HANOI: Kuala Lumpur is prepared to play an active role in and is fully committed to the future undertakings of the Asean Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children in the advancement of the two groups.Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil said that at the national level, Malaysia had established the mechanisms to promote the rights of women and children to live in peace, dignity and prosperity.
This was in line with the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and the UN Convention on the Rights of Children as had been adopted by Malaysia since 1995, she said in the country’s statement at a meeting after the inauguration of the commission at the National Convention Centre, here, yesterday.
The statement was read out by deputy Information Communication and Culture Minister Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum.
Shahrizat said the existence of the commission should be viewed as a commendable effort to elevate women socially, economically and politically as well to ensure that the future of children in the Asean countries are protected.
She said the existence of the commission would be a momentous move in providing a comprehensive agenda for the development of the region as it moved towards becoming an Asean Community by 2015.
“Thus, our presence today will be a big step towards ensuring and safeguarding the rights of all women and children in Asean in our efforts to achieve a better tomorrow,” she said.
She said the establishment of the commission and its alignment with the Asean Inter-Governmental Commission on Human Rights, which was set up last year, would further strengthen Asean’s human rights framework as a whole. Malaysia, she said, acknowledged the importance of the establishment of the commission as a special commission dedicated to addressing the issues of women and children. — Bernama