Event
Women Empowerment Workshop
Date of the event: 22 August 2022
The role of women always constitutes part of half of humanity, and it follows that any decision- making, whether for the personal, family, societal or public levels, should be mindful. It must involve the participation of women in the making of decisions. Women’s political, social, and economic rights are integrally inseparable from their human rights. Democracy is an inclusive process, and therefore in a functioning democracy, the points of view of different interest groups must be taken into account in formulating any decision. The interest and opinions of men, women, and minorities must be part of that decision-making process.
Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Parliament and Law), Datuk Mas Erniyati Samsudin, stated the news in Malaysiakini and The Stars on 8 March 2022 about the involvement of women in the country's political arena is still low, including the people's elected representatives in parliament. The Member of Parliament for Masjid Tanah said that until now, the target of having 30% females selected, as a representative in Dewan Rakyat did not achieve. Women should be given more space in politics, including fielding them as candidates in General Elections towards the meeting target.
Women find themselves under-represented in political institutions when related to being included in the decision-making process. Numerous challenges confront women entering politics. There is a lack of party support among them, such as family support and the “masculine model” of political life. Many feel that Malaysian society is still male-dominated, and men are threatened by the idea of women holding senior posts. In the political sphere, this is compounded by the high premium placed on political power. This makes some men even less willing to share power with women. Based on the Malaysian experience, Institut Darul Ehsan (IDE) through Women Empowerment workshop will explore some of the obstacles that hinder the participation of women in parliament and propose strategies that maybe used to overcome them.
34 participants attended the workshop at Bahang Bay Hotel in Penang Island. This program relates to "Mann Ohne Frau, ist Kopf Ohne Körper; Frau Ohne Mann, ist Körper Ohne Kopf," which is about the role of women in helping to manage any aspect of life. The meaning man without a woman is head without body, and a woman without a man is a body without a head" is about mutually needing each other for the perfect life when it comes to making a balanced decision in many aspects. For example, when Dato' Hj Ismail Bin Yusop mentions about celebrating the women's role as part of the bridge toleration to the culture of peaceful co-existence. IDE is determined to bring the idea that women are leaders who can compete together in the arena of life and adhere to this principle.
It is because of the nature of political parties, the deterring environment for women, strategies to open access for women in politics, and a political credo. The lack of leadership workshops for women causes us to think having this event program would be beneficial for women. Through this event, we hope to create a support group to help gender awareness, and it will be a great start to raising the agenda of women's empowerment and gender sensitivity issues.
The material for this program is a moment with inspiration and can be an example to get more motivated and believe a great miracle will always be with them. Our goal is to create more women to be a leader, and we will be going to continue this event in the future.
Written by Siti Fatimah Binti Ismail - Staff Assistant, Institut Darul Ehsan (IDE)
Edited by Nesya Tirtayana – FNF Malaysia Communications Officer
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