Malaysian Ministry Asks Women To Stop Nagging Husbands During COVID-19 Lockdown, Sparks Outrage
Malaysia's womens affairs ministry issued advice on how to avoid domestic conflicts during the partial lockdown. The posters immediately drew criticism from activists and commenters alike. The ministry was forced to take down the posters and issue an apology in the public interest.
In the midst of the tyrannical lock down imposed across the world owing to the coronavirus pandemic, love, dating and family life are going through some serious changes. On social media, there have been conversations about how the situation we are in, could possibly lead to a surge of ¡®quaranteens¡¯ by the year 2033; others point out the possible increase in divorce rates among couples, owing to spending an inordinate amount of time with one another.
Twitter
Amid this scenario of altering family life, the Malaysian women¡¯s ministry went out of line with one of their (unnecessary) lockdown advisories.
Malaysia¡¯s women¡¯s affairs ministry issued advice on how to avoid domestic conflicts during the partial lockdown, which began on March 18, with a series of online posters with the hashtag translating as #WomenPreventCOVID19.
We're appalled by the IG graphics by @KPWKM which perpetuates harmful gender stereotypes that are archaic & discriminatory. How could @RinaMohdHarun allow this? It is also a violation of International Law @CedawMalaysia https://t.co/ZtBzDk1LRe #demand4intelligentkpwkm pic.twitter.com/qX3FYmt4p7
¡ª EMPOWER (@empowermalaysia) March 31, 2020
One of the campaign posters depicted a man sitting on a sofa and asked women to refrain from being 'sarcastic' if they needed help with household chores.
'Avoid nagging your husband', another poster said; it recommended the use of humour or imitating the infantile voice of Doraemon - a blue robot cat from Japan that is hugely popular across Asia.
The posters immediately drew criticism from activists and commenters alike. While, speaking to an international news agency, Nisha Sabanayagam with All Women¡¯s Action Society, a Malaysian advocacy group, said that it was extremely condescending both to women and men.
#1
Here¡¯s my response: no make up, in comfy clothes and as far as I know, I don¡¯t have a Doraemon-like voice.
¡ª Michelle L. (@ArcEgyptologist) April 1, 2020
What¡¯s IN my head matters more. pic.twitter.com/8fmlHx4wQg
#2
I remade some of the the #Doraemon visuals, because the original ones shouldn¡¯t have existed in the first place.
¡ª Samantha Shim (@samshimwm) April 1, 2020
/ sorry I¡¯m advance for any grammar mistakes, and especially my rusty BM.
#womenpreventcovid19 pic.twitter.com/sMfBx9wzFL
#3
During the lockdown, all Ministers must be banned from issuing advice to the public or make them speak like #doraemon as punishment#WomenPreventCOVID19
¡ª that Klang dude (@that_klangdude) March 31, 2020
#4
#womenpreventcovid19
¡ª Lee Sha (@euphoriannn) March 31, 2020
How to prevent domestic violence: tell the woman to behave and be obedient to her abuser ?
How about some posters for the men? As if that would make a difference. Fucking idiots
#5
Malaysian government posting online instructions and posters telling women how to behave in a lockdown to keep the man happy. Don't be sarcastic! Don't nag! Wear makeup! Don't make your man angry or he might lash out! What sexist bullshit
¡ª Lee Sha (@euphoriannn) March 31, 2020
#womenpreventcovid19
Another poster advised women to wear makeup and dress neatly
when they were working from home.
Rosana Isa, executive director of civil society organization Sisters in Islam, told Arab News the posters were inappropriate, creating the impression that wives must please their husbands.
¡°It reinforces negative gender stereotypes against women and men, as it implies that women are the only ones responsible for house chores whereas the burden of housework should be shared by both husband and wife,¡± Isa said.
The posters, uploaded on Facebook and Instagram, drew widespread ridicule online with social media users urging the government to remove them.
Twitter
'How did we go from preventing baby dumping, fighting domestic violence to some sad variant of the Obedient Wives Club?' Twitter user @yinshaoloong wrote. 'No tips on how to deal with domestic violence?' asked another user @honeyean.
After a volley of criticisms, the ministry was forced to take down the posters and issue an apology in the public interest. ¡°We apologise if some of the tips we shared were inappropriate and touched on the sensitivities of some parties,¡± the ministry¡¯s women development department said in a statement.
According to Reuters, a government hotline that helps domestic abuse victims and vulnerable children have received nearly 2,000 calls - more than double the usual numbers - since the start of the partial lockdown, local media reported.
