Welcome Remarks by Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Health and Ministry of Law, Mdm Rahayu Mahzam, at Muslimah Conference 2024

Management Board Members of Al-Falah, Abdul Gafoor & Muhajirin Mosques

Distinguished Guests

1. Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh. Good morning ladies and welcome to the Muslimah Conference 2024. It really gives me great pleasure and honour to be part of this event today, which you are celebrating in conjunction with International Women’s Day. I am glad you have chosen something very meaningful to do to honour this tradition of celebrating women in this month of March.

2. This Conference allows us the opportunity to step back, breathe, and share experiences, challenges we face, and the issues that concern us as wives, as mothers, and most importantly as women.

3. I am told by the organiser that this Conference is meant for us, women, to just be ourselves, and speak honestly and openly about the issues that matter most to us.

4. As a working mother, I have myself experienced the challenges of balancing a full-time job and the needs of my family, always feeling that I have that second shift after I come home from a long day at work. And some of us have different experiences. Some have chosen to devote yourself in the vocation of full-time caring for your families and there are many different versions of our experiences. This is something very admirable, and each comes with its unique challenges. So, it is very useful that we have this opportunity today to hear each other’s stories and to know that we are not alone in facing these challenges.

5. It is also an opportunity for us to show up, not just for ourselves, but for one another, in the way we show support.

6. In Islam, the empowerment of women transcends mere superficial definitions. An empowered woman, according to Islamic principles, embodies a harmonious blend of spiritual strength, unwavering commitment to our faith, and active engagement with society, all while upholding the values explained in the Quran and Sunnah.

7. Empowering women and building strong families is also something that the Government is also focusing on. You heard earlier that I was one of the co-chairs of the Conversations on Women’s Development. I hope some of you have had the opportunity to be involved in that, which started in 2020. And this resulted, after conversations with many different women, in a set of recommendations that was followed up with in Parliament. It charts out some of our plans as to how we can improve lives of women in Singapore. But work has not been completed yet. We are still doing it. One part of the major change is on law and family violence. So, there is legislation to change, because we heard feedback on some of the challenges that women face – those who are divorcing, on maintenance, and on family violence. And so following from that, we changed some of the laws to actually facilitate the processes for women.

8. But that is just one part of it – what the Government does and what we can roll out. The rest of us, the community also needs to step up. One beautiful aspect of our Islamic faith is its encouragement to seek counsel, guidance, and support from people around us, from our communities. We should also encourage that culture, on not being afraid to ask for help. Actually, it takes a lot of courage to admit that we need support.

9. It is in this spirit that I am encouraging those of you who may be facing challenges, or hearing it from some, or looking out for someone, to ask the questions, to find out what support is available, and I think the discussions today will give you some insights that may be useful.

10. Empowering women and building strong families is something that takes an all-of-society effort. And we all have a part to play. So, please step forward, and contribute to society where you can. You can do this in many different ways – you can volunteer, come here and share views, participate in community initiatives, provide feedback on Government initiatives. Where there are gaps, tell us, so we can see how we can improve. Or just simply providing a listening ear to someone in need. Together, with all the many different roles that we play, we can really help uplift and make this community a better one.

11. Thank you to the organisers for taking this effort in putting this event together. It is an endeavour to actually encourage understanding and to empower women with information and insights and strengthen bonds, building this kampung together.

12. I look forward to hearing from the panel and also being involved in intimate discussions later.

13. Thank you very much.

Last updated on 3 Mar 2024