<![CDATA[Wazir Jahan Karim]]> <![CDATA[Citations]]>

Citations

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Prof Wazir Jahan Karim { B.Soc.Sc.,Singapore,M.Phil,PhD,London }

Wazir Jahan is an economic anthropologist and former Director of the Women's Development Research Centre [KANITA] at Universiti Sains Malaysia. Wazir Karim obtained her Master's in Economic Anthropology and Doctorate in Anthropology at the London School of Economics and Political Sciences, University of London. She has conducted extensive research on indigenous minorities in Peninsular Malaysia and women in politics, culture and religion, more specifically Adat and Islam and issues of social and economic transformation. She has authored and edited several books on minorities on Islam and women including Ma'Betise' Concepts of Living Things [Athlone Press:London:1981], Emotions of Culture: A Malay Perspective [Oxford University Press; Singapore 1991] Women and Culture: between Malay Adat and Islam {Westview Press: Boulder 1992}, ‘Male and ‘Female' in Developing Southeast Asia [ Berg Publishers: Oxford:1995] and Gendered Fields: Women, Men and Ethnography [with D.Bell and P.Caplan] [Routledge: London 1994] Cultural Minorities of Peninsular Malaysia [AKASS Toyota Foundation 2002] was co-edited with Mohd Razha Rashid. Her contributions to chapters in books and referred articles in journals number more than seventy Among her public lectures are Patriarchy Fatigue and Asian Matriarchs at the Institute of Anthropology at the University of Oslo, in 1991, the Wertheim Lecture Series at the University of Amsterdam in 1996 entitled Gender and Empowerment and two Keynotes, Feminism in Malaysia and Equal in the Eyes of God at the University of Adelaide. In 2003 she presented a public lecture in the Andrew Lecture Series entitled Islam and America: A Wartime Story at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where she held the Andrew's Chair for Asian Studies.

For her outstanding achievements in these critical fields of Social Sciences, she has been awarded several fellowships and visiting professorships. Among the awards she has received for academic excellence include the Ford Foundation Fellowship [1974-1975]; Commonwealth Fellowship {1975-1977; the Fulbright Fellowship {1984} British Academy Fellowship {1990}; University of Oslo Visiting Professorship at the Institute of Anthropology [1991]; the Anthropology Senior Professorship at a Tokyo University of Foreign Studies [1995-1996] and a Visiting Professorship at the Department of Malay Studies and Centre for Women Studies, University of Wellington [1998 ]. She was also Visiting Professor at the Department of Anthropology in University of Kent at Canterbury in 2001. During these occasions, she taught graduate courses and assisted in the supervision of graduate students in Asian Studies. She established many contacts with Social Science organisations associated with universities and developed extensive links between Universiti Sains Malaysia [USM] and international centres of research. She also sits on a number of advisory research and promotion committees of faculties in national and international institutions of higher learning and among the Editorials Boards she serves are Anthropological Forum and Anthropology of Medicine. In 2003, Wazir Karim was invited to be a member of the Council of the TODA Institute for Peace and Public Policy.

Wazir Karim has a number of firsts in her lists of contributions to Social Sciences in Malaysia. In 1974, she was the first Malaysian woman anthropologist to conduct ethnographic research on an Orang Asli community, the Ma'Betise' [Mah Meri] Carey Island whom she lived with for two years to successfully implement participant observation techniques in anthropological research. In 1977, she was awarded the Raymond Firth Award from the London School of Economics and Political Sciences for the best ethnographic research, thesis and essay, which she shared with Prof Olivia Harris and was consequently invited to publish her thesis with LSE, entitled ‘Ma Bertise' Concepts of Living Things� LSE, Monograph No 54. Since than she has extended her research to issues of poverty, economic development and policy.

In the areas of Women and Gender Studies, Wazir pioneered Women and Gender Studies inUSM, Malaysia. She established the first academic research programme on women and children in Malaysia, called Kanita [Wanita dan Kanak Kanak dalam Pembangunan/Women and Children in Development ] This project was concerned for the enhancement of the social and economic status of rural women in underserved areas, in particular the Northern region of the Peninsular in Kedah and Penang.

As a consequence of this pioneering field of social research, innovative methodologies were developed and continues to be successfully used by undergraduates and graduates in national universities. These are life-long learning initiatives through study services { SISWA BAKTI} where students develop translocal classrooms in poor communities and villages to educate the disadvantaged young and elderly women to be empowered and develop leadership skills, enabling them to seek more effective sustainable strategies to overcome poverty; Participatory Action Research where researcher and the researched engage in a dialogue experience of empowerment to learn from each others skills and experiences and mutually benefit from the research experience acquired and Village Classrooms where rural women learn to develop self-confidence to champion issues and agendas which would otherwise have been marginalised. More than 50 reports and papers were generated from the KANITA experience which has become an icon in the successful implementation of Gender Studies in public universities in Malaysia. As a result, USM created the first Women and Human Resource Studies Unit in Malaysians 1991. In 1999, Wazir was awarded the Rotary Gold Medal for original and outstanding achievements in the Social Sciences. She was the pioneer Director of the Women's Development Research Centre the first ever research and advocacy centre on women's development to be set up in a university in Malaysia. The centre reflects a 23 year struggle for the women's movement to be recognised in the academe in Malaysia.

Since than, other universities have taken up Gender Studies through offering minor packages in Gender Studies [UM] or through continuing education programmes [UPM]. Universiti Sains Malaysia was the first university in Malaysia to introduce gender and feminist perspectives in courses in gender and research projects, dissertations, and theses. Wazir's three books on women and gender, ‘Women and Culture' ‘Male' and ‘Female' and Sexuality and Domination puts USM in the front of international achievements in Gender Studies. She was the first Asian anthropologist to put forward the idea of indigenous feminism that Southeast Asian perspectives of women and gender have to be discussed differently from Western feminist discourses since they are founded in socio-cultural and ideological systems which have traditionally given women more mobility and power than the West in similar centuries. Her two main ideas on indigenous feminism – bilateralism and cultural splitting have been cited and quoted in many subsequent works on gender, including post-graduate research. Her theory on the multiplicity of women, cited in her Wertheim Lecture, Gender and Empowerment has also provoked numerous debates in the academe. In 1992 Wazir co-founded the Southeast Asian Association of Gender Studies [SAMA] and became founder President for two years before transferring the Presidency to University of Malaya to enhance national and regional networking further. SAMA is also the first professional Association of Gender Studies in Malaysia. Wazir Karim was also special project consultant to The Ministry for Women and Family Development and Editor of the HAWA-USM publications series founded by the Penang Women and Family Development Council. She has conducted more than eight research projects for the Penang Women and Family Development Council of the Ministry of Women and Family Development.

In 1994 Wazir initiated the formation of the Academy of Social Sciences {AKASS} which was instituted in October 1996. She became one of the founder trustees and the founder Director of the Academy with Syed Hussein Alatas as founder Chairman and Tun Daim Zainuddin as founder Patron. The main objectives of the Academy were the promotion of national and social unity amidst social and cultural diversity and the advancement of new scholarship and innovations in the Social Sciences.

In the area of Islam and culture, Wazir Jahan has made several contributions. Her appointment to the Andrews Chair in 2003 at the School of Hawaiian, Asian and Pacific Studies { SHAPS } University of Hawaii at Manoa was to bring about a new focus to contemporary Islamic issues in Asia, in particular Southeast Asia. She delivered the Andrew's lecture on the relationship between Islam and American foreign policy and her lecture drew critical acclaim. She was invited to present five guest lectures at undergraduate and graduate courses in the University of Hawaii and presented papers at international seminars and workshops on Islam, co-hosted by the East-West Centre.

Wazir is also President of the Penang Chapter of the Pan Pacific Southeast Asian Association Of Women {PPSEAWA}, Adviser for Muslim Affairs, for the Penang Heritage Trust. She is also a member of the Penang State Museum Board.

Currently, Wazir is Chief Executive Officer of the newly named Academy of Socio-Economic Research Analysis [ASERA]
]]> <![CDATA[USM tubuh unit khas]]> Unit Pengajian Wanita  dan Sumber Manusia akan memperolehi pengetahuan mengenai pelbagai kegiatan dan kerjaya wanita, agar sumbangan mereka dalam pelbagai bidang dapat dipertingkatkan

BIDANG pengajian wanita di negara ini mencatat satu lagi sejarah apabila Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) Pulau    Pinang menubuhkan
Unit Pengajian Wanita dan Sumber Manusia, untuk menyelaraskan pengajian dan penyelidikan    pembangunan wanita.

Unit itu ditubuhkan di Pusat Pengajian Sains Kemasyarakatan USM dan diketuai oleh penyelarasnya, Prof Madya Dr Wazir Jahan Karim. la dirasmikan oleh Menteri Perpaduan Negara dan Pembangunan Masyarakat, Datuk Napsiah Omar baru baru ini.

Dr Wazir Jahan berkata, penubuhan unit itu bertujuan memperolehi pengetahuan serta menggubal latihan lebih baik dalam pelbagai kegiatan dan kerjaya wanita, agar sumbangan mereka terhadap ekonomi, sosial, budaya dan politik dapat dipertingkatkan.

"Pengajian wanita ialah satu sub disiplin yang memberi perhatian kepada perspektif dan isu wanita serta jantina, dalam konteks perkembangan teori dan kaedah disiplin seperti sains kemasyarakatan, kemanusiaan, pendidikan dan perundangan," katanya.

Sesuai dengan nama unit itu, integrasi antara Pengajian Wanita dan Pengajian Sumber Manusia bertujuan membangunkan sudut yang lebih dinamis serta berguna di bidang penyelidikan, pengajaran dan latihan.

Semua itu membolehkan aspek pembangunan manusia (daya pengeluaran, daya kreatif dan mental) di kalangan wanita dikaji dari segi satu golongan sosial yang banyak memberi surnbangan kepada pembangunan masyarakat.

"Walaupun keutamaan diberi kepada wanita, unit ini juga mementingkan, pembangunan golongan sosial yang lain seperti kanak kanak, belia, kaum yang hidup di daerah terpencil dan orang tua," kata Dr Wazir Jahan.

Mengenai rancangan, akan datang, beliau berkata, unitnya memberi tumpuan kepada lima biclang, iaitu:

  -Penyelidikan yang diselaraskan dengan latihan dan perancangan dasar berkaitan wanita, di samping belia, pengajian kanak kanak, kajian orang tua dan penyelidikan kaum minoriti;

  -Latihan, syarahan dan kursus bantuan diberi kepada pelajar peringkat sarjana muda, sarjana dan kedoktoran, khususnya, yang ada hubungan dengan pengajian wanita dan sumber manusia;

  -Dokumentasi   menyediakan bahan bacaan yang menumpukan topik wanita, belia dan kanak kanak serta mengemaskinikan perangkaan sosial mengenai golongan berkenaan~

  -Gabungan profesional di antara penyelidik tempatan dan luar negara menerusi bengkel, seminar dan forum untuk memajukan sesuatu bidang atau isu pengajian wanita dan sumber manusia; dan

  -Penerbitan   monograf, modul, buku teks dan sebarang bahan yang boleh memajukan pengajian wanita dan sumber manusia di peringkat negara dan antarabangsa.

"Untuk meningkatkan minat dan komitmen golongan akademik dan profesional terhadap pengaijan wanita dan jantina pula, sebuah Persatuan


 Kajian Jantina Asia Tenggara sudah pun dicadangkan penubuhannya.

"la akan berpusat di Malaysia. walaupun setiap negara Asia bakal mempunyai cawangannya sendiri," katanya.

Penubuhan Unit Pengajian Wanita dan Sumber Manusia ini ialah satu hasit usaha Projek Wanita dan Kanak Kanak Dalam Pembangunan (Kanita) yang ditubuhkan pada 4 Julai 1979 di bawah pembiayaan Unicef di Malaysia.

la membayangkan usaha Kanita membangun dan memgembangkan Pengajian Wanita dan' Sumber Manusia di peringkat pengajian tinggi.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PROF MADYA DR.WAZIR JAHAN KARIM... mengetuai unit yang baru ditubuhkan itu. Unit itu akan mengumpulkan pelbagal maklumat mengenai kegiatan wanita. 

]]> <![CDATA[Varsity study on rural women]]> PENANG, Tues.    The economic contribution of rural Malaysian women and their families' standard of living in the 1980s will be determined once a study by a Universiti Pertanian Malaysia researcher is fully completed by 1990.

The study, which was started last year by Dr Husna Sulaiman of UPM's Department of Human Development Studies, covers women in the Muda Agricultural Development Authority (Mada) irrigation scheme region and those in the central region of Selangor and Federal Territory.

The project, covering a five year period, is carried out in two phases. The first phase from,, 1985 to 1987 involves rural women in the informal sector in the Mada region while the second phase from 1988 to 1990 will touch on I both rural And urban I women in the central region of Selargor and, Kuala Lumpur.

This was revealed by Dr. Husna in her paper on Rural Malaysian Women's Econmic Contribution and Family's Level of Living at the international workshop on Womens Work and Family Strategies in South and South East Asia today.

The purpose of the study, is to examine the nature of Malaysian women's  work and factors determining their participation in economic, activities, and the. effeets of women's work on family development and well being.

Dr Husna said the study focussed on rural women of all major ethnic groups in
Selangor and Kedah.

Selangor was chosen because the ethnic distribution in rural and urban areas was wellrepresented.

Dr Husna said findings from the study would shed light on the role of resources that either enhance productivity or act as constraining factors to women's development

]]> <![CDATA[Indons still do it the traditional way]]> PENANG, Tues.   Relations between the domestic worker and her employer In big cities In Java ate still maintained In the traditional way   there Is no written work agreement regulating  their terms of employment.

Though Indonesia has its labour laws for women workers, they have not been applied to domestic servants.

Thus, domestic workers may be categorised as being in the informal employment sector.

This was one of the findings of a preliminary research by the Srikandi Foundation In Jakarta which has been collecting the data to form a basis for the establishment of a training course for domestic servants.

The foundation is assisting the women's section of the Indonesian Federation of Labour Unions to provide such training courses so that domestic servants will have better opportunities for work advancement and raise their status as female workers.

The research Is being carried out among domestic servants who are mostly between the 13 and 30 age bracket in Jakarta, Bandung, Cirebon, Yogyakarta, Salatiga, Surabaya and Malang.

Srikandi Foundation researcher Sukanti Suryochondro told the international workshop today that the majority of domestic servants Interviewed had very little schooling and did not have additional training before their employment.

Their entrance to domestic service was facilitated by the fact that employers do not stress the need for school education to become household servants.

Because of the increasing educational opportunities for women, there is also an increase in the number of women wishing to pursue a career.

Thus, there is a greater demand in big cities in Java for household help since the
state or society does not provide adequate facilitics to lighten the burden of housework or childcare.

]]> <![CDATA[USM don on the special role of a Malay wife]]> PENANG, Tues.   A Malay wife has as much economic Independence as her husband, not only by contributing a major share of her labour in farming but also in conducting small scale petty businesses related to her skill or trade, a workshop on Women's Work and Family Strategies in South and South East Asia was told today.

Universiti Sains Malaysia's women's studies research programme (Kanita) director Associate Proffesor Dr WaztrJahan Karim said in her paper on Women's Work and Family Status Production Processes in Malaysia that Malay women also had full control over domestic finances, which usually gave her added prestige and esteem.

However, a woman who exerted greater Initiative and Independence in generating her own income had considerably higher status than one who merely controlled her husband's income.

The greater her economic productivity and ability to control the source of Income of her family, the higher her status In the community.

Furthermore, amongst the poor women, those who toiled In the field and estates to supplement income commanded more respect than those who merely stayed at home and made no attempt to assist their husbands financially.

On the other hand, women from the rural elite who need not indulge in the normal female labour and time intensive activities such as child care, rice cultivation, rubbertapping and gardening were envied by other women, she said.

Such rural elite women had high social standing within their villages but they could elevate their status if they also generate their own income and do not entirely depend on their husbands.

Dr Wazir Jahan said in matters relating to inheritance and transmission of property, a Malay woman was only disfavoured when Islamic laws were implemented but the tendency to allow them to inherit an equal proportion of land according to adat or custoniary law gave them a fair amount of economic independence and mobility.

A 1979 study of Malay rice cultivators in three villages in Kedah, Kelantan and Malacca showed that the first few years of marriage rendered Malay women a status equal to men.

It was also observed that the high frequency of divorce in. Kedah and the East Coast States of Terengganu and Kelantan did not reduce the status of rural Malay women, for divorces were not stigmatised and divorcees had favourable chances of remarriage.

While Islamic ceremonial activities gave men a major role in ordering ritual relations, other social activities concerning birth, circumcision, marriage, child delivery and feasting highlighted the role of women as ritual specialists, mediators, caterers, decorators and entertainers within and beyond the physical boundaries of the village.


]]> <![CDATA[Rural show of wealth]]> WOMEN in the rural areas, it appears, are more concerned with showing off their wealth than taking care of their health.

A study conducted by Universiti Sains Malaysia's Kanita Centre apparently showed women to be more interested in demonstrating socio economic mobility through the purchase and display of goods, than securing basic necessities like medication and nutritious foods.

They would rather buy imported crockery than spend their money on food and educational materials which might improve their children's physical and mental development.

This is rampant in rural fringe areas where advertising through the mass media and direct sales has visibly affected consumption and expenditure patterns.

This pattern of materialism and status production is reinforced in another study by Kanita on "Women's Work, Family Strategies and Status Production Processes" (1987).

It is found that women factory workers were also subject to the fervour of consumption, affecting the remittance flow of income from urban to rural areas.

They were found to be less concerned for their general health despite working under strenuous conditions. Hence, the syndrome of mass hysteria in factories, which mainly affects young rural Malay girls who have not successfully adjusted physically and psychologically to the new working environment.

Kanita (Kanak Kanak dan Wanita) was formed 10 years ago as a result of efforts by Unicef to set up a research base in a Malaysian university for studies on women and children.

The then regional director of Unicef, Dr Ramon Hermano and the then Dean of USM's School of Social Sciences, Dr Kamal Salih, approached Dr Wazir Jahan Karim, a social science lecturer at the University to develop the research programme.

A team comprising academic staff got together to formulate evaluative research designs, participatory action methodology and techniques and student study service programmes. While working with the community, the latter provides opportunities for students to put into practice classroom theory.

The 1987 89 research, for instance, focuses on women and Islam and includes a study on hysteria in religious schools which is part of a wider study on Islam and its "sociology'' in Malaysia,

From other kanita's studies on women factory workers, it is noted that in the village or community, they have to put up with a lot of malicious remarks and gossip. They are often censured for their behaviour or dressing by village elders and religious leaders.

At the factories, their job demands regular attendance, consistent hard work and concentration in assembling and processing minute parts of electrical or electronic goods. This environment is completely opposed to the more casual and irregular work pattern in the village.

Hence, they have to put up with a lot of pressure and stress. In addition, they are also concerned over the lack of promotion prospect, fined or maximum wages, limited schemes for further training and retrenchment possibilities.

The problem of mass hysteria, it is found is also rampant in rural secondary schools, particularly religious-types school. Again it reflects the poor mental health of adolescent women who experience work and discipline conditions that contrast significantly with those in the rural environment.

 Dr Wazir says more research should be conducted on the inter relationships between, health, family strategies and life situations, education and work.

This is to evaluate how modernisation, urbanisation and industrialisation processes have affected the social development of women and youth in general.

With regard to consumer habits, Dr Wazir is concerned that direct selling agents have prenetrated the rural areas where women are the prime target.

“The agents go from house-to-house pestering women and making then feel bad or deprived if they don’t want to buy. The women on the other hand, would immediately feel compensated for their low standards of living by acquiring the goods.

“In the villages, people live in close communities, comparing what they have. If they don’t have the things their neighbours have they feel inferior.

During a visit to a remote village in sik, Kedah, she noticed a house which was partly made of bamboo and wood gathered from the jungle. Yet the family had a whole set of Tupperware, and expensive crockery and aluminum pots and pans.

“Dust had collected on these items which apparently were, meant more for decoration, and just ashamed to have visitors. It’s a kind of status symbol.

“We are not against direct selling but it must be properly controlled and administered.”

Kanita plans to hold a workshop a problem with participation of village men so that a policy can be worked out and recommendations made.

Dr Wazir says that generally, development processes do not only suggest q fiable and physical improvement achievements. Instead, qualitative improvements suggesting mental and intellectual transformations in the long-term should be the indicator of goal effectiveness of development programmes.

“It is generally agreed that women, who constitute nearly 50 per cent of the total gainfully employed or unpaid labour force in Malaysia, have an important role to play in nation-building.

“What this role is and how this can be effected and maximized area two questions which need to be examined seriously in this country.”

She says that within the context of economic modernization and a pluralistic, multiethnic society like Malaysia, experiences and growth rates vary according to ethnicity, gender and region or state.

Malaysia’s development policies, therefore, need to consider these variations and differences so that each sector of population can experience optimal growth in all areas of living.

“Progressive women produce nations, and a nation maintains its progress through enabling men and women to generate ideas and skill that bring about greater physical and economic productivity.

“In the same way as it is possible to say that women have contributed to half the history of the word, let it remain that the future of nations continues to be contributed by this half.”

Kanita’s publications and reports number more that 100 and they are available at the Kanita Research Centre, USM, at low cost.

Some of the topics covered are Bringing Out the Green in Women and Children: A View of Health Development in Malaysia, Rituals in Malaysia: Symbols of Change, Pros and Cons of a Government Programmes for Women, Community Development Strategies: Some Observations on Malaysian Development, and Income Generating Activities for Women: A Case Study of Malaysia.

Others include Aspects if Culture in Relation to Habit – Food and Nutrition, The Development of Female Leadership in Peninsula Malaysia, Women Piece-Rate Workers in Malaysia, Health Hazards in the Micro-Electronics Industry in Malaysia, Malay Midwives and Witches, Women and Work, and Women and Violence.

Kanita has established links with more than 50 national and in organizing agencies.

It is also involved in organizing an Asean network of experts in women studies and it will strengthen its links with Southeast Asian universities and serve as a foundation for collaborative research and training through joint workshops, seminars and meeting.

 

]]> <![CDATA[Roboh tiga rumah ia lama musnahkan warisan islam]]> PULAU PINANG 30 Okt.   Seorang ahli antropologi mendakwa rancangan merobohkan tiga unit kediaman di sekitar tanah wakaf Masjid Melayu Lebuh Acheh akan memusnahkan bukti khazanah terpenting tamadun Melayu, Arab dan India Muslim di bandar ini.

Profesor Dr. Wazir Jahan Karim berkata, langkah itu boleh melenyapkan tinggalan warisan akhir kurun ke 18 yang merupakan tempoh kegemilangan dalam perkembangan masyarakat Islam di rantau Asia Tenggara.

Pengarah Akademi Sains Sosial Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) itu mendakwa langkah tersebut juga boleh menjejaskan usaha pengekalan warisan tamadun pelbagai kaum yang dicadang disenaraika dalam senarai warisan sejarah dunia UNESCO.

"Bukan kita menolak pembangunan malah merasakan perancangan MAIPP untuk mewujudkan pelbagai pusat seperti klinik dan tempat perniagaan adalah sesuatu yang baik.

"Tetapi kita harap tiga rumah lama iaitu lot 65, 67 dan 69 yang pernah dihuni oleh pemimpin masyarakat zaman tersebut termasuk kadi pertama Pulau Pinang perlu dikekalkan," katanya kepada, pemberita dalam kunjungan ke kawasan berkenaan di sini hari ini.

Projek pembangunan semula tanah wakaf yang diwartakan di bawah Akta Benda Purba 1976 itu akan diteruskan oleh Majlis Agama Islam Pulau Pinang (MAIPP) dengan peruntukan RM40 juta.

Timbalan Ketua Menteri yang juga Yang Dipertua MAIPP, Datuk Dr. Hilmi Yahaya menjelaskan rancangan itu bertujuan meningkatkan prasarana perniagaan, kesihatan, kariah masjid dan masyarakat menel asi pelan menyeluruh dalam tempoh tiga hingga empat tahun akan datang.

Ketika ini kawasan berkenaan dihuni oleh kira kira, 30 orang daripada enam keluarga asal pewaris.

Mengulas rancan an pihak berkuasa, Wazir Jahan berkata , tokoh tokoh di kawasan Masjid Melayu Lebuh Acheh seperti Sheikh Omar Basheer dan Syed Hussain Aidid mempunyai latar sejarah dalam pembangunan Islam signifikan serta. amat relevan sebagai bahan penyelidikan, ilmiah.

"Mereka menyumbang dengan cara mereka sendiri untuk kemajuan orang Islam dan pernah tinggal di rumah ini yang mungkin telah diubah suai sedikit tetapi struktur asasnya adalah asli dan perlu dikekalkan dan dipulihara," katanya.

Menurut beliau perkara itu akan dirujuk kepada Timbalan Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi; Merteri Kebudayaan Kesenian dan Pelancongan, Datuk Paduka Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir serta pihak berkuasa negeri agar keputusan lebih positif dapat dicapai.

Seorang pensvarah bidang sejarah dari Pusat Pengajian Ilmu Kemanusiaan USM, Dr. Mahani Musa pula mendakwa warisan Melayu silam di sekitar masjid itu adalah yang terakhir masih terdapat hari ini dan perlu dikekalkan walau dengan apa cara sekali pun.

Beliau mendakwa, kawasan itu adalah simbol kukuh catatan perpaduan kaum Cina Melayu dan kebijaksanaan orang Melayu dalam mewujudkan sektor komuniti di zaman penjajahan Inggeris.

 

]]> <![CDATA[Globalisation ‘affecting women’]]> GLOBALISATION and law reforms around the world are affecting the role and position of women in Malaysia, said Kanita (Women's Development Research Centre) deputy director Dr Azrina Husin.

She said law reforms in the country had to be studied by all parties concerned, "as our society is constantly undergoing changes and challenges."

"Kanita has decided to pay attention to the changes with regard to laws concerning women as they have an impact on our status and lifestyle.

"We also hope to create an awareness which would bring about improvement for women and children," she said in her welcoming speech at the forum on Changes in Malaysian Laws and The Position of Women organised by Kanita at Universiti Sains Malaysia.

The forum saw four practising lawyers - Federation of Women Lawyers president Yuslinov Ahmad, Penang Bar chairman Petra Oon, Women's Centre for Change Dresident Lim Kah Cheng and state Wanita Gerakan publicity bureau chairman Geeta Suresh Chand -- discussing issues with regard to the current debate on changes in the law related to women.

Penang Yang di-Pertua Negri Tun Abdul Rahman Abbas' consort Toh Puan Majimor Shariff opened the function.

In her presentation on Laws Relating to Marriage and Divorce in Malaysia: Critical Areas for Reform, Oon highlighted several critical areas for reform such as the need to look into a proposal to legitimise illegitimate children.

"In our civil law if a man's second union bears him cbildren, they would have no right of succession as they are considered illegitimate.

"There are differing views on this as some have raised concern for children born of rape victims or victims of incest.

"Although we expect some form of reaction from nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) when the proposal is put forward, we must have it in the forefront of our minds that children or babies are born innocent of their parents' actions," she said.

Oon added that of late there were some school of thoughts that did not want to carry the proposal beyond children born of rape victims or incest, while there were others who advocated for legitimisation across- the board.

She said although the law did make provisions for illegitimate children under the Married Women & Children (Maintenance) Act 1950, the provisions were, however, discriminatory.

Oon also spoke on the need to look into reforms concerning Marriage Tribunals.

She said presently the Syariah Court was seen to be a family court and there was a need for a similar setting for civil divorces.

"We need a place for family disputes to be referred to where the environment is sensitive to the needs of disputants with priority be given to children."

Lim, who is also the assistant secretary for the Society for the Disabled, in her presentation Laws for Disabled Persons in Malaysia said disabled women faced double discrimination.

"They face all the problems that come from being in a society which treats them as non-entities," she said.

Lim added that for a long time now, being disabled was seen as a disease and this problem came from people's thinking that issues concerning the disabled were charity issues and not -human rights issues.

"For instance, we have mentally retarded rape victims and blind females who are sexually harassed when they are helped cross the road.

"Usually, we do not even give it a second thought because we brush it off as one of the things that happens to only a small group of people," Lim said.

                      

]]> <![CDATA[USM to offer programme on women, gender sensitivity]]>
USM Women Development Research Centre (Kanita) director Professor Wazir Jahan Karim said the proposed Masters and PhD programme would take in its pioneer enrolment when the university's new session begins in May, 2003.

"We are in the final stage of drafting the programme before presenting it to the Council of Higher Education Studies for approval and subsequently the Education Ministry for endorsement.

"If all goes well, we can  pect 30 undergi aduates for the Masters programme and 15 for the PhD programme in the next calendar year."

On the Masters in Human Resources programme, Wazir said the proposed year long programme would be conducted through structured thesis, where graduates would be jointly supervised when producing their thesis.

"This is very different from the situation now where graduates are left on their own to come out with their thesis and some could not complete it on time.

"From experience, we also found that with supervision success is achieved as it is fundamental in teaching since many of the local universities here had already began using this methodology in their teaching processes *

"This is also in line with USM being a centre for excellent educational research here," she said, adding that Kanita would also be the pioneer centre of excellence in the country to propose their own post graduate programmes.

Wazir added that the Masters programme, which would focus on gender sensitivity, is well suited for both women and men.

"We want woman today to also play an equally active role in politics and in decision making alongside their male counterparts.

"As such, it is important for our male counterparts to also be savvy on this matter to bring about any changes to the present situation," she said.

On the PhD programme, Wazir added that it would specifically focussed on women studies, such as their role in Information Technology (IT), science and technology or even the implications of domestic violence towards women on themselves and their family.

She added that since most of the higher learning institutions in Malaysia were moving in a global direction and ensuring that their programmes are being internationalised, this programme would certainly complement and contribute towards this factor.

“In fact, we have received letters from the United Nation agencies stating their interest to sponsor Third World country under gradurates, especially those from Timur Timur and Indonesia, to pursue their studies here.

“If this gender studies programme is popular in European universities, I am sure, it will be accepted here well,” she added.

]]> <![CDATA[Champion of the cause]]> No stranger to a fight, Wazir Jahan Karim continues to trail blaze the empowerment of women. SHARJFAHAL ATTAS reports, in the first of a new series on Malaysian women.

"WE are concerned," says Universiti Sains Malaysia's Professor Wazir Jahan Karim, "about the problems of the country; ethnic polarisation, the support of women for the opposition.

"This latter is healthy in that it indicates the participation of women in urban governance and the construction of civil society.

"But they are indicating a loss of confidence in our political machinery."

The 52 year old convenor of USM's Women and Human Resource Studies Unit (Kanita) may well be employing the royal "we", so regal is her hearing. The imperious set of her head emphasises that, though concerned she may be, SHE does not suffer from a loss of confidence ... in herself, or in any¬thing else.

As a child, she explains, Wazir had to compete with the strong men of her family for limited resources. Her par¬ents   in common with others of the post colonial middle class   considered the education of their two sons and five daughters a social investment.

"My mother, too, was strong," remembers Wazir. "She was a dynamic social worker, a
pioneer of the Women's Institute, Red Cross, St John's; an invaluable member of the post independence voluntary women's network.

"She was a contemporary of Tun Rahah's, Toh Puan Saadiah Saadon's, Tan Sri Devaki Krishnan's (to become wife of Malaysia's second Prime Minister, of Chief Minister of Penang and MIC stalwart respectively). Like them, she fought to create a better Malaya."

Wazir herself appears no stranger to a fight. And there is nothing which gives her greater satisfaction than to champi¬on the cause of Malaysian women.

"Inequality," she asserts, "is expressed in terms of gender. This has much to do with the attitudes of men towards women.

"Ours is a male dominated society," she continues. "Violence and sexual harassment occur against women    uot so much against men  Men protect men.

"For them," she says candidly, “Women are a different specie".

Her conviction that the male approach to addressing prejudice against women is more conservative and less committed than is the female one explains Wazir's involvement with Kanita Associated with the unit since its inception 22 years ago, she has been convenor, with the exception of a two year hiatus in 1995     from which she was coaxed by the university.

"Gender studies in Malaysia began at USM," she says, "and gender studies at USM emerged from a burgeoning inter¬est on the part of academics in introduc¬ing a gender perspective to general thinking.

“The university developed courses on women,” she elaborates. “It introduced a gender perspective to curricula, and recognized research topics on gender.”

Kanita, which Wazir describes as having “the longest intellectual history of gender studies in Malaysia”. Is in the  process of being accorded regional status. The proposal has come before the USM senate and been passed by the university’s board of directors, and is currently before the Ministry of Education.

Kanita’s regional status, says Wazir, has been proposed as part of the Eighth Malaysia Plan. Its implementation will render the unit Malaysia’s first women’s development and research centre.

"Tertiary education for women is an indicator of social development,” she explains. “But women's issues have  sensitive topics.

“Women are active in non-governmental organizations; in consumer movements; in environmental concerns; in gender issues. The woman’s movement is thus occasionally wrongly associated with militancy and rebellion.

Women are concerned and committed. And, through our interest in public policy, we are catalyst for change.”

Academics, too, she says, are catalysts for change   change from within.

"Malaysian academics are part of the Government apparatus," she con¬tinues. "The country hails transparency. This requires a meritocracy which is where academe plays a pivotal role."

Wazir's concern extends to what she refers to as "the feminisation of poverty.

"Sisters are taken out of school more quickly than their brothers are," she observes; "boys are at school, in the mosque, attending church, learning the guitar, playing chess; girls take in laun¬dry and sewing, sell titbits, so their brothers can study.

"For the same reason, they postpone marriage. And, after their brothers obtain their degrees, they abscond for the gold paved streets of the city; spinster sisters, ageing them¬selves, are left in the homes of aged parents."

It is precisely this sorry state of affairs which the United Nations International Children's Education Fluid sought to address when, in 1978, it presented USM with a RM500,000 grant for the purpose of conducting research into the role of women in rural politics and decision making. The goal: the elimination of rural poverty through the empower¬ment of women.

The seeds of Kanita were sown.

"Then, though," says Wazir, "women regarded themselves as indivisible from the family. Some years later, however,
the feminist approach prevailed, as it does today.

"Women see themselves not simply as part of a whole, but as women."

The unit today consists of five senior fellows, five research associates and three fulltime researchers attached to specific projects. No courses are regis¬tered under Kanita, however, as univer¬sity policy encourages pure research.

"Our researchers, however, introduce the results of Kanita research into the courses they conduct. These are attend¬ed by academics, students and members of the public. They are entirely volun¬tary   nothing is compulsory."

The unit is multidisciplinary. Senior fellow Dr Tiun Ling Ta, for example, focuses on demography and urban gov¬ernance; senior fellow Dr Khor Yoke Lim's interest lies in information tech¬nology and the media; and fellow Noraidah Endut's training is in the area of spousal abuse law.

Wazir herself is primarily concerned with culture and politics.

This collaborative research, says Wazir, "strengthens the unit.

"Everyone can help."

Kanita, explains Wazjr, is the research and consultancy arm of Penang's Women's Affairs Department (Hawa).

"Each year, we’re involved in projects with Hawa in Penang," she says. "This year, we are investigating public policy; how it helps    or hampers – the advancement of women in the Malaysian labour force.

"We intend the trainers to be trained at being gender sensitive with regard to policy implementation. We'd like a greater role in, and greater impact on labour, economic and public policy.

"Women, after all, suffer much in war; they thus care greatly about peace.

“They are the linchpin of a political system. And the current loss confidence in ours means planner, policymaker and politicians must address the problem without delay.

“In Iran, for example, and in the Philippines,” she reminds us, “the tides of the revolution and the demonstrations of People Power were turned when women were won over.

“Malaysian youth, therefore, hasn’t necessarily misinterpreted its role. It is reinventing it, with the help of values it learns at home.
“For a child speaks the language of the mother – in more ways than one.”


]]> <![CDATA[A Malaysian dilemma]]> THE author of this provocative book is not a social scientist but a surgeon residing in Morgan Hill, California.

Educated at the University of Alberta, Canada, M. Bakri provides personal insights into Malaysian development from the period of independence to the contemporary scene. He covers a range of controversial topics   the New Economic Policy, adat and Islam, ethnicity and genetics, urbanisation and Islamisation, the monarchy, bumiputera competitiveness, Malaysia's "pesky" neighbour, Singapore, corruption, cronyism and Vision 2020.

He attempts to draw information from secondary academic and popular sources and justifies his objectivity by claiming that "influential Malaysians" who discuss Malaysia overseas "are surprisingly open and candid in expressing their views."

He defends his competence to comment on contemporary news with his access to the Internet and Malaysian databases. Generally, the sentiment expressed in this book is not unlike that of many Malays who feel that they have made it on their own and need not feel gratitude or terhutang budi to the Malaysian Government for providing them with the right kind of incentives and perks.

Bakri made it on his own; he did it "his way".

Throughout the book, he criticises Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad's Malay Dilemma for misinterpreting the versatility and vibrancy of the Malays. He argues that they are not totally guided by emotion and sentiment but by a sense of identity and purpose; that they are more than capable of academic excellence and self development without pandering to institutions like the New Economic Policy or Mara fold without much scrutiny of racial orgin, is more that capable of holding up to Malaysia Chinese businesses.

Essentially, he argues for greater autonomy and trust in policies directed towards the Malays to enable them to redefine their lifestyles in ways more conducive to indigenous values of adat and Islam.

The average reader can agree with this line of thinking and generally empathise with the writer's concern for restoring Malay pride in its gene pool and culture.

A "Malay" is not a biological or racial type but a form of political identity.

Culturally, Malays are different from the Chinese and Indians, regardless of religion. Islam has not made Indian or Chinese Muslims more Malay. But Malay adat promotes a cultural core and sets up a set of social values which ensures a sense of social stability and confidence. Indian and Chinese Muslims have their own core values. The book does not explain these sociological differences clearly, and presents many ideas on ethnicity which are generally loose and confusing.

Yes, it is a tough and competitive world but the factor causing this is not only ethnic preference through "Bumiputeraism". It is a combination of ethnicity, religion, class and gender. And being on the wrong side of a system of preferences  whether in corporate culture or national policy    is not only a Malaysian problem but also global one.

Singapore is praised by Bakri for its tough policies towards Bumiputeras. He states that meritocracy is preferable but fails to note that meritocracy alone may aggravate class differences and fan ethnic conflict.

Children of the middle and upper classes inevitably do better because they have access to better schools in towns and cities. In the case of the policy regarding admission to public institutions of higher learning in Malaysia, the ethnic quota attempts to reduce the comparative advantage of class and privilege, but within each ethnic group, admission is based on merit points. The system is stratified meritocracy.

All in all, this book will probably win the sympathy and attention of non Bumiputeras and Bumiputeras who can claim that they owe their success to pure grit and hard work. However, those who claim such success should also examine the politics of business and commerce in Malaysia and elsewhere. At some stage or other, much of one's success in. business and commerce is based on connections and strategic networks and alliances. Chinese and Indian businesses have been well documented in academic texts. They have been in existence for a long time in Asia and over centuries, conveyed the same story of ethnic monopolies.

Malay businesses, however, are dependent on non-Malay partnerships but are less well-researched or documented for my clear generalisations to be made. In the early stages of establishing strategic alliances, Malays have come to learn that their survival depends on successful alliances with non-Malays. This has unfortunately also led to inter ethnic cronyism. Bumiputeraism, however, is not the cause of cronyism. These "strategic alliances" if monopolised by political elites of different ethnicities may become chronic and remove healthy competition in business and commerce even among Bumiputeras. With globalisation, ethnic differences become less significant and inter ethnic alliances may become stronger. The author could have related some of these trends without focusing entirely on the demerits of Bumiputeraism.

Although ethnicity is an important variable to discuss in a book critical of dichotomies between dumb and intelligent genes, nevertheless, in the context of Malaysia, I would like to think that a more subtle argument on the iDterrelationships between ethnicity, class elitism and gender would have better revealed the Malaysian story.

Class differences are increasingly apparent and won ten have increased their participation in tertiary education up to 65 per cent. Does that mean that Malay women are equipped with better genes than Malay men? Or Chinese women better equipped than Chinese men? Social scientists have long done away with any kind of analysis which harbours genetics as the main variable of achievement.

The book is personal and judgmental in sentiment. Yet it criticises another for those very same weaknesses.

However, Bakri's "revisit" should not be ignored. It tells us that not everyone can master the social sciences by virtue of being a writer. We must see the emergence of proper social analysis of etlinic relations and offer solutions which can help build upon the concern of all Malaysians to end this constant bickering about who is gaining what from Malaysia's economic cake.

A civil society" is based on a conscious effort all ethnic communities. Hostilities, prejudice and racism will fester if the Malays and the poor are treated as citizens who have not tried hard enough to succeed; or if women are treated as supplementary income-earners who can be disposed of anytime the economy is in trouble, or if the youth are blamed for most of our social ills.'

We must begin to discuss the social realities behind trends of social change and instability. A fundamental issue is increasing rootless ness among Malaysian youth regardless of ethnicity, class and gender. Another is the problem of redefining poverty, since an income level*of RM500 RM900 clearly places an urban average sized family of five in the category of absolute poverty   those who are unable to meet basic needs of food, transport, education, health and shelter. All ethnic communities share similar economic and social problems, yet, in Malaysia these problems are analysed separately and through different biological and psychological variables.

Better intercultural and intersocietal understanding may be the key solution to Malaysia’s socioeconomic and political problems. Perhaps more social scientists should start writing about these social problems and give our enthusiastic doctors some much deserved rest!


]]> <![CDATA[Don sees fallout from lack of free expression]]> PENANG: Students in many Asian countries who feel oppressed at being unable to express themselves freely are among those supporting and sympathising with acts of terror.

Universiti Sains Malaysia's Academy of Social Sciences director general Prof Dr Wazir Jahan Karim said this occurred because the students found limited channels to express alternative opinions or demonstrate autonomy and individuality.

"In many cases, they will direct their frustration and fears into clandestine acts of protest and sabotage, which it organised on a larger scale, become rebellion or revolt.

"And for those who don't directly partake in such act... they may become silent sympathisers of militants and opposition parties", She said ill an interview.

Dr Wazir said the education syllabus should encourage students to discuss social issues such as critical differences between East and West, and the role of moderate Islamic nations as a political mediator in terrorism.

She said this was part of the contents in tier paper on The Sociology of Terrorism, which she had written after the Sept I I terrorist attacks against the United States.

The paper was presented at the first South East Asian Conflict Studies Network's Malaysian national workshop from Nov 7 - 9.

Dr Wazir noted that university courses on social issues such as peasant rebellion, social movements and social inequality were not popular with students.

"Social science courses are vital to offer a deeper understanding into the mechanics and root causes of terrorism.
"However, with the current emphasis on globalisation and ICT, students prefer courses on Economics and Management Studies instead," she said.

"On Sept 11, the world saw for the first time a catastrophic attack on America by unknown and unseen forces. And the invisibility of such groups makes them invincible."

On the changing face of terrorism, she said the homicide-suicide pattern reflected a "puristic ideology" in violence when "to kill and be killed" had its rewards in martyrdom.


]]> <![CDATA[Iranian women yearn for freedom from engendered discrimination]]> By Wazir Jahan Karim

TWENTY ONE years ago, the people of Iran staged a revolution never before imagined in modern world history   the dethroning of one of the oldest monarchies in the world and the resurrection of an Islamic Constitution governed by a parliament referred to as Majlis..

The powers of the Majlis are checked by the Guardian Council, a 12 man body of clerks and lawyers which ensures that all laws passed are in agreement with the syariah and the Constitution. Parliament has powers to introduce and pass legislation, summon and impeach ministers or the president.
 '
Five seats are reserved for Iran's 'religious minorities, one each for Zoroastriaris, Jews, Assyrian and Chaldean Christians and two from the Armenian Christians.

In the recent parliamentary elections on Feb 18, more than 5,700 candidates contested 270 seats, including some 400 women.

The theme of this parliamentary elections however, marked a turning point, in Iran's post revolutionary politics   reformists fighting for a more liberal interpretation of Islam in economies, politics and social life.

A coalition of reformist parties were get to defeat the conservatives, who back the hard anti western stand of the militant clergy founded by the line of Irnam Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and supreme leader Khamenei.

The reformists, however, are not secular but support the modernist zeal of moderate clerics under the leadership of President Khatami. In his address to the nation after the elections, he said:

"The Islamic Revolution was a momentous event in the history of the Iranian nation and through realising our own authentic historical and cultural identity, we have laid completely new groundwork for regulation of our society but past Islamic civilisations have withered. Civilisations address specific needs and dilemmas of a community in a particular time, and place. When conditions and times change, new questions arise that in turn require new answers and hence a new civilization.

Reformist clerics like President Khatami and his cultural adviser and "ideologue", Dr Javed Mohammad Faridzadeh, grounded in Islamic theology and European philosophy under the tutelage of Heidegger and Habermas are mostly concerned about empowering Iranians with yet another vision of the convergence of the mega cultural, architectural and technological landscape of Iran, equal in miraculous feats with the Egyptian and Tigris Euphrates civilisations.

Can the new administration combat the modern wonders of the West with its phenomenal powers to dominate, subdue and divide the Muslim world into a poorly co ordinated chorus line seeking alleglance or retribution?

The mission of the reformists is to reconstruct this incoherent scenario into a holistic vision of hope, challenge, co operation and confidence   to maintain Iran's unique identity while expanding its global competitiveness.

Indeed, with the exception of the United States, European nations like Germany, France and the Netherlands have indicated their interest in expanding multilateral trade, while Japanese investors have been greatly encouraged by the willingness of Iranian businessmen to forge smart partnerships in technology based industries.

Under the leadership of President Khatami, private and government sponsored think tanks seem to be flourishing.

The International Centre for Dialogue Among Civilisations, attached to the President's office, is a favourite, churning out a series of constructive debates on the future of religion, youth and gender in the new millennium, while others like the non governmental Centres for Scientific Research and Middle East Strategic Studies are also expanding research interests to incorporate a wider global audience.

Iranian intellectuals seem optimistic about the country's future.

The future is not so much about stabilising Iran's geopolitical stand with Asia, but with Europe and the United States. Another is Iran's own disinterest in expanding its brand of

Islamic democracy to the rest of the Muslim world.

Dr Modjtaba Sadria, Professor of Sociology at Chuo University confirms this new mood in politics.

"The Islamic Revolution served its purpose for two decades. The rural population was alleviated from poverty, rural women enjoyed the benevolence of Islamic charity and welfarism, while basic education was made compulsory. Of Iran's 62 million population of below 25 years old, the rate of literacy is almost 100 per cent, and. two million youths are in tertiary institutions of higher learning."

However, he said: "We are in transition, in a counter revolution. and we need to get over this Phase first before a new one can emerge.

On Feb 28, a message from President Mohaimmed Khatami, at a conference entitled, "Youth and Dialogue Among Civilisations" read by Mohammad Javed Faridzadeh, said that "it is only appropriate that youths take the helm of the. country's affairs and guide the nation towards the global status it deserves..."

He also said the key to Iran's vision ofglobalisati6n was "devotion to Islam", " general knowledge", "self confidence" and "modesty".

But how feasible are these?

The problem of the youths is not piety but concrete reform. Over the last 21 years, they have not been given many roles of importance. This is now a pressing issue for Iran   how to convince the younger generation to stay in Iran since they will determine the success of its deconstruction.
Millions of youths are seeking Opportunities elsewhere, in Europe and Asia with the majority of them women. For young urban women of iran the chador (large veil) is symbolic of their devaluation in society. Said a young university graduate, "Black is the colour of mourning and death. Symbolically, we bear the burden of the Plight Of the Shi'ites, who mourn the last descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, Ali and his sons Hassan and Hossein, assassinated by their brother Muslims".

At the Fin Gardens in Hashan, a group of school girls retorted when we asked. to be photographed with them. "Do you want to show your friends how prehistoric we are in our chadors? I spent 200,000 rials (on mine and it's not worth the money."

At the University of Teheran, after a dialogue on civilisation focusing on religion, politics and gender, a group of young girls in chador asked how they could organise themselves to improve their miserable lives. One of them was an undergraduate in linguistics and her eyes brimmed with tears, “Are Muslim women in Malaysia much better off than we are? What do they do to improve themselves? Do they have a future?"

Everywhere, with the exception of a few who felt that it was their duty to be obedient to the laws of the state, young girls asked us for connections to "the Land of Freedom"   the United States.

Why the United States, I asked? Why not Germany, or France?

"Because these European countries are conservative and closed up. Because we can be free in the United States. If we wait for reforms, we will become old."

Many Asians who have lived in the United Sates and Europe and experienced some form of ethnic prejudice and discrimination would say that the life style there is not as free as imagined, but for these young restless graduates of Iran, freedom is a relative thing.

When discrimination is engendered, it creates a sense of fatalism in the sex chosen to bear the sins of Karbala.

The writer was in Teheran recently for a  seminar organised by The International Centre for Dialogue Among 0mlisations. She is director general of the Academy of Social Sciences, USM.


]]> <![CDATA[Skipping school ‘twice a week’]]> MANY young school children from poor families in George Town have been found to be skipping school twice a week in order to work to help supplement their family income to support younger siblings.

Academy of Social Sciences (Akass) director general Prof Wazir Jahan Karim said schools in George Town had high percentage of working school children who attended school only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

They spend the remaining two school days working, she said.

The statistics were derived from combined studies carried out by Akass and Universiti Sains Malaysia’s (USM) Women's Development Research Centre (Kanita).

She said this at Akass' 2nd annual dinner held at the Shangri La Hotel here on Wednesday.

Themed Urban Poverty and Youth At Risk, the dinner attended by the Yang di-Pertua Negri Tun Abdul Rahman Abbas, was held in aid of the academy's Good Shoes For Walking project to benefit school children who work in George Town.

Prof Wazir said Akass with its partners in Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and Universiti Malaya felt that these working school children should remain in school for as long as they could so that they would benefit from extra classes even if their disadvantaged parents push them to work.

Prof Wazir also said Akass was concerned about the rising ethnic and class polarisation which is happening from Year 5 to Form 5 in schools, and in colleges and universities.

She said sentiments of separation and alienation based on ethnicity and class create the right ingredients for racial and chauvinistic sentiments on one hand and selective ethnic ranking and discrimination on the other.

'We must make the young feel they have a productive role to play in the nation's future.

"Resolving their problems of urban poverty is a move in the right direction," she added.

"The rise of ethnic consciousness and the need to reconcile values and identity with global competitiveness have made the Chinese prefer a Chinese education while schools and universities gradually introduce more English.

"The Malay Language has only local appeal while English may not be the right media to develop Malaysian indigenous values and a civil society," he said.
Prof Wazir also said increasing social alienation from a core sense of adat (cultural) values might drive Malays towards Arabic and Arab worldviews while English and Chinese become more globally acceptable.

Akass was established on October 3, 1996, as a nonprofit making organisation with the objective of promoting inter cultural development of a Malaysian civil society.


 

]]> <![CDATA[Don: Few graduates Want to study further]]>
USM’s vice-chancellor Tan Sri Musa Mohamad said most of the graduates preferred to be bankers, stock market analysts, management or cultural consultants.

“Graduate studies have always been a niche for those who have demonstrated academic excellence in their field but national universities are finding it harder to keep the best brains in the academia,” he said.

Of late, he said graduates with second upper class and first class honors were opting for more lucrative jobs in the corporate and private sector

Musa said this when opening an international work-shop on Promoting Promising Scholarship In The Social Sciences at the USM today. His text was read by Prof Johan Saravanamuttu, the dean of the school of social sciences, USM.

On a brighter note, Musa said a larger section of the country’ urban society was opting for social sciences.

“This is reflected by the growing commitment among them check against increasing social ills relating to environmental degradation, sexual discrimination and abuse, family and religious fundamentalism, which require social science expertise and skills to solve,” he said.

However, he agreed that social scientists had to work harder to prove themselves indispensable in checking social ills and promoting nation building.

The promotion of graduate studies in the social sciences, he added, was lso an important facet to conduct research in the field and to help promote thinking and caring society.

Earlier, organizing chairman of the workshop, Prof. Wazir Jahan Karim, who also chaired the pro-team committee of the Malaysian Academy of Social Sciences (MASS), said the one-day workshop was aimed at bringing together Malaysian social scientists, research associates and graduate students.

She said there would be more workshops and seminars on the same theme this year, to be organized by other universities but with their own sub-themes and areas of interest.

Wazir said today’s work shop, on the sub-theme Interdisciplinary, Comparative and Gender Perspectives in Social Research: Contributions to the 21st Century, attracted about 60 participants from Malaysia, Japan, Philippines, Indonesia, Bangladesh and the United States.

]]> <![CDATA[Let Orang Asli decide own future]]> In the first of a new series on the Orang Asli, ROSE ISMAIL and JOSEPH EDWIN question whether our approach to indigenous communites is the right one. We also look at the perception mainstream Malaysians have of the Orang Asli


Because of this, he adds, we persuade them to relinquish their spiritual ways even though it provides them with the most natural understanding of the world they live in.

"So, we may be sincere in wanting to help them," says the same researcher who requested anonymity. "But we cannot always insist on our own terms. This can only destroy the indigenous communities."

One Orang Asli who has "entered" the mainstream successfully (in other words, without losing his identity as a member of the community) is Anthony Williams Hunt. He said the debate to keep the Orang Asli in the jungle or to coax them into the folds of urban society was on going and also a source of contention among Orang Asli themselves.

Williams Hunt or BahTony, as he is called in the Semai community, said the best way to help the Orang Asli is to let them decide on their future.

"Once they have made their decisions, they should be helped in that direction," said Williams Hunt who is the president of the Perak branch and founder of the 12,000 strong Orang Asli Association of Peninsular Malaysia (POASM).

"Either way, it will be difficult for them. For those who live on the fringes, the choice is made for them because of their close proximity to civilisation," he said.

Most of the Orang Asli living on the fringes of towns and villages are dependent on the cash economy because barter trading no longer brings them adequate funds for their daily needs.

So, like many Malays in a rural economy, Asli youngsters have taken up positions in factories.

However, as Williams Hunt points out, respect and recognition should still be given to those who choose to live in the interior to practice the traditional way of life.

For such people, he adds, progress should be brought to them instead of uprooting entire villages to bring the Asli closer to civilisation.

In the past, he said, a number of such programmes were unsuccessful because of the careless way in which they were implemented.

"Ideally we want the best of both worlds, but we understand that this is not possible," he said.

Indeed, a quick look at relocation efforts show the Orang Asli not enjoying the best of both worlds but lost somewhere between.

"Many of them feel displaced," said Prof Wazir. The Orang Asli in Selangor   the Besisi community which she has studied for some years now and has adopted as "family"   have reacted to development in a number of ways: some have shied away ("bawa diri" was the word she used to explain this) from everything and a number have become very aggressive.

The men, especially, suffer enormous mental stress.

They feel they cannot provide for their family anymore. So they resort to opium, drugs or alcohol.

As development occurs around them, they are displaced physically and emotionally. They end up feeling useless because they cannot provide food and income from the sources that they had traditionally depended upon.

Nevertheless, she still believes that with sensitivity and careful planning, the Orang Asli can be brought into the mainstream.

Prof Wazir is particularly pleased with the Government's decision to place Orang Asli schools under the national education structure. This would mean better teachers, more discipline and certainly more attention to the real needs of the community.

University Kebangsaan Malaysia anthropology professor Hood Salleh also advocates the Orang Asli's involvement in the Mainstream.

"They should not be left in the lurch. Development should be for everyone," he says. "We cannot perpetuate the idea that they should continue as museum pieces."

Hood calls for moderate, well intentional national policies with regard to the basic needs of the Orang Asli including the right to own land and better representation in the Government.

To compete with other Malaysian communities the Orang Asli need better education and a higher socioeconomic status, he says.

While Hood compliments the mass media for the role it plays in enlightening the general public on the Orang Asli, he singles out the vernacular press for what he calls "romantic reporting" where the Orang Asli are often portrayed as noble savages.

UKM anthropology lecturer Hasan Mat Nor also believes that the Orang Asli should be brought into the mainstream   simply because they are Malaysians.

And like Williams Hunt, Hasan says those who want to remain in their natural environment   like the Jahai living on the fringes of Tasik Temmengor in Northern Perak   should be allowed to do so.

More recently, pockets of Orang Asli have begun to ,revive their ancient customs and rituals.

As such, the Gengulang   a festive ritual to appease the land spirits   is now practised in many Semai villages.

A sacrificial chicken, fresh flowers and unhusked rice is offered to the spirits, and at night villagers will partake in song and dance, while stuffing themselves with pulut lemang.

Furthermore, the Sewang (a cultural dance to celebrate joyous occasions like the harvest festival) has also been reintroduced in Semai villages.

Such practices indicate that the Asli are themselves making a serious attempt to preserve their culture and traditions.

]]> <![CDATA[Share stories with children, parents told]]>
"Things are no longer the same as they were during our time. We have priceless stories to tell our children and it must be imparted from generation to generation if we want to keep our cultures and traditions alive," she said.

Kee was delivering her keynote address at a "Memories Women and Lifestyles in Georgetown and the Villages Beyond" seminar and forum at a hotel here.

It was organised by the Women Development Consultative Committee (Hawa), Women and Human Resource Studies Unit Universiti Sains Malaysia (Kanita) and Penang Heritage Trust (PHT).

"We must reach out and tell the children of our Malaysian roots which are so vibrant and lively, and of course our food, a reflection of culture," she said, adding that the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism must promote our cultures and traditions internationally.

Meanwhile, Kanita chairman Prof Wazir Jahan Karim said the younger generation lacked knowledge in traditional and cultural issues as parent children interaction is diminishing.

"Children these days do not spend enough time with their families. They are too engrossed with their day today activities. By right, there has to be a relearning and reunderstanding of tradition and cultures so that the traits of the society are not lost," she said, adding that only a small number of youths learned traditional musical instrument.

Wazir also said the present day school activities had become so polarised that it did riot reflect Malaysian heritage on the whole.

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State Executive Councillor for Women's Development Kee Phaik Cheen said the survey was part of its research and development plans to collect information on women here.

"The information will help us draw up programmes for women who are equal contributors to the state's progress," said Kee.

She said the programmes would cater to both rural and urban women and include skill development and training.

Heading the research team are Dr Wazir Jahan Karim and Dr Molly Lee, both of Universiti Sains Malaysia, who have started compiling research based on available information.

Dr Wazir said that the survey would be 'conducted in the middle of the year, and would include questions on the needs and requirements of working women in Penang such as education, health, employment, social services and so on.
"We need to conduct A survey because the current vital statistics are not based on tender," said Dr Wazir, who is an anthropologist in the women and human resources studies unit in USM's School of Social services and so on.

Dr Wazir said that the database would be very important for women's development because Penang was highly dependent on both local and migrant female labour.

"We would also like to capture the transformation of culture and values among women, and how they have responded to the state's industrialisation process," said Dr Wazir.

She added that the survey of women in different public and private sectors would also spearhead efforts for more gender sensitive information.

"We hope that our pioneering efforts will be emulated in the other states so that women's development can be better monitored on the whole," Dr Wazir said.

]]> <![CDATA[Appraisal system not prefect: Don]]> PENANG: The present appraisal system for academic staff is not consonant with efforts to raise the level of total quality management (TQM) within an organisation, said a Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) don.

Prof Wazir Jahan Karim said appraisal of academic staff was for promoting interaction between them and administrators ' not for implementing a system of "reward and punishment" that provides for additional remuneration or penalties.

"When a centre works as a team to raise the quality of its output, the academics in the centre cannot be assessed on the strength of their individual output," she said yesterday at the official launching of the 'Higher Education' journal in USM.

Apart from the appraisal and promotion system, Prof Wazir noted that current issues relevant to academics included the
privatisation of universities and its implications on the credibility of academic institutions and on working conditions.

Another point of debate, she said, pertained to the medium of instruction.

"The future of universities rests on the academic community's ability to decide on the direction of development in a consultative atmosphere and through fair and effective deliberations," she said.

Associate Prof Wan Manan Wan Muda, president of USM's Academic and Administrative Staff Association, said a large number of USM academics still believed in "the ideal that the universitv is a social institution which holds a great responsibility towards society."

He expressed concern that the academic staff's input on the corporatisation of the nation's universities had been minimal.

The implementation of corporatisation, Prof Wan Manan noted, Should incorporate the views of
all levels of personnel, not just the top.

Yang di Pertua Negri Tun Dr Haji Hamdan Sheikh Tahir, who launched the journal, said publications served to reflect the excellence of a university at both national and international levels.

He noted that the national universities were able to complement private colleges and institutions of higher learning to establish a dynamic and credible academic atmosphere in Malaysia.

The journal, Dr Hamdam said, would serve as a timely platform for evaluating the changes resulting from the move towards the corporatisation and privatisation of universities.

Also present at the event was Toh Puan Hajjah Siti Zainab Baharuddin, consort to the Yang di-Pertua Negri.
The journal, which is published by the association with Prof Wazir as chief editor, will be produced on an annual basis at RM 12 per issue and will have local and international contributors.

 USM MATERIAL... Yang di Pertua Negri Tun Dr Haii Hamdan Sheikh Tahir (left) with USM's Deputy Vice Chancellor (Student Affairs) Datuk Prof Arnir Awang, viewing the book exhibition

 

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