The Women’s Candidacy Initiative (WCI) is pleased to announce the candidacy of Zaitun (Toni) Mohamed Kasim for the upcoming 12th General Elections.

WCI is a collaboration of women and men who believe that the political participation of women at every level of decision-making is vital to advancing and upholding the rights of women and to better represent their concerns. This will be the second time that WCI will field a candidate in the election. WCI made history during the 10th General Elections when it fielded Toni Kasim to run on a women's human rights platform in the Selayang parliamentary seat against the incumbent, Chan Kong Choy (BN). WCI polled 43% (26,144) of the vote in the constituency, slashing the winning margin for the incumbent from 38,627 in the 1995 general election to 8,835.

Our candidate, Toni Kasim is no stranger to the women's movement and the larger human rights movement. She has worked tirelessly for the last 15 years in Malaysia, on a wide range of human rights and women’s rights issue. She has been involved in various civil society organizations and movements to work on issues such as sexual harassment, domestic violence, poverty, HIV/AIDS, women's access to leadership and the impact of religious fundamentalisms on people's lives. Her work is based on the fundamental belief that women and men, and people of all races and religions should be equal before the law.

WCI believes that no one should be discriminated against because of their gender, religious beliefs, ethnicity or nationality - every person has the right to equal access to health, education and employment, the freedom of belief and practices according to the Constitution. We have the right to safe and affordable living conditions where we can live without fear or injustice or discrimination.

We also assert that politics belongs to all and that for a democracy to be truly representative, it must have the participation of civil society - ordinary men and women who make up this country, regardless of whether they choose to join a political party or not. WCI gave expression to this ideal in the 1999 general elections and this year, with bigger support and commitment, we are pleased to come together once again in the second phase of WCI to participate in the coming elections.

We believe in the growing importance of civil society participation in the elections process. However, trying to bring this ideal to fruition has not been easy. The voice of civil society has largely been drowned by politicians who have ruled over us for 50 years. Systems and structures have been put in place to make it very difficult for the diverse Malaysian voices to be heard. These include gerrymandering and increasing the deposits for candidates who wish to run in the elections.

With the limited resources available to independent candidates and an election system that is less than free and fair, there are numerous barriers for effective participation in the elections. For women, these barriers are even more pronounced. But this year, we are experiencing a thrilling second phase of our growth, and we are excited to be planning the campaign for an independent woman candidate once again, to make sure that women’s issues are highlighted and do not fall off the agenda.

In spite of an election system that presents numerous challenges to our candidacy, we are committed to run a campaign that is clean, fair and ethical:

• As an independent women's candidacy our campaign will not be based on monetized politics, because we want to be accountable to the people, not to businesses.
• As believers and defenders of universal human rights, we will ensure that issues of public importance are tackled critically and with humanity.
• As supporters of women's equal access to leadership, we will ensure that women's voices are heard and heeded.
• We will also ensure that our campaign does not waste resources unnecessarily.

We would also like to use this opportunity to invite other Malaysians who believe in democracy, justice and equality to lend your support to WCI this coming election. Because we are an initiative driven by ordinary people who believe in fairness and equality, we need all the help we can get. There are many ways in which you can help. You can contribute by donating in cash or in kind, or you can volunteer your time and energy to help us put this campaign together, or you can simply spread the word and help us make some noise.

Finally, you can contribute by not voting inequality, but by voting for EQUALITY!

Toni Kasim was the right candidate for WCI in 1999, and she is the right candidate this time around. It is therefore with great pleasure that we hereby officially launch the 2nd phase of the Women's Candidacy Initiative, and our candidate for the upcoming 12th General Elections.

End discrimination, Vote Equality.

Press statement issued by,

Maria Chin

Campaign Manager

Women’s Candidacy Initiative

2 February 2008