The historic judicial review involving the Malaysian Public Service Commission (PSC) highlighted the severity of workplace discrimination faced by persons with disabilities (orang kurang upaya, or OKU).
Disabilities manifest in diverse forms — mental, physical, sensory (e.g., vision, hearing, touch, sensitivity to touch, heat, taste and smell, combinations of these), and other rarer forms.
With the Ministry of Health (MOH) declaring a war on stigma attached to mental health issues, it is time for a tangible all-of-government commitment to OKU rights by revising outdated laws to harmonise them with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
Malaysia signed the CRPD in 2008 and ratified it in 2010. As of March 2, 2025, Malaysia has yet to submit the initial report that all states party to the Convention are obligated to submit within two years of ratifying it.
In the public domain, there is no straightforward access to consolidated information on the status of government efforts regarding its upholding and protection of OKU rights.
This contrasts sharply with the Malaysian government’s engagement in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) process.
Compared to Asian counterparts, Malaysia lags behind in legal protection for persons with disabilities (OKU).
For example, India’s CRPD-harmonised Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016 explicitly prohibits government establishments from discriminating against persons with disabilities in any matter, including employment.
Thailand’s Persons with Disabilities Empowerment Act 2007 bans all forms of discrimination and unfair treatment against disabled persons.
Indonesia’s Law No. 4 of 1997 concerning Persons with Disabilities ensures equal employment opportunities, while Vietnam’s National Law on Persons with Disabilities prohibits any restrictions on the rights of persons with disabilities based solely on their disability.
Malaysia’s Persons with Disabilities Act, 2008 neither incorporates the term “discrimination” nor does it contain provisions that penalize discrimination against persons with disabilities.
Reflecting the silo approach that so undermines essential all-of-government and all-of-society collaboration, and despite Malaysia’s ratification of CEDAW and regular engagement in the CEDAW process, the Persons with Disabilities Act 2008 makes no mention of “women and girls with disabilities” (or of “disabled women and girls”).
Malaysian civil society entities concerned with OKU rights have long urged the government to address discrimination and unequal treatment, including in the workplace. However, there has been little evidence of corrective action.
Regarding the implementation of the 1 per cent quota for OKU public sector employment, MPs, including then-Prime Minister Ismail Sabri, has over the years called for government action to meet the target.
Yet, despite an attempt to set 1 per cent OKU employment as a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) for every ministry, that target remains unmet.
After the abovementioned landmark judicial review, the director of the Social Welfare Department, on February 4, 2025 called upon the Public Service Commission (PSC) to stress the importance of hiring persons with disabilities in the public sector.
This step, although welcome, is long overdue and requires sustained, long-term, results-focused follow-ups.
However, we do applaud the Ministry of Human Resources (KESUMA) for its commitment and transparency in publishing data on OKU employed in each ministry up to December 31, 2022:
The data has not been updated for 2023 and 2024. This lack of transparency for the past two years raises concerns about the government’s commitment towards fulfilling the 1 per cent OKU public sector employment target. It suggests barricading against being held accountable.
We appreciate the MPs who raised in Parliament on March 3, 2025 OKU employment issues, particularly in supporting the OKU community’s right to work and calling for related special implementation measures.
To All MPs, please join in ensuring urgent action on the following:
1. Amend Article 8 (2) of the Federal Constitution to explicitly include “disability” and underscore strong legal protection for all Malaysians from disability-related discrimination.
2. Hold all ministries biannually accountable to Parliament for detailed specific progress in achieving the 1 per cent OKU public sector employment quota by demonstrating measurable progress in the next three, six, 12, 18, and 24 months on ensuring openness, readiness and innovativeness, exploring viable reasonable accommodation solutions, and achieving KPIs on devising reasonable accommodation solutions that work well in enabling OKU enrollment, training, recruitment, job placement, job retention and workplace systems.
3. Revamping all aspects of the education, training, recruitment, job screening, placement and workplace support systems for Malaysia to produce, hire and retain more qualified OKU in public sector employment.
4. Harmonise, with the CRPD, legislation, regulations and implementation processes related to gender-equitable OKU rights to early intervention support services; affordable, safe, disability-inclusive and accessible public transport, toilets, shelter and online services; education, training, jobs, financial services and entitlements, and health and rehabilitation services.
Signed by:
- Yuenwah San, OKU rights-gender equality advocate; Member, The OKU Rights Matter Project; Member, Harapan OKU Law Reform Group.
- Anit Kaur Randhawa, Co-Chair, Ad Hoc Committee on PwDs, Malaysian Bar Council; Parent Advocate; Member, The OKU Rights Matter Project; Podcaster, Kita Family Podcast.
- Ch’ng B’ao Zhong, Autistic Adult, Licensed and Registered Counsellor.
Endorsed by:
- The OKU Rights Matter Project.
- Kita Family Podcast.
- Moses Choo, Blind accessibility activist and advocate for OKU employment.
- Naziaty Yaacob, Senior Consultant on Accessibility and Universal Design.
- Anthony Chong, Co-Founder and Member, Deaf Advocacy and Well-Being National Organisation (DAWN), Malaysia.
- Meera Samanther, Co-Chair, Ad Hoc Committee on PwDs, Bar Council of Malaysia; Member, Harapan OKU Law Reform Group; Member, Association of Women Lawyers.
- Bina Ramanand, Executive Director, Family Frontiers.
- Annie Ong Hwei Ling, President, National Organization of Bahasa Isyarat Malaysia Instructors (NowBIM).
- Dr Amar-Singh HSS, Consultant Paediatrician; Child-Disability Activist; Member, The OKU Rights Matter Project; Advisor, National Early Childhood Intervention Council.
- Nik Nadia Nik Mohd Yusoff, Moderator, Autisme Malaysia FB page; Parent Advocate and Kita Family Podcaster.
- Desiree Kaur, Founder, Project Haans; Parent Advocate and Kita Family Podcaster.
- Nori Abdullah Badawi, Owner, We Rock the Spectrum Gym for All Kids; Chairman, Yayasan Budi Penyayang Malaysia; and Podcaster, Kita Family Podcast.
- Dr Choy Sook Kuen, Parent Advocate; Founder, Oasis Place multidisciplinary intervention centre; Podcaster, Kita Family Podcast.
- Pheh Kai Shuen, person with dyslexia; clinical psychologist; Licensed and Registered Counsellor.
- Ng Lai-Thin, Project Lead, National Early Childhood Intervention Council (NECIC); care partner to an adult sibling with intellectual disability; Member, The OKU Rights Matter Project.
- Ali bin Azmi, Research Associate, Georgetown Institute of Open and Advanced Studies, Wawasan Open University.
- Susan Siew, gender equality-OKU rights activist.
- Dr Sharom Ahmat, Retired Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Universiti Sains Malaysia.
- Dr Zahilah Filzah Zulkifli, Consultant Paediatrician and Licensed SPELL Master Trainer, Exco Member, Malaysian Advocates for Child Health (MACH).
- Izzat Zaid, Clinical Psychologist and ADHD adult.
- This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of CodeBlue.
