KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's Parliament on Tuesday officially banned the use of sexist language in debates by lawmakers in a move widely praised by women's rights advocates and women in general in the country. It came after anger had been sparked by a number of MPs making sexist innuendo while talking and debating with other lawmakers. Women say it is the right move to help end years of gender-biased remarks that assist in pushing sexual violence against women in the Southeast Asian country. The proposal to modify Parliament's rules of debate was approved by the House's Standing Orders Committee. And women are throwing their support behind the move. “We are hopeful that this will be the beginning of a new era in Malaysian politics, where sexism will not be tolerated. This is a great day for Malaysia and women," Mohina Yussif, a women's rights activist, told Bikyamasr.com on Monday. MPs have often engaged in lively debates in Parliament, with a recent controversial example being Barisan Nasional (BN) MP Mokhtar Radin's remarks in 2007. During a heated exchange in the Dewan Rakyat with opposition MPs over a leaky roof in Parliament House, Bung Mokhtar (picture) had said: “Where is the leak? The Batu Gajah MP also leaks every month." Batu Gajah MP Fong Po Kuan and other women MPs were outraged by his comments and he was eventually forced to apologize. With reports of rising sexual violence in the country, women in Malaysia believe that by ending sexist remarks in government, it will begin to create a society that “respects women, our bodies and our future to be safe in our own country."
