will give it to them freely.
A relay for thought
As published in The Sun
Dear Yang Amat Mulia Tunku Tan Sri Imran Ibni Tuanku Ja’afar, President of the Olympic Council of Malaysia,
My heartiest congratulations to you, and the Council, on your success in organising the Olympic 2008 torch relay in Kuala Lumpur recently.
Unlike many who could not escape from work to witness the historic run, I was privileged to be part of the large, excited crowd in Bukit Bintang. I got to see the torch close up, and got a free Lenovo hand fan too!
The atmosphere was very festive with the crowd singing Mandarin songs and chanting Mandarin slogans. And I must say, I’ve never seen such a concentration of red t-shirts and Chinese flags my life!
Phew, good thing we didn’t decide to have the encierro (Spanish bull run) on the same day!
I regretted not wearing my Jalur Gemilang bandana. It would really help tourists and foreign journalists who caught pictures of my head remember where their pictures were taken.
Standing in the midst of all that redness reminded me of Kuala Lumpur not too long ago, when people gathered wearing popcorn coloured t-shirts. What a controversy those people created, for gathering in town without a police permit.
I then got worried about the Olympic torch relay, also because many in the crowd were carrying placards with “One China Forever” written on them. Oh dear, did they mean that to include Bukit Bintang too?
So I went home and called Bukit Aman. A sergeant from the Pusat Kawal Malaysia assured me that the flag bearers and slogan chanters were all part of the official event. And that they were Malaysians, so I needn’t worry.
He reminded me that the Olympics was a sporting event, and non-political. Because of that, and since the event was organised by the Olympic Council of Malaysia, no police permit was needed.
The event went well although AP reported a Japanese family was jeered and thumped with inflatable batons. The BBC showed a similar scene on television when a pro-Tibet mat salleh woman was being interviewed on-site.
Oh, but we can never really trust the foreign media. Not even when they have us on tape.
After speaking to the sergeant, a great idea came to mind!
The Council and the Ministry of Youth and Sport should sign an MoU and declare thinking as a sport for Malaysian university students.
After that, perhaps organise a run around Kuala Lumpur? One like the recent Olympic 2008 torch relay, except instead of a torch we carry a giant light bulb papier mache instead — made out of recycled paper, of course. It will symbolise thought!
Based on the sergeant’s report, we wouldn’t need a police permit. And since the Ministry is involved, I wouldn’t worry too much about the University and University Colleges Act (UUCA) being enforced. We could even ask the Minister to cut a ribbon!
I’d understand if the Council is concerned about the UUCA. I’m sure many young Malaysians fear it more than you. Perhaps roping in Rakan Muda would help, and an endorsement from the Ministry of Higher Education?
The only thing left then is to organise Rela and traffic police for security, and oh, the mass produced matching t-shirts.
Please, do consider this idea. At least before the next Olympics in 2012 when a torch relay in Kuala Lumpur would see the Union Jack – after 55 years – be raised all over our city again.
Insultingly slow progress
As published in The Sun
I was told the administration listens to young people and takes their recommendations seriously, so I wrote my heart out here for many months. But I lost hope in writing when issues brought up in this column were left unheeded.
Until today, the outdated University and University Colleges Act (UUCA) still exists to stifle the already severely drained brains of our youths. American warships too are still welcomed to dock at our shores with their cargo loaded with nuclear things that could fry all of Peninsular Malaysia in a puff. What’s more, despite cries for electoral reform, the long-serving Tan Sri Abdul Rashid was retained as Election Commission chairman and parliament was even mobilised to extend his tenure.
Equally upsetting is the painfully slow incorporation of women in decision making positions — so slow it is insulting!
And oh, did the leader of Wanita Umno just get dropped from the 2008 cabinet? Shouldn’t she, Datuk Seri Rafidah Aziz, instead get a feather in her hat for maintaining her parliamentary seat in a state that otherwise voted Opposition? Does being the head of a wing that makes up half of the party’s membership not count?
How many members does Wanita Umno have anyway? That’s right, more than the number of residents in the city of Shah Alam put together! And isn’t Rafidah also the head of Wanita Barisan Nasional (BN)?
How is this the way forward for women representation in leadership positions? This question alone is enough to get one writing again.
Following the landmark Putrajaya Declaration mooted by members of the NAM Ministerial Meeting on the Advancement of Women in 2005, the Malaysian government vowed to allocate up to 30 per cent seats for women in decision making positions.
They were so serious at the time about recognising women’s talents that it was made policy in the Ninth Malaysian Plan (2006-2010). The move instantly won the BN government and then Minister of Women and Family Development, Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, extra brownie points.
Naturally, the nation could only expect the government to fulfil its promise. And where better to initiate change than the in cabinet itself. But the cabinet reshuffle in 2006 was perhaps held too soon and was too minor a reshuffle for the government to incorporate more women ministers. It therefore maintained only three women ministers in a lineup of 32.
Women were told to “be patient” but the government declined to commit to a deadline for the fulfilment the 30 per cent quota. We did however, see some women made boss in various government agencies like Bank Negara and public universities. Still, those appointments were not enough and expectations were high in the political realm.
By the time the 2008 election was announced, the nation expected BN’s commitment to manifest in its list of election candidates. It did, but too minimally. According to the Joint Action Group for gender Equality (JAG), Umno which contested for 453 seats, led the pack by fielding 40 women candidates — up only by five candidates since the 2004 election. Had Umno, the backbone party of the BN government, forgotten about their promise in 2005 and in the Ninth Malaysia Plan?
Worse still, instead of seeing more women ministers in the 2008 cabinet, we now have less. With Rafidah deserted, we only have Datuk Ng Yen Yen and Datuk Seri Azalina Othman left. Shahrizat doesn’t count because she is not a cabinet member.
Speaking of which, what exactly is Shahrizat’s post all about? Why appoint sineibe wgi enjoys ministerial status but doesn’t need to attend cabinet meetings? Is it necessary to make someone a minister if her role is solely to advice on the Islamic Family Law? Shouldn’t she instead be advising Ng Yen Yen who is the new Minister of Women and Family Development, perhaps as an advisor within the ministry? Wait … didn’t Shahrizat fail to defend Muslim women against the Islamic Family Law amendment a few years back?
Her appointment may be to give face to Wanita Umno whose boss was dropped from the cabinet lineup. But it looks like it would create ambiguity for the new minister.
So how exactly is all this supposed to be good in promoting women leadership?
Uncle Sam says, “mind your language, but carry on plagiarizing”
it only makes sense that the Global Language Monitor is based in the United States, specifically in San Diego where the Zoo offers the Roar & Snore Sleepovers package for children who want to offer themselves as snacks for caged wild animals. where else would they set up base? after all, the United States is located smack in the center of the universe and according to former president John Fitzgerald Kennedy, it is the leader of the Free World; the only world that matters. f*ck Kazakhstan. so why shouldn’t they impose their moral authority on language? the universal moral standard is after all the American moral standard, everyone knows that. which is why we endorse all American invasion and occupation initiatives in the name of ethical governance for all peoples.
the Global Language Monitor therefore, was right to suggest to the Australian Department of Parliamentary Services to add the term “abso-bloody-lutely” in its Further Slang terms and Colloquialisms fit to be Avoided, Shunned, or Otherwise Banned list. this is because the use of the word “bloody” is offensive to the plight of farm animals. Australia, of all countries, should know better! besides, the word makes vegans vomit on their boiled spinach. Australians are also advised to stop saying “no worries” because the term may offend those with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder as well as others suffering perpetual self-doubt and apprehension. likewise the term “g’day”, which is short for “good day”. it seems some etymologists believe that the origins of the word “good” is “God”, and the atheists amongst them consider this a conspiracy to insinuate a theistic worldview into daily life. Australian Scientologists however, say they’re indifferent, unaffected and don’t give a wombat’s a*se.
kudos to the Global Language Monitor for clamping down on the politically incorrect use of the English language in Australia. or is it American language? goddamnit.
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