Empowering Women

Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim.

Mdm Deputy Speaker, I rise in support of the spirit of this Motion and the proposed amendment by hon Member from Sembawang Group Representation Constituency (GRC), Mr Vikram Nair. Given all that has been said by both sides of this House, it is clear that we are all in agreement that this Motion needs to make reference to the action plans that are required.

I think beyond an affirmation, there needs to be an acknowledgement of past contributions; beyond a declaration, there needs to be concrete steps; and beyond a statement of intent, there needs to be a call to action.

I am sure that the Members of this House, like me, are looking forward to the action plans in the upcoming White Paper arising out of the Conversations on Singapore Women's Development.

This year being the Year of Celebrating Singapore Women, it is important for us to remember how far we have come in terms of society and as a nation. Conversations on women's advancement in Singapore have been championed by the PAP Women's Wing since their inception and even before that in 1956 when the PAP Women's League was formed by Mdm Chan Choy Siong, one of the first women to be elected into Parliament in Singapore.

However, it is not to be championed by women alone. In my years of advocating to end domestic violence and championing women empowerment, I strongly believe that men are integral to any conversation regarding women development. I am thus glad that we have seen an overwhelming support from men who also share these same views.

The PAP Women's Wing and Young PAP have consulted diverse groups in our society, including men, and put together a set of recommendations that we hope the Government will consider to help our women and daughters achieve their fullest potential and aspirations. During the collation of ground feedback leading up to these set of recommendations, it is heartening to see men lending their voices and joining in our collective efforts to effect positive change.

Past and present PAP Members in this House have also stood up and spoken up for causes that are close to the hearts of women in Singapore. Mr Alex Yam spoke on the equality of value and treatment of both working mothers and stay-at-home mothers. Mr Louis Ng championed the causes of women including breastfeeding mothers, single mothers and foreign spouses. Mr Melvin Yong encouraged men to shoulder the burden that women carry at home to strengthen marriages in Singapore.

Dr Lam Pin Min sought for more flexibility for fathers to take their parental leave entitlement. Dr Ahmad Mohd Magad more than 10 years ago championed steps to empower single mothers and encourage employers to consider flexible work arrangements. There are many others from past and present Parliament in our nation's history who have done so as well. These are not just a "Few Good Men"; they represent the goodness in men and there are many more out there. They have not only championed the cause, but they have also taken actionable steps with the Government to help shape policies and laws that benefit the women and daughters of our nation.

But laws and policies are not the be-all and end-all. We have to shape mindsets and shift attitudes.

Recently, we have seen various cases involving the objectification of women and misogynistic views being spread online. We need to address this. Patriarchal and stereotype mindsets alienate and demean the potential of our daughters, wives and women in our lives. In Malay, please, Madam.

(In Malay): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] During this pandemic, we see more family conflicts that may lead to an increase in cases of domestic violence. Learning and working from home have become the norm today. Increased interactions at home and limited physical space can trigger more misunderstandings and household discord. This may be due to couples having different perceptions about caregiving and spousal roles at home. This perception may stem from patriarchal thinking or preconceptions about the role of wives, mothers or daughters in the home.

One of the proposals in the paper by the PAP Women’s Wing is about ensuring equal sharing of caregiving responsibilities between men and women. This is done by sharing of parental leave. Fathers now want to be more involved in the upbringing and the lives of their children.

The pandemic situation and working from home have made society become more aware about how we can balance caregiving commitments with our jobs. We also need employers’ cooperation to encourage men to use their parental leave and help to take care of their children at home. Allowing flexibility in sharing parental leave will help families that have their own needs when facing very distinct challenges. This is because not everyone can work from home. With a deeper involvement of fathers, this can potentially change our children’s thinking and at the same the future of our society.

All this is set against the backdrop of our increasingly family-friendly society and national landscape. This cannot be achieved without constant planning and Government policies that have always sought progress for everyone including our women and our daughters.

Here I would also like to laud the efforts of the men in the Malay/Muslim community who have worked together to strengthen our family institution and portray positive values and attitudes as fathers, for example, the Dads For Life movement, which has set up Dads@School to provide opportunities and space to empower fathers and learn best practices to carry out their responsibilities.

Another initiative is the M3 BersamaMu program, led by our Assistant Kadis. It provides strong support to couples in their married life. Recognition by society can also inspire others, such as the Exemplary Father Award, organised by the Ain Society. It highlights examples of fathers in our community who are responsible and possess positive values and attitudes. Our community figures such as Ustaz Mohamad Irwan Shah and Mr Sujimy Mohamed also often participate in online platforms and seminars to provide advice and lessons about family to our community.

These efforts demonstrate the important role that men play to portray a positive attitude in the upbringing of our children, and how women are highly regarded in our community and our faith. Let us not disparage or belittle these noble efforts. Our society, especially men, are not only key partners to women, but they are also advocates and companions who defend the rights of women in our country.

(In English): Beyond caregiving, we must also look at how to provide the best mindset and environment at home for our family members, including our children and partners to flourish and realise their fullest potential. Our children look at us and model our behaviours and learn from our thinking and words.

To me, patriarchal mindset and stereotypes are learned, not inherited. I recall watching an advertisement that sets out a social experiment. Groups of girls of varying age were placed in front of a camera and asked the same set of questions, "Show me how you run like a girl, how you throw like a girl, how you fight like a girl?" In the older age girls, they seem to show a weakened state, like running slowly, throwing gently or fighting softly, if there is such a term. But in the younger girls, there was not any difference between what they demonstrated and what the other boys demonstrated; they ran just as fast, threw just as far and fought just as hard, if not faster, further or even better. How did this phrase "like a girl" become a derogatory term?

Our children should not believe this. Our boys cannot think of themselves to be superior. Our girls should not feel inferior because of who they are. We can dispel this notion and support our children in our homes. We must take action.

As fathers, how we treat, speak and respect women in our lives would be how our daughters would expect to be treated and what is expected of our sons, as the measure of a man.

We have made great progress as a nation in terms of women's development for several decades and we shall continue to do so. We have to act and build upon the good work and past contributions of the Government, community and social activists. I am happy that the mover of this Motion and all Members who have spoken join in these collective efforts, and I welcome more to come forward to do so.

I also look forward to the action plan and consolidated views in the White Paper to be presented. I hope we can see further promotion of an environment that is both conducive to child caregiving and welcoming for caregivers. We can do this by implementing policies that signal child caregiving as a shared responsibility between parents. I am heartened to hear from Minister of State Sun Xueling about the theme on strengthening support on caregiving.

In addition to sharing of parental leave that is being recommended in the joint Paper by PAP Women's Wing, I have other suggestions as well.

Firstly, to increase the spouse tax relief to better reflect the significant and valuable contribution of a stay-at-home mom or dad. Currently, the spouse tax relief is lower than an active NSman relief, Parent relief, or the Grandparent Caregiver Relief.

Second, encourage working spouses to utilise the Retirement Sum Topping-Up Scheme to top up their non-working spouses' CPF accounts by extending tax reliefs to not only cash top-ups, but also CPF fund transfers as well. And, perhaps, to introduce a tiered basic childcare subsidy for non-working mothers, in increasing amounts in accordance with the number of children that they have, instead of a flat rate right now.

For mothers who are still looking for a job or training for one, perhaps we can have an interim childcare subsidy for a fixed period of time for them. Currently, they need to seek special approval for childcare subsidies on a case-by-case basis.

Lastly, to implement a network of temporary childcare services that can be provided by pre-approved childcare centres. In this age of flexible working arrangements and working from home, such service can provide urgent and temporary respite care so that stay-at-home moms or dads can attend to urgent work or business. I will elaborate on these suggestions and more in the full debate of the White Paper when presented.

In conclusion, Mdm Deputy Speaker, I hope that we can come up with concrete ideas and approaches, and it takes all of us in this House – men, women, fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, sons and daughters – to stand up for women's development as a society, and speak up against misogynistic and patriarchal mindset and stereotypes in order for us to progress as a family unit, as a nation; and quoting from a social activist, Desmond Tutu: "It is by standing up for the rights of girls and women that we truly measure up as men". [Applause.]

Miss Cheng Li Hui.

Parliamentary Secretary Rahayu Mahzam.

Thank you, Mdm Deputy Speaker. It is heartening to see many Members speak very passionately about various aspects of women’s development. We are clearly united by our common desire to see issues facing women being addressed and for women to be truly empowered to realise their aspirations. This topic is not new. It is indeed encouraging to see the evolution and development of efforts to empower, support and protect women over the years, through the relentless pursuit by Members of Parliament (MPs) to build on existing policies, the advocacy and community groups who continue to champion for women and the Government that is willing to listen, consider views and make changes where appropriate.

I have had the opportunity to walk this journey with PPIS before I became MP, working on several papers with the PAP Women’s Wing, participating in debates as a backbencher and now, working together with Minister of State Sun Xueling and Minister of State Low Yen Ling on the Conversations on Women’s Development.

I would like to take this opportunity to highlight a few examples in the wide-ranging efforts that reflect the evolving developments in this ongoing endeavour. I would refer to three themes: to empower, support and protect women.

We begin with the efforts to empower women to thrive at work and have equal opportunities as men. In Parliament, Ms Tin Pei Ling had asked about the gender wage gap and often called for digital fluency among women as this could open up new career opportunities for them in the digital age. Ms Tin, and yourself, Mdm Deputy Speaker, and Miss Cheryl Chan had raised concerns about the representation of women in the STEM sectors.

Mdm Deputy Speaker and former MP Dr Intan Azura have long called for women to be viewed as valuable resources and for employers to leverage on this talent pool.

The Government supports the diverse career aspirations of women. We encourage women to enter occupations of their choice, including in industries that are traditionally male-dominated.

Women now make up 41% of the technology workforce in Singapore. This is well above the global average of 28%. But there are still plenty of opportunities available in the technology sector, and we want more women to benefit from them and take on leadership roles. By entering such growth sectors, women can achieve better career and pay prospects to further close the wage gap.

One meaningful development in creating opportunities for women in the digital sector is the SG Women in Tech initiative, which IMDA launched in 2019 with community and industry partners.

The initiative enhances support for women in the technology sector and attracts more of them to the sector. Through mentorship, leadership development, sponsorship and networking opportunities, the initiative has reached out to more than 117,000 people.

Other MPs like Miss Cheryl Chan, Mr Darryl David and Er Dr Lee Bee Wah have made suggestions over the past years on introducing customised packages to help women update their skills and facilitate their return to the workforce after marriage or childbirth. More recently, Ms Poh Li San and Ms Yeo Wan Ling have spoken about challenges women face in caring for their families and pursuing their careers.

The Government, working in collaboration with different agencies, has responded to such calls over the years. We have continued to develop and enhance programmes to support career mobility and help ease the transition for women back into the workforce.

Workforce Singapore (WSG)'s employment facilitation programmes and services provide support to women looking to return to the workforce after a period of absence. They can tap on personalised career coaching and various programmes to facilitate their re-entry. In the last three years, WSG has collectively placed more than 48,000 women across their programmes and services. Mdm Deputy Speaker, in Malay, please.

(In Malay): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Many programmes have been created at the national level to support and help women to continue working and achieve their aspirations. This is also important for our community. Although some still hold stereotypes that a woman’s place is in the kitchen or at home, there are many others who want women to be given opportunities and choices. Society and businesses have much to gain from the valuable contributions of Malay women. Many young Malay women also want a different future, full of opportunities to succeed. Furthermore, having two incomes in each Malay family strengthens their financial stability.

Beyond initiatives to encourage reskilling and employment at the national level, M3 agencies also have programmes that are customised to the needs of Malay women. One example is the Back-to-Work Women programme by MENDAKI SENSE. It prepares women to return to the workforce and connects them to employers who are hiring workers.

I hope Malay women will always be supported in chasing their dreams. This is indeed a continuing effort.

I heard the issues raised by Ms Raeesah Khan earlier. She mentioned the issue of female genital cutting, tudung and polygamy. Her points are similar to the recommendations seen in the Lepak Conversations report which we have also received. I have actually spoken to these activists before and I am indeed proud of these young people who want to stand up for something that they believe is important. But they also understand the complexities of these issues within our community.

The issue of female genital cutting, for instance. The Government does not support practices that cause harm to young women or girls. MUIS also holds the same view and has explained that Islam does not support any procedure that harms individuals. But the fact is, there are different opinions in our community. So, we should resolve this matter, not by prescribing rules, but by understanding and talking or discussing with the community.

The issue of polygamy was also discussed. This is something that ROMM has already noted and there are actually very strict regulations in place. This resulted in the total percentage of polygamous marriages falling from 0.4% in 2010 to 0.07%. So, this shows that ROMM’s efforts have been effective.

There is also the tudung issue. The tudung issue is not new. It was not only raised by Mr Faisal Manap, but by PAP Members of Parliament as well. Mr Zaqy has raised this issue. Dr Intan, Mr Zainal, our President herself raised this issue when she was in Parliament. I have also raised this issue before. The Government recognises and understands the desire of Muslim nurses to wear the tudung at work. This is something that has been discussed and will be given due attention. It is not an easy matter. We should hold discussions with all levels of society, not just with the Muslim community, and this will take time. The Prime Minister has already said that he will make an announcement on this matter at the upcoming National Day Rally.

So, the issues raised are certainly issues that may have been brought up. But in order to resolve these issues properly, I think we need to fully understand and know our community to find the solutions. And we should encourage everyone to be edified and bring them towards a paradigm shift in a judicious manner.

(In English): For women to pursue their aspirations unencumbered, women need to be supported with their caregiving responsibilities. Men can be caregivers too and the Government also supports them in this area. Yet, women are still the primary caregivers in most instances.

There are many reasons for this, including gender bias, stereotypes and pervasive socio-cultural expectations. Many women dedicate their lives to caring for their families and may thus feel compelled to give up formal employment.

To address this, the Government encourages men to share the caregiving load.

We have enhanced parental leave schemes and introduced flexibility for fathers to share a portion of their wives' maternity leave. We also work with community partners such as Families for Life and the Centre for Fathering, which drives the Dads for Life movement, to promote active fatherhood.

Many men are stepping up proactively and we applaud their contributions towards building more supportive and resilient families.

Over the past years, Members have actively flagged the difficulties which some women caregivers experience and called for stronger support for them.

In 2020, Ms Carrie Tan urged the Government to consider valuing the unpaid care work of women and legislating workplace policies to support working caregivers. Since 2017, Mr Louis Ng has been a strong advocate for greater support for single parents, amongst the many things he champions.

Responding to the diverse challenges faced by women caregivers, the Government has made significant efforts to relieve the load they experience.

For childcare, the Government has expanded preschool places and ensured its affordability. Regardless of their working status, all parents of Singapore Citizen children also receive basic subsidies for childcare and infant care services.

For eldercare, the Government has been growing the capacity of community care services and making them more accessible to better meet the needs of our seniors and their caregivers. In 2019, MOH also launched the Caregiver Support Action Plan to strengthen support for senior caregiving in the community. Its measures cover aspects like care navigation, respite care, financial support, workplace support and caregiver empowerment and training.

To support retirement adequacy of those who had low incomes during their working years and now have less in retirement, the Government introduced the Silver Support Scheme. About two-thirds of Silver Support recipients are women, many of whom were probably caregivers. This is one of the many schemes which help to safeguard the continued financial stability and well-being of women as they age.

We will continue to grow such efforts to support women caregivers, no matter the circumstances they face.

As part of this process, we constantly review feedback from Members and the public to propose further action to support women in their caregiving responsibilities.

The issue that had initially sparked off the national discussion on women's development was the concern about violence against women. At that juncture, in July 2020, the PAP Women's Wing immediately came up with a statement strongly denouncing violence against women and shared concerns about the sentencing in that case with the Minister for Home Affairs. Following that, the Review of the Sentencing Framework for Sexual and Hurt Offences was conducted and, consequently, there were inter alia increase in the penalties for specific sexual offences.

We continue to face new and emerging challenges that disproportionately affect women. One such emerging issue is online harms. Technology has caused the proliferation of sexual violence in cyberspace. Many women must deal with unwanted sexual messages and calls, non-consensual sharing of intimate images, voyeurism, sexual harassment and objectification.

This has gotten worse with COVID-19 as people spend more time online. Such behaviour negatively impacts the physical and mental well-being of victims and is unacceptable.

As with many past issues affecting women, the complex task of tackling online harms also requires solutions that extend beyond new legislation from the Government.

During MCI's 2021 COS Debate, Senior Minister of State Sim Ann shared how the Government was collaborating with community partners interested to shape a safe cyberspace for women and girls. We have since followed up with real action.

As Minister of State Sun Xueling earlier mentioned, MCI has formed a Singapore Together Alliance for Action (AfA) to Tackle Online Harms, especially those targeted at women and girls. Dr Shahira Abdullah also made reference to this.

We are fortunate to tap on the expertise of 48 members who come from across the people, public and private sectors, exemplifying the importance of a partnership approach. For instance, under this AfA, MCI is collaborating with DBS and the Singapore judiciary on a community hackathon to generate solutions for safer and kinder online spaces.

As one of its co-chairs, I see the AfA as an important way to rally Singaporeans and spark more initiatives to foster a better digital culture. We must ensure that women and girls enjoy the same freedom and confidence online that they experience in real life.

The Government's work on online harms is an example of how we are working with partners to defend the progress achieved by women amidst nascent threats.

Singapore has consistently ranked well in the United Nation (UN)'s Gender Inequality and Gender Development Indices. Our women have continued to break barriers and achieve new heights across various social indicators, including in literacy, employment rates and leadership in many professional domains.

Our engagements have created space for all stakeholders to share their concerns frankly. Amidst this careful and sensitive approach, Singaporean women have achieved significant progress. However, we are not stopping there. The Government will continue to reach out to women, represent their voices and champion their progress.

Many of the points which Members raised today echo the Government's ongoing efforts to uplift Singaporean women. In particular, we can all look forward to the White Paper which will set out the Government's action plan. I believe there will be a robust debate on the specific plans to move things forward.

I am, therefore, supportive of the amendment proposed by Mr Vikram Nair as that reflects the spirit of having concrete action to support our efforts.

In conclusion, I wish to take the opportunity to thank all those who have worked with us to champion and advocate for women. We continue in this endeavour for we are not just speaking up for women, we are speaking up for the future generation. We are speaking today not because women are weak. We are speaking because men and women are strong and can change the tide of time, challenge unfairness and take action that can meaningfully change lives of future generations.

Mdm Deputy Speaker, I stand in support of the amended Motion. [Applause.]

Ms He Ting Ru.

Mdm Deputy Speaker, we have come to the end of the debate today on a topic that touches on so many aspects of our lives individually and us as a society. The amount of feeling and the long number of speakers are indicative of how important this topic is.

As to the amendment that was proposed, the Workers' Party does not object to the amendment and looks forward to scrutinising the action plans to be proposed. We hope to see concrete steps taken to effect change, whether through legislative amendments or policy overhaul.

Be that as it may, I would again reiterate that when we decided to bring this Private Members' Motion as a party, my colleagues and I felt strongly about how the issues we raised affect both ourselves and also, the women and men in our lives.

Mr Leon Perera spoke about the three women in his life – his mother, his wife and his daughter – and how he wants to see a world where women were no longer boxed into long-held stereotypes. He shared how men and employers have key roles to play in abolishing sexist attitudes, and how we can accelerate progress by having anti-discrimination legislation while working together to teach the principles of gender equality to our children.

I thank Minister of State Sun Xueling and Parliamentary Secretary Rahayu Mahzam for giving an update on Government policies supporting women in various areas.

My Sengkang GRC colleague Mr Louis Chua shared why it is important that our care-related policies do not ironically perpetuate stereotypes and reinforce notions on gender roles. Both men and women must not be forced to make the false choice of choosing between work or family, and we need to ensure adequate support is granted to our caregivers. He also mentioned the important role of fathers in caring for their children – all the while leading by example as told by the number of times his little two-year-old featured in our Zoom calls while he was on papa duty.

Mr Vikram Nair recounted what participants had shared at a dialogue session he attended, including their experiences of facing discrimination at the workplace during pregnancy or difficulties in re-entering the workforce after devoting several years to caregiving.

Ms Raeesah Khan spoke about sexual violence and survivor care. She noted that we need to ensure that survivors are given adequate support to ensure that they are able to address the trauma they faced. She also touched on three pressing issues in her community: female genital cutting, polygamy and the hijab.

Dr Shahira Abdullah called for a whole-of-society and community mindset shift, including for boys and their caregivers. She said that women should be the allies of each other and act in solidarity with women from marginalised groups.

I thank Ms Yeo Wan Ling for her speech on the contributions of women in the Labour Movement and Ms Tin Pei Ling for reminding us of the Aspirations of Women Motion in 2017 and for supporting the amended Motion. Mr Zhulkarnian Abdul Rahim mentioned the important role of men and fathers in this conversation; and Miss Cheng Li Hui, I thank her for her views as well on egg freezing and fertility support.

Mr Gerald Giam in his speech called for more openness in our immigration and visa policies for foreign spouses of Singapore Citizens to strengthen the Singapore Core, for more support to be extended to single parents and for policies to promote flexible work arrangements, all of which benefit both men and women.

Ms Sylvia Lim focused on the challenge facing political parties in Singapore in finding sufficient numbers of able and willing women to step up to being parliamentary candidates and political leaders. She noted that while Singapore had made progress, greater success was more likely if the social norms supported gender-equal choices. She was cautiously optimistic that the element of political competition would pressure political parties to field more able women, in order to gain support from a more demanding electorate.

Assoc Prof Jamus Lim shared how gender equality and female empowerment can be a force for economic progress. He has raised how our female labour force participation rate has actually trended down over the past five years and the male participation rate has consistently outstripped that of women. Moreover, the most lucrative and fastest growing sectors remain male-dominated and reduced participation could be symptomatic of the difficulty that women face in breaking into such jobs. To make matters worse, the gender pay gap in Singapore remains substantial. He also proposed various measures to support women and working mothers, and to address the gender pay gap.

These are just the main topics relating to the barriers to gender equality and there are many more which I have received in the form of comments and emails. These topics range from the concerns raised about fertility challenges that women face and women’s health in the form of the chronic management of common conditions like polycystic ovary syndrome and its associated co-morbidities.

To summarise, it is good to hear that across the aisle, we are in general agreement that gender equality has to be pushed to the forefront of national discourse.

And since it is still Olympic season, it cannot escape our attention that changes are also sweeping through sports as well. It is notable that the Tokyo 2020 Olympics saw attention being given to the outfits of female Olympians, and many commented positively on the choice of the German gymnastics women’s team and Norwegian beach volleyball women’s team to wear attire that they felt most comfortable with. It is also heartening to note that female top athletes such as Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles are the ones who are leading the way in raising issues relating to mental health.

While it is important to make our policy positions and stand clear, we must take tangible action to effect change. This is why we have brought up the various different proposals that we have in our 2020 manifesto and to make a difference, not only for women, but society as a whole. We have to enact real change in our legislation and Government policies to address discrimination directly. This is clearly not a silver bullet, but an important next step to send a signal, to set the tone for the foundational principle of gender equality that we should put at the forefront of all our policies and laws. Mdm Deputy Speaker, if I may, in Chinese.

(In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Madam Deputy Speaker, I would like to reiterate that giving equal treatment to men and women should be a fundamental safeguard of a society. Of course, there are many facets to gender equality. These include adjusting policies to break down stereotypes which are unfair to women, and allow women to gain more leadership positions, such as in Parliament, the Cabinet and Boards of Directors; introducing measures to encourage employers to adopt flexible work arrangements, to narrow the pay gap between men and women, respect and understand employees’ needs to take care of their family and children; expanding sex education so that people are more sensitive in identifying and preventing sexual harassment and abuse, and giving more protection to children and the less privileged who are vulnerable to sexual harassment and abuse.

The Government should also provide more channels to report sexual harassment and abuse. In terms of legislation, the Government can introduce anti-discrimination laws, raise citizens' awareness of gender equality in the workplace and other areas, and strive towards gender equality and fair treatment. Gender equality and anti-discrimination is not only a women issue, but also a national issue that concerns all of us. As a responsible citizen, we must fulfil our duties towards each other.

(In English): I started this debate by speaking about my maternal grandmother. She would be so happy to see how little girls today do not have to fight for a right to get themselves educated in Singapore, and no longer need to hide books to read surreptitiously. But she would be first to say that we must not rest on our laurels and carry on working towards a world of gender equality.

And now, I would also like to close with a big note of thanks to my father. He was born just after the war, the last of 10 children in an extremely traditional family who viewed boys as far superior to girls. After my sister and I were born, my mother told me that she felt a lot of pressure to try for a third child, in the hope that they would have a boy. When she brought this up with my father, his answer was short and sharp, "What's wrong with my daughters?" he asked.

I am incredibly grateful that my father has lived his whole life by these words, believing and supporting his daughters with his heart and soul to live our lives in accordance with our own choices – whether or not he agreed with us! – and I know that I would not be here without this commitment that he has given us. I also do not think that he, as a lifelong workaholic at the workplace, would have expected himself to become so involved in the care and nurturing of his beloved grandsons in his 70s, which has been critical in supporting me in my own journey here today. I can only hope that many more of us show our wives, mothers and daughters the same belief and love that I experienced as we move towards greater gender equality.

Mdm Deputy Speaker, gender equality is not a partisan issue. It is not even just a women’s issue. It is a men’s issue. It is a societal issue. We are in this together. I hope our Parliamentary colleagues will address these issues together, especially since our hon colleagues have, by their own admission, said they raised similar issues repeatedly. It is time for Singapore to take the next step. [Applause.]

We have now come to the conclusion of the debate and I shall put the question to the House for decision. We have an amendment proposed by Mr Vikram Nair. We will deal with the amendment first. The amendment is that the words proposed by Mr Vikram Nair be added in line 3 after the word "society".

Question, "That the words proposed to be added, be there added" put, and agreed to.

The amendment has been agreed to. The original Motion, as amended, is now before the House.

Original Motion, as amended, put and agreed to.

Resolved, "That this House affirms that gender equality requires a whole of society effort to remove all barriers in order to empower every woman to freely realise her full potential and participation in society and looks forward to action plans in the upcoming Government White Paper arising out of the Conversations on Singapore Women's Development."