Angered by ‘joke’, 2 campaign for zero GST on pads and tampon

S. Kasthuri and Kamelia Shamsuddin started an online campaign to get the Malaysian government to stop taxing Malaysian women for their periods. – Pic courtesy of Kamelia Shamsuddin, March 28, 2015. When Kamelia Shamsuddin, 29, read a news article that Bintulu MP Tiong King Sing had elicited laughter in Parliament for raising the issue of the goods and services tax (GST) being imposed on women's sanitary products, it struck a raw nerve.

The mother of one from Kajang, Selangor, was enraged at the callous manner the lawmakers had trifled a concern that affected half the world's population.

She decided it was up to her to be more vocal about the issue and after speaking to her husband, Huzaifah Azman, 32, and best friend, S. Kasthuri, 29, they started an online petition on Change.org to get the Malaysian government to stop taxing Malaysian women for their periods.

The petition received more than 5,000 supporters in five days. 

Kamelia also created a Facebook page called "No GST for being Women" that has received more than 3,000 likes in the same period. 

"We never expected to get such a large following in such a short time. Many men are among the supporters but the majority are still Malaysian women. 

"My husband was among the first men to support this but that is no wonder because he, too, is a feminist like myself," she told The Malaysian Insider. 

Kamelia, who is a communications officer by profession, said while toying with the idea of starting the petition, she felt slightly fearful and anticipated backlash but decided to go ahead.

She had felt tired of sitting on the sidelines and was inspired to bring about change in attitudes towards women. 

"Kasthuri and I have known each other since we were classmates in Form One at the all-girls Kajang Convent.

"When I told her my idea, she was up for it 100%. We felt the need to stand up for our fellow sisters," she said. 

As a first-time activist, Kamelia said her initial intent for the petition was purely experimental. 

"I figured it would be a fun project that may not actually result in abolishing GST for sanitary products but would at least create awareness that this issue is a real necessity and not something to be simply laughed off.”

When she noticed the high traffic volume for her petition, she was overwhelmed but also overjoyed that so many took the issue seriously. 

"It just goes to show that many people considered this a significant issue and it is not a laughing matter like the debacle in Parliament," she said. 

Kamelia added that she was aware that there was a similar campaign in the United Kingdom where women's sanitary pads and tampons were considered a "luxury" items instead of a necessity. 

"Women should not be taxed for the purchase of sanitary products that aid in our biological need to menstruate. While the government may be fully justified to tax a host of services and products for the country's profits, this should not extend to feminine sanitary products that we need on a monthly basis.

"We should not be penalised for simply being born a woman. GST on sanitary products infringes our basic rights to access sanitary aid."

“Poking fun at women for questioning the motion to include feminine hygiene products in the GST exempt list is derogatory towards women everywhere in the country," she said. 

Kamelia is hoping the Malaysian government would notice the large number of voters affected by the issue and transfer women's sanitary products to the zero-rated list.

"If nothing happens before the petition period ends on April 20, we will submit the petition and an appeal to the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry for further action.

"We are also mulling whether to approach the Customs Department with the petition in the hopes to get all sanitary feminine hygiene products to the zero-rated GST list."

Since Kamelia started her petition, the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry has released a revised price list for several items which show a drop in price for certain items.

These include common brands of sanitary pads which are reduced by 6 sen.

In the list, a pack of 10 Kotex Slim would drop from RM3.20 to RM3.14 after the implementation of GST on April 1. 

Another common brand, Libresse, would also drop from RM3 to RM2.94. However Kamelia's group does not consider this a win.

"The price decrease is much too little to be of significance. All sanitary feminine products still need to be pushed to the zero GST list and for their prices to be reduced further.

"It is 6 sen cheaper for now, but what will happen when GST percentages go up?"

She said the petition will proceed, as ultimately, the group was not bothered so much by the actual cost but more with the idea that women's sanitary products were not considered a necessity and would still be taxed.

Tiong in the Dewan Rakyat on March 18 had told the sitting of concerns by women in his constituency that sanitary products would be more expensive due to the GST, drawing laughter from other MPs at his statement.

This is not the first time the matter of periods had been turned into a joke in Parliament.

The most infamous of remarks were in 2007, during a debate on a leaky roof in the Parliament building, when Kinabatangan MP Datuk Bung Mokhtar Radin caused an uproar when he referred to a woman opposition lawmaker's menstrual cycle.

"Where is the leak? The Batu Gajah MP also leaks every month," he had said.

Similar campaigns to make sanitary pads and tampons GST-free in the UK and Canada are ongoing.

Londoner Laura Coryton started a petition on Change.org in May last year and garnered more than 200,000 signatures calling for feminine products to be tax-free.

On March 11 this year, the 22-year-old also managed to hand over the petition to Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, United Kingdom's chief finance minister, following a protest at his official residence at 11 Downing Street.

In Canada, Jill Piebiak from Toronto also made headlines when she gathered more than 60,000 supporters and told canoa.ca that she would continue to get as many signatures as possible until April 27 before presenting the petition to the House of Commons on May 1.

Similar movements are also being held in Australia and France. – March 28, 2015.