By Rosli Mansor Ahmad Razali
IPOH: “We want to see happiness in every achievement attained together with our members.”
That was the sentiment shared by Pathma Devi, president of Perak Caring Association (PCA), as she spoke about the growing role of the non-governmental organisation (NGO) in assisting the community, including domestic violence victims, the B40 group and underprivileged students.
According to her, PCA, which now has 106 members from various races and backgrounds, started on a small scale before undergoing a major transformation after she took over the leadership in 2019.
“After I took over as chairperson in 2019, many changes were implemented, including changing the association’s name, as it was previously more focused on a particular race.
“I wanted it to become a multiracial organisation, so we carried out restructuring, including amendments to the constitution and re-registration with the Registrar of Societies (ROS),” she said when met during the Mother’s Day celebration and the fifth anniversary of her leadership at a hotel here recently.
Also present to officiate the programme were Jayalaxmi Kulasegaran, wife of M. Kulasegaran, and Perak Deputy President Halida Ali.
Pathma Devi said the association’s main function is to empower women while also addressing issues related to domestic violence, sexual harassment, youth development, ageing communities and community welfare.
She said PCA also works closely with various agencies, including APPGM-STG, the Women’s Development Department (JPW), the Social Welfare Department (JKM), the National Population and Family Development Board (LPPKN), and YKN Anjung Singgah, to assist victims of domestic violence.
“We not only help victims lodge police reports, but also provide moral support and help them obtain temporary shelter if they have nowhere to stay.
“We also pay attention to the victims’ children because they are equally affected by domestic violence situations, not just the women,” she said.
According to her, PCA handles many domestic violence cases and always emphasises the emotional healing process before victims make important decisions.
“We usually advise victims to take some time to calm themselves because decisions made when angry, sad or disappointed may not be the right ones,” she said.
Apart from that, she said PCA is also actively conducting advocacy programmes in schools and private companies on sexual harassment and women’s safety in the workplace.
“Many companies now invite us to give talks and provide exposure on sexual harassment issues and preventive measures within organisations,” she said.
In the field of education, she said PCA completed a project with Yayasan Hasanah and the Ministry of Finance (MOF) last year involving 42 students from underprivileged families.
“They received free tuition for five core subjects, as well as transportation, meals, books and tablets for each student.
“As a result, out of the 42 SPM candidates, 33 students obtained at least one A, including several who achieved 10As, 9As and 8As,” she said.
She also expressed appreciation to all sponsors, including Yayasan Hasanah, MOF and APPGM-STG, for continuously supporting the association’s efforts in helping the community.
Meanwhile, a representative of the association said PCA’s annual activity report presented during its recent Annual General Meeting (AGM) reached 1,115 pages compared to about 600 pages the previous year.
“Because it was too thick, we could not print the report and had to prepare it in flipbook format instead. This shows how many activities were carried out throughout the past year,” the representative said.
At the same time, in conjunction with the Mother’s Day celebration, PCA also presented the ‘The Best Mom Ever’ award to four women for their contributions to society.
The recipients included Srihartini Shamsuddin, an Administrative and Diplomatic Officer currently serving as Senior Assistant District Land Officer; Chiew Yit Wan, an entrepreneur actively involved in community welfare work; Puvaneswari Narayanasamy, a former banker now active as a humanitarian and stray animal welfare activist; and PCA member Ruba George Joseph.
According to Pathma Devi, the annual programme aims to appreciate the sacrifices of women who shoulder multiple responsibilities in life.
“A mother plays many roles in her life. They are not only mothers, but also teachers, wives, daughters, mothers-in-law and grandmothers.
“Women actually wear many ‘masks’ and shoulder many responsibilities in their daily lives,” she said.
