Malaysia

MDG 3:  Promote Gender Equality and Empower Woman

Disclaimer: Some of the MDG data presented in this website have been adjusted by the responsible specialized agencies to ensure international comparability, in compliance with their shared mandate to assess progress towards the MDGs at the regional and global levels.^[1] 

Indicators (United Nations)

3.1  Ratios of girls to boys in education

1. Primary  :

Ø  2000: 1.00^[2]

Ø  2005: 1.00^[3]

Ø  2007: 1.00^[4]

1. Secondary: 

Ø  2000: 1.08^[5]

Ø  2005: 1.1^[6]

Ø  2007: 1.07^[7]

1. Tertiary:

Ø  2000: 1.06^[8]

Ø  2005: 1.29^[9]

Ø  2007: 1.29^[10]

3.2 Share of women in wage employment in the non-agricultural sector

1. 2000: 37.9 (total paid employment)^[14]
2. 2005: 38.5 (total employment)^[15]
3. 2008: 39.2^[16]               

The seeming gender equity in education has not resulted in equality in employment in Malaysia. The share of women in wage employment in the non-agricultural sector is lower than of men, marginally rising only by 1.3 points from 2000 to 2008.

Critical Indicators to monitor labour force participation

      3.2.1 Labour Force Participation:

1. Female Economic Activity rate: 46.5%^[17]
2. Change in Economic Activity Rate using index (1990 = 100) 2005: 105^[18]
3. As % of male rate 2005: 57%^[19]

3.3 Proportion of seats held by women in national parliament

1. 2001: 10.4^[22]
2. 2005: 9.4^[23]
3. 2010: 9.9^[24]     

As with many countries in Asia, decision-making and political power in Malaysia is still firmly held within the grasp of men. The proportion of seats held by women even reduced from 10.4% in 2001 to 9.9% in 2010.

Although there is no legislation that specifically bars Malaysian women from participating in political processes, women’s participation in this area is hampered by the existence of many other laws and social perceptions. These laws, Islamic or civil, including elections laws, and social perceptions, indirectly limit women’s negotiating power even within the private sphere, thus making it much harder for women to make their presence felt in the public sphere.^[25] Lack of political will to ensure that women are able to engage in political decision-making at all levels of the government bureaucracy is also a factor. While the government report identified the main impediments to women’s participation and representation as ‘women’s family responsibilities, career demands and social inhibitions’, there has been no concerted effort on the part of the government to analyse further or respond to these obstacles with a specific plan or policy.”^[26] Additionally, the patriarchal political party systems is another factor: women are marginalised within the political parties where the structures restrict women’s involvement to the women’s wings unlike the youth wings of the parties, which are exclusively for male members, which function as the training grounds for the future leaders.^[27]

Lastly, gender discrimination in parliament and sexism in politics, including in the Malaysian Parliament, is a concern, as Malaysian women’s groups have raised in several occasions.^[28] 

Critical indicators to monitor women’s legislation

3.3.1      Laws on equality; protecting women from violence^[29]:

a.    Domestic Violence:  Domestic Violence Act (1994)

b.    Anti-Rape: The penal code defines and prescribes the punishments for rape, while the Criminal Procedure Code and the Evidence Act 1950 provide the procedural and evidentiary rules for the prosecution of rape.

c.    Anti-Marital Rape: Part of Penal Code (amended 2007)

d.    Anti-Sexual Harassment: Code of Practice on Prevention of Sexual Harassment at Workplace (1999); part of the Labour Law

e.    Anti-Trafficking: Anti-Trafficking in Person Act (2007)

These laws and policies are battles hard-won by the persistent effort of grassroots and national women’s organisations, backed by international pressures exerted through the CEDAW mechanisms. While these laws and policies exist, however, significant barriers remain in being able to provide justice to women who experience domestic violence, rape, sexual harassment, trafficking, and other forms of violence. Moreover, gender-based violence, particularly to women, remains a serious problem in the region.

An additional point to consider is that the Malaysian law on rape has been crafted around the age of consent. For girls below the age of consent (16 years of age), regardless of consent provided, the crime is that of statutory rape which carries a heavier penalty. While the law has been crafted to protect girls in particular, this makes it difficult for young women to exercise their sexual rights. It also makes access to sexual and reproductive health services, particularly abortion and contraception, difficult, as doctors are legally required to report the crime.

Marital rape remains a highly contested issue culturally and socially in Malaysia. However, a man was jailed in 2009 for forcing his wife to have sex with him—this is the first successful prosecution under the 2007 amendment to the penal code on marital rape, and is a significant breakthrough towards women’s rights and justice.^[30]

Malaysia is also cited as one of the countries with good practices in dealing with domestic violence through the One-Stop Crisis Centre (OSCC) model, which is offered to women who have experienced violence in the hospital’s emergency department and enables them to access the police and referral to crisis centres as well. Through the advocacy of women’s groups, the OSCC went from a pilot service in one hospital in 1993 to a policy of the Ministry of Health, which also has a budget allocation. However, services need to be strengthened through continuous gender-sensitisation of health personnel; it also needs to be replicated in private hospitals.

It must also be stated that legal recourse and service provision for cases of gender-based violence are all the more difficult for marginalised groups, such as people of diverse sexual orientation and gender identities, including lesbian, bisexual and trans women, as well as sex workers.

3.3.2 National Machineries on Women:

A National Policy on Women was formulated in 1980, followed by an Action Plan for Women in Development in 1997.^[31] The establishment of the Ministry of Women and Family Development on January 17, 2001 marks the culmination of efforts to strengthen the national machinery for women. Other bodies related to women and development issues are the following: the National Advisory Council on Women, Inter-Ministerial Committees on Women, Inter-Ministerial Committees on Women, Technical Working Groups, and the various state level liaison and consultative committees, task forces and ad hoc committees on women’s issues. Representatives from national women’s NGOs, such as the National Council of Women Organisations (NCWO) and All Women Action Malaysia (AWAM), have been appointed to sit on various advisory councils in order to promote co-operation between governmental agencies and NGOs. Women’s Service Centres (WSC) have also been established at the state level and district to provide services such as training, counselling and as a one-stop information centre for women’s programmes. At present, 14 WSC were established at the state capitals and 15 at the district level^.[32]

3.4 Additional, critical indicators for gender equality with regards to sexual and reproductive health and rights

The third MDG deals with the status of women in society and aims to promote gender equality and empower women.

However achievement of gender equality is not only about sending girls to school, women to the workplace and to parliament.

Everyday, many women continue to face inequalities and inequities within the family and society that they live in.

Many issues of sexual and reproductive health and rights are in essence gender equality issues as well as health issues. Sexual and reproductive health outcomes are results of power inequalities which have a negative impact on women’s health.

Issues of contraception such as male participation in contraception and spousal opposition to contraception (which is addressed in the MDG 5 pages) are gender issues.

Maternal deaths is a demonstratable issue of gender inequality. And as only women ‘can die’ from maternal deaths, a lack of access to life-saving procedures and medicines can amount to ‘discrimination’.

Violence is a reflection of power inequalities in society and comparably more women then men continue to be targets. Violence against women often results in physical and mental ill-health as well as death.

Recognition of women’s autonomy over her sexual life and her sexuality is also unequal to that of men, and can result in both sexual and reproductive ill-health for women.

However, all of these issues are addressed neither in the goal on gender equality nor in the goal on maternal and reproductive health. We have tried to incorporate some perspectives on these on the pages on MDG 3 & 5.

One such critical indicator for which data is readily available is:

3.4.1 Male Contraception as % of total contraception:

a.    Condom users as proportion of all contraceptive users: 9.72%^[34]

b.    Vasectomy as proportion of all contraceptive users: Sterilisation data not disaggregated between male and female