Our Journey, Our History

Fathers will now get two weeks of state-paid paternity leave, and unwed mothers will, like wed mothers, get 16 weeks of maternity leave instead of just eight weeks. Shared parental leave goes up from one to four weeks.

Yip Pin Xiu wins two gold medals at the Rio Paralympics and Theresa Goh, Singapore’s Paralympics swimming pioneer, wins a bronze. At the 2008 Beijing Paralympics, Pin Xiu won Singapore’s first Olympic-level gold medal.

Judith Prakash becomes the first woman to be appointed permanent judge of the Singapore Court of Appeal. An expert in commercial law, she was in 1995 the second woman to join the Supreme Court bench.

Changes to the Women’s Charter allow for husbands and ex-husbands who are incapacitated to claim spousal maintenance. Other changes include requiring couples with minor children to attend a parenting programme before they can file for divorce, and couples where one party is under 21 to attend a marriage preparation course.

Singapore declares its unreserved commitment to Article 11 (paragraph 1) of CEDAW, which calls for gender equality in employment. The government says it is lifting its reservation because changing policies now mean servicewomen can have fulfilling careers in the military.

Singapore‘s national carrier, Singapore Airlines, takes in two women cadet pilots. It is possibly the last major airline in the world to hire women pilots.

The Protection from Harassment Act comes into effect in November, and stalking, cyber bullying and workplace harassment become illegal.