Women’s Aid Organisation (WAO) PO Box 493, Jalan Sultan 46760 Petaling Jaya, Selangor Malaysia Tel: +603 7957 0636 / 7957 5636 Fax: +603 7956 3237 Email: [email protected] Website: www.wao.org.my Facebook: www.facebook.com/womens.aid.org Copyright © 2012 Women’s Aid Organisation (WAO) ISBN: 978-983-40325-5-5 All rights reserVed. No part of this book may be reprinted, reproduced or utilised in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the publisher. CoVer, Layout and Design: Michael Voon <[email protected]> Printer: TM Graphic Sdn. Bhd. Printing of this report is supported by the High Commission of Canada, Kuala Lumpur. CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 CONTRIBUTING ORGANISATIONS 5 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 9 LIST OF CRITICAL ISSUES 15 STATUS REPORT ON THE MALAYSIAN GOVERNMENT’S OBLIGATIONS 25 DECLARED IN THE INTERNATIONAL ARENA Status report on the implementation of the CEDAW Committee’s recommendations 25 from 2006 Statements of intent made during the Malaysian government’s appearance 44 before the CEDAW Committee in 2006 Statements of intent made during the Malaysian government’s examination at the 47 Universal Periodic Review in 2009 relating to women ARTICLES 1 – 4: 55 DEFINITION OF DISCRIMINATION, LAW, POLICY AND MEASURES TO IMPLEMENT THE CONVENTION Article 1: Definition of discrimination lacking in legislation 58 Article 2: Limited progress in eliminating discrimination in law 58 Article 3: Measures to promote equality 64 Article 4: Temporary special measures in Malaysia 66 Recommendations to the Malaysian Government regarding Articles 1 – 4 of CEDAW 68 ARTICLE 5: SEX ROLES AND STEREOTYPING 73 Removal of reservation to Article 5(a) 74 Government rhetoric reinforces women’s stereotypical roles 75 Women in government policy plans 78 Sexist remarks by politicians 78 Government attempts to control women’s movement 79 Gender segregation in public transport 80 Media portrayals of women 80 ‘Obedient Wives Club’ blames women for domestic violence 81 Section 498 of the Penal Code 81 Polygamy 81 National fatwas discriminatory to women 81 Moral policing 83 Discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity 85 Government control of images of women on International Women’s Day 89 Recommendations to the Malaysian Government regarding Article 5 of CEDAW 90 ARTICLE 6: TRAFFICKING AND EXPLOITATION OF PROSTITUTION OF WOMEN 93 Malaysia acceded to UN trafficking in persons protocol 93 Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act 2007 93 Statistics on trafficking 95 Malaysia’s low ranking in the US Department of State Trafficking in Persons Reports 95 Poor treatment of trafficking victims 96 Treatment of victims is a disincentive to report trafficking 96 Degrading and humiliating treatment of women prostitutes 97 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding Article 6 of CEDAW 98 ARTICLES 7 AND 8: PARTICIPATION IN POLITICAL AND PUBLIC LIFE 101 RemoVal of reserVation to Article 7(b) of CEDAW 102 Appointment of female Syariah Court judges 102 Women’s low representation in politics 102 Ambassadors and High Commissioners 104 Women at the decision-making leVel in the public sector 104 Women’s participation in the public sphere 105 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding Articles 7 and 8 of CEDAW 106 ARTICLE 9: CITIZENSHIP 109 Non-citizen spouses 109 Employment for non-citizen spouses permitted with restrictions 109 Different constitutional provisions for citizenship for men and women 110 Discriminatory constitutional provisions regarding the citizenship of children 110 born oVerseas Entry visas and permanent residency for non-citizen spouses 111 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding Article 9 of CEDAW 114 ARTICLE 10: EDUCATION 117 Continued gender gaps in technical courses and higher degrees 118 Gender stereotypes reinforced in schools 118 Sex education in schools 119 Pregnant girls drop out of school 119 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding Article 10 of CEDAW 120 ARTICLE 11: EMPLOYMENT 123 Participation of women in the workforce 124 Parental leaVe 125 “Housework” main reason women don’t enter workforce 126 Childcare centres 126 Sexual harassment 126 Retirement age different for women in some industries 127 Non-citizen women married to Malaysian men must haVe written permission 128 from husbands to work Discrimination based on diVerse sexual orientations and gender identities in employment 129 Refugee women 130 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding Article 11 of CEDAW 130 ARTICLE 12: HEALTH 133 Lack of gender disaggregated data 134 Access to healthcare services 134 ContraceptiVe preValence 134 Maternal mortality rate 135 Abortion 135 Sex education 137 GoVernment banned children’s sex education book 137 Violations of women’s rights in goVernment hospitals 137 One Stop Crisis Centres 138 HIV/AIDS 138 Mandatory HIV testing for Muslim couples 139 Health promotion for sex workers hindered by police 139 Female circumcision compulsory for Muslim women 140 Differing leVels of access to health care for vulnerable women 140 Health insurance 142 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding Article 12 of CEDAW 143 ARTICLE 13: SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC RIGHTS 147 Benefits 147 Banking for non-citizen spouses 147 Women’s participation in sport 148 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding Article 13 of CEDAW 148 ARTICLE 14: RURAL WOMEN 151 Low representation of women in village committees 152 Abuse of Penan women and girls in Sarawak 152 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding Article 14 of CEDAW 154 ARTICLE 15: EQUALITY IN THE LAW 157 Judicial interpretation of the Federal Constitution 157 Women viewed as the property of their husbands in laws against “enticing a 159 married woman” Employment laws do not protect migrant domestic workers’ rights 160 Non-recognition of the rights of women of diVerse sexual orientations and gender 162 identities in law Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding Article 15 of CEDAW 164 ARTICLE 16: EQUALITY IN MARRIAGE AND FAMILY 167 RemoVal of reserVation to Article 16(2) 168 A brief oVerview of family law in Malaysia 168 Discrimination faced by women under civil and Islamic family law 169 Discrimination faced by women under civil law 174 Discrimination faced by women under Islamic family law 175 ConVersion of religion during marriage 182 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding Article 16 of CEDAW 186 CEDAW COMMITTEE GENERAL RECOMMENDATION NO. 19: VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN 193 PreValence of violence 195 Violence against women perpetrated by the State 196 Legal reform – domestic violence, rape, sexual harassment 197 Violence against migrant women 201 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding the CEDAW Committee’s 206 General Recommendation No. 19 CEDAW COMMITTEE GENERAL RECOMMENDATION NO. 26: WOMEN MIGRANT 211 WORKERS Migrant domestic workers in Malaysia 212 Lack of protection from the State 213 Vulnerability of domestic workers to abuse 215 Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding the CEDAW Committee’s 220 General Recommendation No. 26 CEDAW COMMITTEE GENERAL RECOMMENDATION NO. 28: 225 STATE OBLIGATION TO ELIMINATE ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST ALL WOMEN Gender stereotypes reinforced in education sector 227 Discrimination in employment 229 Access to healthcare 231 Violence based on perceiVed sexual orientation or gender identity 231 Harassment of women on the basis of sexual orientation 233 Malaysian transwoman granted refugee status in Australia 234 Yogyakarta Principles 235 Fatwas against non-heteronormatiVe identities 235 Contrary court decisions on gender and name change for transpeople 238 Laws that discriminate on the basis of sexuality and gender identity 237 Laws that discriminate on the basis of women’s sexual orientation 241 Response of SUHAKAM to discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and 241 gender identity Media portrayals of sexual diVersity 242 Film censorship guidelines 242 Banning of Seksualiti Merdeka (sexuality independence) in 2011 243 CEDAW Committee’s response to other countries regarding discrimination on the 245 basis of sexual orientation and gender identity Recommendations to the Malaysian GoVernment regarding the CEDAW 246 Committee’s General Recommendation No. 28 PICTURES 249 GLOSSARY 258 INTRODUCTION 1 The Malaysian goVernment’s combined initial and second report to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women was reViewed by the Committee at its 35th session in 2006.1 Malaysian non-goVernment organisations (NGOs) prepared a Shadow Report for the 2006 reView session.2 The report you are now reading is the second Malaysian NGO report on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. It has been produced by Malaysian NGOs as an AlternatiVe Report, in the absence of the Malaysian goVernment’s combined third and fourth periodic report. Malaysia’s third report to the CEDAW Committee was due in August 2004 and the fourth periodic report was due in August 2008. Upon the delay of the third report, the CEDAW Committee requested that a combined third and fourth report be submitted by the Malaysian goVernment in August 2008. At the time of writing, in April 2012, the Malaysian goVernment has not yet submitted its combined third and fourth report to the CEDAW Committee. Unfortunately, many of the concerns raised in the first Malaysian NGO CEDAW Shadow Report of 2005, submitted for reView by the CEDAW Committee in 2006, are still releVant. This second NGO report does not attempt to replicate the