Women Speak Out

This chapter features portraits of some of the women in the highly selective sample. Youthful, junior, and exceptional, they stood apart from the male-dominated intellectual circles; hence this chapter devoted to their voices. The chapter introduces Cik Salmah, a journalist’s journalist pleased with her shift to the Malay-language press. Also featured are portraits of Normah, a journalist and published writer, who was critical of politicians and felt a sense of kinship with other writers; Wan Asmah, a lecturer and researcher, who was contemplating joining Wanita UMNO; and Cik Hendon, a published writer and recent journalist. Her forceful “Malaysia for Malays” position was one with which journalist Miss Cheng did not agree. Nor did a number of other women who were interviewed. The chapter’s conclusion is that, while gender played an important role in shaping the experiences of these women, it was other factors that most shaped their varied viewpoints.