Change needed in patriarchal culture

SHAH ALAM - There needs to be a change in the patriarchal culture in the country.

Malaysia Board of Technologists (MBOT) board member Puan Sri Ts Dr A. Mahaletchumy said the policies in Malaysia were good enough, yet still needed improvement as people in the country were still living in a patriarchal society.

"For instance, household chores are not shared between the husband and wife.

"We need to change that patriarchal culture that women need to take care of all these things and women have to be subservient," she said during Sinar Daily's Relatable talk show entitled “Women and The Power of Choice”.

She suggested that in order for the society to make the changes, it would have to start from home.

“Parents will need to start with educating their sons on being responsible.

"Groom your sons from now and make them do house chores as well.

“They have to do their part in making sure that the house is in an ideal state," she said.

Content Forum executive director Mediha Mahmood echoed this view, saying that sons learned best from their fathers.

"When they see their dad constantly doing chores - things that traditionally women do, they learn better. It helps the father as well because children take care of the chores," she added.

Meanwhile, Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) vice chairman Professor Datuk Noor Aziah Mohd Awal said while there was no discrimination in Malaysia, there were still some aspects that could be improved.

"We have to believe that we can also have equal rights, but it's a matter of how we can achieve it," she said.

She said this was where the government should step in by providing a formidable support system for women like nurseries or child care centres at their workplace.

Noor Aziah also pointed out that the flexibility of working from home was a good initiative, but it might still be challenging for some women.

"A lot of them have to juggle between many different things at the same time, but this is not always the case for men, they can work just fine without the interference," she said.