A few days ago as you were falling asleep I read an article about women's rights and said out loud that it was sad how women in Saudi Arabia are not allowed to drive. You suddenly lifted your head full of curls and demanded to know why not. Explaining discrimination to you would be like explaining quantum mechanics because right now at the tender age of four the world through your eyes is an uncomplicated place. A place where a girl at three feet high can be the master of our universe, including that of your 19 year old brother.
How do I begin to tell you that this is not always the case in many other places for women?
In some countries women are not accorded their fundamental rights simply because they are born with double the amount of x chromosomes. Where the fight for equality is the fight for survival, being treated like a piece of meat and subjected to horrors that no man would stand for. Then there are countries where a woman's legal standing in society is not recognised but are in the hands of male family members, and participation in public life is unheard of.
But we are lucky to be female and living in Brunei, where we are fortunate to have a caring monarch that listens and have given us equal opportunities to elevate our status in society.
A raft of laws have been implemented to ensure our protection like the Women and Girls Protection Act of 1972 which deals with sexual offences and abuse against women; the Islamic Family Order 1999 and its Amendment in 2010 and the Married Women Act 1999 and its Amendment in 2010 to deal with domestic violence.
Brunei is also a signatory to the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. The signing of this convention is the single most important legislation in the cause for women's rights because it ensures that the country commits itself to undertake a series of measures to end discrimination against women in all forms. This includes the principle of equality of men and women in the legal system, abolish discriminatory laws and to ensure elimination of all acts of discrimination against women by persons, organisations or enterprises.
In 2011 the current benefits accorded to women in Brunei include an extension to the maternity leave for both the public and private sector, from 56 days to 105 days. Some may moan that this is not even close to some European countries where maternity leave for women can run up to 6 months and a choice for unpaid leave after, or flexi hours, but Brunei have to find a balance between a small population and where a majority of families aim to have more than two children.
Just a few days ago our lady deputy minister was on the newspaper again asking for more rights for women. This time it was for the private sector to give more benefits to women so that the private sector becomes more conducive for women employees. I'm not sure I agree with her entirely in this case. The way I see it there are more women working in the private sector than men. Incidentally, let’s not forget that the latest Public Service Department statistics that out of 46,600 civil servants, 24,000 were women. And the glass ceiling? It has pretty much disappeared with women holding high positions in companies, and some even at the helm.
While I’m at it, I will bristle at the mere mention of positive discrimination for women in the private sector because there is simply no need for that in Brunei. Besides, positive discrimination only serves to belittle the efforts of the recipient. Your grandmothers and all the strong powerful women in Brunei did not work their ass off to be where they are to be undermined by this kind of unnecessary action.
By the time you are a teenager you would probably have realised that life is a bit more complicated than playing in the playground where the rights to a swing was equal for little boys and girls. But by that time, Mama also hope that women and men issues in Brunei and around the world are treated as one, and we call it by just one name, “human” issues.
@emmagoodegg
Illustration by Cuboi Art.
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