KUCHING: The ‘Semarak Skuad Waja’ programme aims to broaden the understanding and awareness of the squad in assisting communities of diverse ethnicity and backgrounds in Sarawak, particularly women.
Federal Women, Family, and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said this initiative is launched in line with the ministry’s agenda to empower women to be more courageous and astute in addressing issues of violence.
She said the programme provides participants with exposure and methods to eradicate all forms of violence against women.
“This programme offers training to enhance understanding of psychology, resilience, and legal rights through the MATAHARI (Enhancing Women’s Resilience and Psychology) and IRIS (Legal Literacy and Women’s Rights) modules, with the aim of increasing women’s abilities to confront violence and understand their rights.
“The programme also emphasises the crucial role of women leaders in Sarawak communities, enhancing their role in combating violence against women and strengthening the community,” she said.
She said this when officiating at the ‘Semarak Skuad Waja’ Programme at the Grand Continental Hotel here Saturday (Feb 17).
Nancy, who is Santubong MP, added that ‘Skuad Waja’ serves as an agent of change that enhances women’s knowledge of legal matters, crime modus operandi, and necessary actions to be taken.
She said that exposure to knowledge and ‘Skuad Waja’ activities can make them independent, courageous, and sensitive to community needs.
“‘Skuad Waja’ also serves as a reference source for the community in addressing violence against women and assist victims in referring cases to the authorities and obtaining professional assistance.
“The programme aims to convey the role of ‘Skuad Waja’ as a primary mover in the community and as the first responder in addressing social issues, making a significant contribution to social development, and strengthening a caring and compassionate society,” she said.
Since its establishment in 2021 until December 2023, ‘Skuad Waja’ has had a total of 329,221 members, including 254,506 women (77.3 per cent) and 74,715 men (22.7 per cent).
For Sarawak alone, Nancy said there are a total of 2,919 ‘Skuad Waja’ members, involving 2,807 women and 112 men.
“Through this membership, ‘Skuad Waja’ members have reached out to communities.
“A total of 1,012 psychosocial programmes by ‘Skuad Waja’ have been conducted nationwide, involving 72,942 individuals who have been successfully assisted,” she added.
