Women's World in Malaysia

Muktamar PAS has been concluded and two of its headlines grabbed my attention. First is the maiden appearance of my good friend Puan Hawa Yaa’cob at the PAS national level presenting the motion formulated by Dewan Muslimat Melaka. She is only 32 but has achieved so much in life. Just a few years after working in her first job as a Chemical Engineer, she made a bold step of quitting her job to concentrate on her preferred career as a Unit Trust consultant (she likes the term Wealth Advisor better).

Many were skeptical of her move naturally since being skeptical is what we Malays do best. It did not take long for her to prove them wrong. After what seemed like a blink of an eye, the number of her clients built up so much that she had to set up an office to manage them and today, she is so much at the top of it all.

Hawa presented the motion that called for the denunciation of the judiciary which she said did not appreciate the principle of separation of powers between the executive and legislative and did not take drastic actions to restore its image. It was indeed a heavy topic to discourse and only a lady as single-minded as Hawa can deliberate it with ease.

She has always been passionate about making the country, and even the world, to change for the better. Her dedication in contributing to the society is immeasurable. I have always supported her involvement in politics because she has all the quality to not just be good at it but most importantly, to yield a worthy impact to the society.

The second headline that caught my attention was the motion to ban SIS. Dr Lo’ Lo’ made a swift statement denouncing that motion and instead, she called for everyone to engage more in discussions rather than making speculations.

No one party or faction is free of flaw including SIS. However, to charge someone or some group with endangering the akidah of the Muslims necessitates the accuser to provide evidences that can prove beyond doubt the danger is truly existent and operational. If they believe that some of the standpoints embraced by SIS are misleading or do not conform to the true teachings of Islam, it should be stated as that rather than haphazardly condensing into one general statement that is light on the tongue but heavy on the scale of justice.

It is comforting to know that those holding the top posts in Dewan Muslimat like Dr Lo’ Lo’ and Dr Mariah have a more congenial attitude towards SIS and prefer to use the educating approach rather than the punishing approach. One needs to know and understand the causes that SIS is fighting for in order to ‘make a sense out’ of their existence.

But then, the detractors will add to their argument that the end does not justify the means. If that is the case, what we should be saying to all the women’s right activists is, as mentioned by Dr. Asri in one of his articles titled ‘Oh Wanita! Pastikan Arah Perjuanganmu’, that we wish to tell all the advocators of women’s rights that we are with you and your struggle to uphold women’s right but we have to ascertain first the course of the struggle. We will work it out together and with Allah’s Aids and Blessings, we will make the country, and the world, a better place for women, and men, to live in.