Women spur the economy

THE year 2018 arrived with huge promises for women empowerment especially with the Silence Breakers gracing the cover of TIME

magazine as the #MeToo movement was named Person of the Year.

#MeToo spread virally from October 2017 as women and men came forward on social media to share their stories of sexual harassment and assault, making it “the fastest-moving social change we’ve seen in decades” according to Time

magazine’s editor-in-chief.

The revelations and aspirations were subsequently echoed and shared in many global forums, including the World Economic Forum 2018 and the World Urban Forum (WUF9) now taking place in Kuala Lumpur (Feb 7 to 13), where discussions on female empowerment and the need for behavioural shifts to combat abuse of power are abundant on the agenda.

Still, there are many who question the importance of women empowerment and deride public conversations on the topic as merely a cry for attention and opportunity for monetary platforms. For these sceptics, the economic weightage brought about by female empowerment can be easily overlooked.

Getting women to participate in the workforce basically means reducing unemployment and engaging more talented people. A study by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) titled Catalyst for Change: Empowering Women and Tackling Income Inequality has found that addressing gender inequality aids a country in accelerating sustainable growth as there is an inverse relationship between gender and income inequality.

Access to and safety in the workplace is among the various factors hindering female participation in the workforce. Section 509 of the Malaysian Penal Code stipulates that a person can be punished with up to five years imprisonment if found guilty of “intending to insult the modesty of others, either via word, sound, gesture or exhibiting objects”. The vagueness of the clause highlights the absence of a comprehensive treatment towards sexual harassment, however.

In 2012, after years without any specific provisions, Malaysians at work gained protection through the amendment of the Employment Act 1955 (Act A1419), which defined sexual harassment as “any unwanted conduct of a sexual nature, whether verbal, non-verbal, visual, gestural or physical, directed at a person which is offensive or humiliating or is a threat to his wellbeing, arising out of and in the course of his employment.”

As much as we can applaud this milestone, it remains insufficient to cover daily encounters which are harassment-prone. What about outside the workplace? What about the daily commute to work?

In 2017, 22 sexual harassment cases were recorded by Prasarana Malaysia which took place in their public transport system. No doubt there are more in other public transport modes as well as unreported cases.

When we take public transport, we seldom pay attention to gender differences. But the experience of both genders is different especially in relation to safety and security.

The issue becomes more important as women depend more on public transport as a mode of commuting compared to men. In 2015, 63% of public transport users in Malaysia were female compared to 37% males, as reported by the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD).

And although many measures have been implemented to make women feel safer, such as women-only carriages in trains and parking spaces for ladies, these do not tackle the root cause of sexual harassment, namely lack of respect for women and the need for social change.

Mobility is important in increasing access to jobs. Since dependence on public transport is higher for women, it follows that they are at greater risk of sexual harassment during their commute to work.

David Harvey, professor of Anthropology and Geography at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY), wrote that changing the city relies on the exercise of a collective power and that it is a form of individual right to change ourselves in relation to changing the city.

Women and men have to start thinking about their individual responsibilities and behavioural shifts in this direction, and with the growing usage of social media and heightening awareness on sexual harassment that have really opened up our eyes, this is necessary.

All in all, abating sexual harassment is good for the economy. A hostile work environment impedes better talent development but good civic spaces increase wellbeing and productivity. Everyone, regardless of gender, needs to be given opportunities to access the workplace safely.

“Time is up for discrimination and abuse against women. The time has come for women to thrive.” – Erna Solberg (prime minister of Norway) and Christine Lagarde (IMF managing director) AMEERA MUNAWAR Faculty of Economics and Administration Universiti Malaya