M’sia Ministry Told Wives to ‘Speak Like Doreamon’ & Not Nag as Couples Stay at Home

Married women of Malaysia, the Women and Family Development Ministry has a very important message for you.

Forget your worries about contracting Covid-19 and forget about your own happiness. Instead, time travel back to the 1800s where your sole purpose in life is pleasing your husband.

Yes, while some of us are told to practise social distancing and wash our hands regularly, there is only one thing you have to do: speak like Doraemon.

M’sia Ministry Told Wives to ‘Speak Like Doreamon’ & Not Nag as Couples Are Staying Home

With the whole of Malaysia on lockdown, tensions are bound to flare at home with family members staring at each other’s annoying faces for 24 hours a day.

Thankfully, Malaysia’s Women and Family Development Ministry has come to the rescue with some advice to help married couples avoid domestic arguments.

For one, wives are told to “avoid nagging”, if they see their husband carry out a task in a manner that they disagree with.

Wives are also encouraged to speak to their husbands with pampering and ‘humourous’ words. So not only should you act like your husband is your company’s CEO, you should also turn into a stand-up comedian from time to time.

If you’re unsure of how to speak to your husband, the Malaysian ministry says you should “mimic the tone of Doraemon” and follow your statements with a coy and feminine laugh.

If you don’t know who Doraemon is, just try to use the voice of a 7-year-old child.

Another post read “If you see your spouse not helping with the housework, avoid insulting them. Ask for help and tell. Sometimes our spouses need to be ‘told’ of their duties, only then they’ll know what needs to get done.”

Yes, even though these buggers are at home all day, they still need to be ‘told’ not to be a lazy bastard.

And if you find it difficult to talk like Doraemon for weeks on end and an argument happens to arise, the ministry advised women to “count from one to 20” before responding.

“Within the span of 20 seconds, the brain will become more rational and calm when making decisions,” it said.

If only the ministry took this advice before sharing this post.

But wait, there’s more!

In a Facebook post, women were also asked not to wear ‘house clothes’ and urged to put on makeup when working from home.

Even though they clearly mentioned that building a happy household is not a particular person’s responsibility, all the advice seems to be for the wife.

As you can imagine, people were not pleased with the post.

“Promotes gender bias”

Former law minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said slammed the post, saying the posts were “politically incorrect, promote gender bias, & perpetuate misogyny.”

#KPWKM, the memes are politically incorrect, promotes gender bias & perpetuate misogyny. I’m disappointed that the Ministry is condoning messages which goes against the empowerment of women & gender equality. #definitelyXdoraemonvoice #sdggoal5

— Azalina Othman Said (@AzalinaOthmanS) March 31, 2020

“I’m disappointed that the Ministry is condoning messages which go against the empowerment of women & gender equality” she said.

All Women’s Action Society (AWAM), a non-governmental organisation in Malaysia, called the tips “sexist”.

“(Giggling like Doraemon) applies to five-year-olds, not mothers at home.”

Women are human beings and not an object or a commodity, it said.

“Women have more than enough to do during the MCO without the added pressure of putting on makeup and looking good.”

Even netizens were baffled by the post, with some wondering if it was a joke.

Apology

The ministry later apologised for the post, after receiving many responses over the recommendations on social media.

“We apologise if there were certain tips that were not appropriate and offended the sensitivities of certain groups. We will be more careful in future, ” it said in a statement posted on Instagram Tuesday (31 March).

First, the Malaysian Health Minister told citizens that drinking warm water can prevent contracting Covid-19, and now this.

One can only imagine what wacky thing they’ll say next.

Malaysia’s movement control order is scheduled to end on 14 April, and maybe, just maybe, if the whole of Malaysia can speak like Doraemon for the next two weeks, they’ll get through it in one piece.