To be a member of Parliament is an honourable position, entrusted by the people to make the laws that govern the country. But one who is in the opposition, a female and the youngest at that in this patriarchal, feudal society, must surely have something exceptional about her.

From a virtual unknown, Fong Po Kuan was catapulted into the public eye when at 26, she won the MP seat for Batu Gajah in 1999, a constituency previously held by an experienced politician from the ruling coalition.

It is all the more exciting as she represents DAP, an opposition party  someone who was there to challenge the establishment and, in her words, to play a role that can mould and shape how the country will be managed.

Her relative inexperience in politics meant that in the months since she was elected, Fong has been doing a lot of learning on the job. She has since been introduced to the nuances of protocol and a myriad of issues at the local and national level.

Often, her job required for her to speak up for her community as well as to speak out against those in power.

However, Fongs outspoken nature had also landed her in trouble. Two months ago, she was punished severely for criticising the Dewan Rakyat Speaker, Mohamed Zahir Ismail, after he refused to grant her motion to debate a recent scandal involving marks tampering in a legal examination paper.

No signs of being cowed

Fong was given a six-month suspension and the withdrawal of her MPs allowance amounting to about RM40,000.

Dressed neatly in a white shirt and pinstriped skirt for an interview with malaysiakini recently, Fong showed no signs of being cowed.

I believe in what I have done and I hold responsibility to it. But what happened on Dec 11 (her suspension) will not diminish my spirit.

Back home in Batu Gajah, her constituents appear to be strongly supportive of her decision.

Those whom I met told me that they thought I did the right thing by not apologising. One even came to me and asked me to lodge a complaint in the labour courts, she said, amused yet touched.

The way parliament works right now is that one has no right to be heard. According to the rules, should an MP abuse his or her privileges then the MP should be referred to a committee of privileges provided by the parliament.

But in my case, they just moved a motion against me and made sure that the motion came out on the last day of the parliamentary sitting, she added indignantly.

I believe that one of the reasons they moved the motion against me was because I am a woman and I am young,said Fong.

Equality for all

Fong told of the taunts she received from her male counterparts for her to get married first each time she spoke on womens issues. She was also particularly unhappy over references made to her age by another MP during the motion on her suspension.

In her opinion, all MPs should be equal since they were all elected by the people. So why should she be punished while others got away with worse actions?

Fongs upbringing in the company of sisters could well explain her strong belief in her own abilities and her determination to stand tall in face of the harassment by some of her peers.

Born in Ipoh and raised in Chemor, Perak, Fong is the second of five girls in the family. Her father played a key role in introducing her into politics.

My father is a member and strong supporter of DAP. His influence gave me this interest in politics.

As for her siblings, Fong reckoned that at least one other sister may be following her footsteps.

Maybe the youngest (as) she is exposed to what I am doing now. Shes in Form 5 now and waiting for her exam results, she said with a smile.

Politician at heart

Fong herself entered politics at a similarly early stage. Having joined the DAP since 1992 when she was a sixth form student, she stayed an inactive member for four years due to government restrictions against student involvement in politics.

When asked why she became involved in politics, she said, I want to play a role in all the decision-making in the country. Thats why I decided to take up the challenge.

After graduating from the Universiti Islam Antarabangsa (UIA) with a degree in law, Fong practised litigation law for over a year before she decided to run for MP during the 1999 elections.

When asked about her experiences during the run-up to the elections, Fong with pride recalled some challenges she faced and conquered.

I gave my speech in Cantonese. Since I am not Chinese educated and I do not read Mandarin, it was difficult because of certain technical terms. For example, the word Constitution  how do you say these words? she asked.

Values privacy

However, Fong is reticent about her private life.

When asked what she does outside of MP duties, she said simply, I spend time doing my own things.

Fong was more inclined to talk about other issues she felt strongly about. She was reasonably satisfied with her contribution in bringing about the amendment of Article 8 of the Federal Constitution for citizen equality irrespective of gender but felt that much more had to be done.

She was critical of some other proposals by the Women and Family Development Ministry, particularly its latest proposal that only professionally-qualified foreign husbands of local women be given work permits.

What worries me about this is that there will be another form of discrimination among women who are married to professionals and those who are not, she said, adding that no such reservation applied for men with foreign wives.

When asked if the governments move could be in anticipation of the law being abused by migrant workers gaining easy access to the country, Fong quickly refuted this, saying, There are also Malaysian men marrying foreign women who have been cheated so we cannot use the pretext that we have to protect women to justify different treatment.

She also spoke against the Universities and University Colleges Act provision which bans students from being in involved in political activity.

Young people will be the future leaders. They should be allowed to play a role now and not after university. Their rights should be with them all the time when they are free persons, she added.

Although Fong spoke frequently on women and student issues, she is by no means satisfied with the unofficial role delegated to her. In her opinion, these issues should not be for women alone to bring up. They should be the concern of society and country.

At her young age, Fong is already in one of the highest positions that she can hold within the government as an opposition politician. Where does she see her career going from here?

Where her party role is concerned, Fong is happy to leave the decision to the party leadership. But for her public role, she finds an on-going task to bring about greater political awareness among the people.

Being an MP is a service job, what you hope to see is a better place for society. It may be achieved (and if it is), it is not so much for myself but for the people.