Out to even the score

Thursday September 18, 2008

By ALLAN KOAY

Women are excelling in previously male-dominated arenas.
IT'S no longer a man's world today, that's for sure. Many women have entered professions which were previously perceived as solely male domains.
The message is clear, women are saying to the men: "Whatever you can do, we can too, maybe even better."
More recent examples include Linda Cook, director of gas and power on Shell's executive committee. Women consist of only 11% of total directorships of blue chip firms in Britain's FTSE 100 index. But they're there, and Cook's position is all the more notable in an industry with a perceived masculine image.
Then there's Angela Merkel, the first woman to be chancellor of Germany who ranks number one on Forbes' list of the world's 100 most powerful women.
Women today are aiming for the world stage. Three women who are not inclined to just sit back and be perceived as the fairer sex speak to Star Two.
Commercial airline pilot
Nur Moana Ishak is flying high these days, literally. She is one of the first female commercial airline pilots in Malaysia and is now a first officer with AirAsia.
Her small frame belies her ability to control and fly multiple-tonne hunks of metal high above the earth. She says she certainly gets surprised reactions from people.
"At first, they don't believe me because of my size," she says, smiling. "When I meet people and tell them I work with AirAsia, they immediately respond, 'Stewardess?' I'd tell them 'no, I fly the aircraft'. I do get that a lot."
Her interest started when she was 11 years old. She says she loves the sound of the aircraft engine, for reasons she herself can't explain.
Defying stereotypes: When commercial airline pilot Nur Moana Ishak tells people she works with AirAsia, they automatically assume that she is a flight attendant.
"At first, I wanted to become a fighter pilot," she reveals. "I sent in my application but was unsuccessful. Then I applied to be a commercial airline pilot. After finishing school, I had my training in Malacca at the Malaysian Flying Academy. I went through 15 months of intensive study, both theory and practical, and had to accumulate 200 hours of flight."
Nur Moana was one of the pioneer batch of female pilots to graduate from the MFA. She recalls that there were only three women in her batch of 21 students.
In AirAsia, there are currently 10 female pilots, while three are still in training. Asked if her male colleagues treat her differently, Nur Moana says they treat as just one of the guys.
"During training, everyone has to be on par with each other."
For Nur Moana, the most difficult thing about flying is going through bad weather, which is when her skills are really put to the test. But she says the responsibility towards her passengers is really what drives her confidence.
"It drives me further to take them safely to their destination," she says.
While some pilots might think that commercial flights are not "real flying," because everything is programmed, Nur Moana believes otherwise. The human touch is always needed, she says.
"We still have to monitor the system, every minute, every second," she says.
As for being one of the very few female pilots in the country, she says: "I do feel proud of what I've achieved. I've had this dream since I was a kid."
Malaysia's top female rock climber Salfarina Mohd Drus in action during the X-Games Asia in Shanghai, China last year.
Rock climber
Anyone who has followed the Asian X-Games would be familiar with Salfarina Mohd Drus, Malaysia's No.1 female rock climber. At 26, she ranks 58 in the world and seventh in the Speed Category at the Asian X-Games. She has also been a semi-finalist in the Expert Difficulty Category in the World Cups held in Singapore and Malaysia.
Salfarina says she has been interested in climbing since her school days. Back then she did a lot of mountaineering and trekking, before a friend introduced her to wall-climbing.
"It was only after I finished school that I actively participated in competitions," she says. "In 2000, I won a competition in the novice category. I enjoyed it so much that I persevered until the advanced level."
Salfarina, who works as a full-time instructor, is currently in grade 7A; the highest and toughest grade in rock-climbing is 9A. In competitions, the men are usually given higher grades to climb.
She participates in international competitions four to five times a year. She says European competitors are the toughest to beat because they actively compete around the world. She trains three times a week for local competitions, but for international ones, she trains eight hours a day, six days a week.
Rock climber Salfarina sometimes competes in the men's events, despite the tougher grade.
But she laments the lack of competitions in Malaysia, especially for women. Locally, there are currently six women climbers who are actively competing, although when she started out, there were 15 to 20.
"Sometimes I have to compete with the guys because there are no women's competitions here. Usually the organisers don't allow it, but I plead with them," she laughs.
The men's grades are higher than the women's, therefore it's psychologically and physically tougher to compete with the guys.
"But I can't just stop at competing with women. For me, that's not enough. I need to beat the guys!" she says with a snigger.
When asked how many male competitors she has beaten before, she replies: "Oh, many."
And how do they take being beaten by a woman?
"Some of them are quite shy about it and some tell me, 'Sal, you're not a girl!' But still, they are supportive and we learn together," she says with a big smile.
Artist
Lee Hui Ling is the daughter of famous artist/sculptor Lee Kian Seng. At the young age of 26, Lee has already had shows in Kuala Lumpur and New York. She had her first solo exhibition in KL when she was only 19.
The young prodigy currently works out of a studio in New York. She was the recipient of the prestigious Sarah Lawrence College Board of Trustees Scholarship and the Gaylord Donnelley Family Scholarship.
Hailing from Klang, Selangor, Lee says she was homesick a lot when she first went to New York to study at Sarah Lawrence College, one of the top liberal arts colleges in the United States.
"But the exposure was wonderful," she says. "You get to see all kinds of art. It was good to see other people's art and to see where you stand. Also it was a big culture shock. When I first got there, I was such a country bumpkin!"
New York-based artist Lee Hui Ling held her first solo exhibition in Kuala Lumpur at the age of 19.
She spent a lot of time at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, did a lot of sketches and hung around galleries.
After college, she continued to develop her art, had a couple of shows, and also presented some papers for the Kuala Lumpur International Batik Convention in 2005 and 2007. She decided to base herself in New York because she finds it "an amazing place, full of vibrant energy and creative people."
Lee's first exhibition in KL in 2001 featured her paintings of people and places in Klang, and by her third exhibition in 2003, her work had grown in maturity, with a collection of sceneries, flowers and sculptures done in charcoal, ink, watercolours and oils.
As for growing up with parents who are artists (her mother, Shoko Lee, is an illustrator), she says: "Naturally you get lots of advice, a lot of insider tips and a lot of know-how. And the best art materials!"
Lee says even though there's great support for the arts in New York, and there's no shortage of exhibition spaces, an artist has to keep working and be original.
"You have to have your own vision, and you must know what you're about, what you're doing, and what you want to show to the public," she says.
She says she has to constantly challenge herself to do new things and to explore different mediums and subjects.
"It's always been a matter of expressing my personal style," she explains.
"I feel that there are the yin and yang energies within us and it manifests itself in the artwork according to the intention of the artist."
These young Malaysian women were selected by Dutch Lady to inspire other women in its "It Starts in Me" campaign.

TS