UNAPOLOGETICALLY HER – a book that showcases global perspectives of the triumphs, strategies, and resilience of ten women, was launched last Sunday. I see it as a befitting celebratory gift for International Women’s Day too. The energy in the room was amazing as we went through the official launch, panel forum, book reading, sales, autograph & photo sessions.
It was a great pleasure for me to moderate the stimulating panel forum with four distinguished panelists – Datuk Dr Mohd Yusoff Sulaiman, Datuk Zunaidah Idris, Dato’ Lewre Lew Fong Voon, and Natasha Alias. The lively exchange on topics from women empowerment to men as champions/effective allies, included thought provoking Q&A from the floor. By the very next day, I had leafed through most of the pages. Well done ladies!! Numerous reflection points, grounded in reality and future-ready.

I share here some lines that touched me considerably from each co-author..

“At this point of time, no nation in the world can afford to marginalize or deprive women from economic participation.” Noorul Ainur Mohd. Nur, Ph.D. Malaysia

“He listened and told me he liked my look. I thought to myself, “YES, this is great!” … and then the words that came out of his mouth would sow seeds of self-doubt within me for the rest of my career…” Margaret (Marjean) Holden USA

“Your level of Strength is parallel to your level of Willingness to look, accept, and work on your Weakness.” Fuen Yee -. Malaysia

“I was born being a disappointment. My father left the hospital quickly once he got the news that he had become the dad of just another girl…” Monique Blokzyl 🎤Speak to Scale📈 Germany

“As a child who was blamed for being a product of an absent father and a second wife, I took years to remove the lenses of blame and take accountability for my empowerment.” Syireen Rose Malaysia

“In the beginning it was mostly about me. I wanted to stand behind the podium and motivate and inspire others. I used music, dance … The problem was that the effects lasted only a little longer than the applause did.” Debby Edelstein South Africa

“It is ironic how our instincts are hard-wired for our survival but not our well-being. I became what I needed to survive. As a child, that meant abandoning my authentic self to stay connected to my parents, to be a good little girl …” Tessie Lim Malaysia

“But TO NOT KNOW ONESELF is absolutely not fine. You should decide how you wish to live and what you want from life.” Dr. DDeepika Saini India

“I carried this burden of guilt for my decisions, which weighed me down for years and years to come … it made me realise how much I had been trapped in my past” Rika Higuchi Japan

“When one of my most admired and successful female friends received a bullet with her name engraved on it in the mail and was spat at in public, simply because she was both beautiful and successful…” 🌟Monica Moore New Zealand