File photo of the Parliament Building in Taman Duta. Bernama Photo
KUCHING: Women’s Aid Organisation (WAO) expressed its disappointment to see that women continue to be underrepresented in the Cabinet — only 15.6 per cent of ministers are women.
According to its Advocacy and Communications Officer Tan Heang-Lee, with the way the government was formed, talking about representation seems “hollow”.
“The people voted for reforms, and in the past two years, various reforms have been developed and were close to being tabled in Parliament.
“The new Cabinet must now tell us how they intend to continue these efforts,” she said in a statement Tuesday.
Tan informed that these reforms include the Sexual Harassment Act and the Gender Equality Act (led by the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development); the introduction of seven-day paternity leave and anti-discrimination provisions in the Employment Act (led by the Ministry of Human Resources); and the enactment of anti-stalking laws (led by the Law Minister’s Office).
“These reforms would improve the lives of millions of Malaysians — and must persist,” she stressed.