In 1982, a group of concerned individuals realised that women in Penang and the northern region who suffered domestic violence did not have a place to go for help. Violence against women, women’s rights and discriminatory laws against women received scant attention in the media and the public were unaware of such problems.

Women’s Crisis Centre (Pusat Krisis Wanita) was registered as a society on 1 July 1985 with a pro-tem committee of seven. At our first meeting, we had the support of 70 people who came to elect our first General Committee at the Women’s Institute in September 1985.

Our first WCC committee consisted of women from all walks of life – lawyers, clerks, teachers, lecturers, and homemakers. (Click here to find out about our current WCC General Committee.)

We didn’t have much money or even much space but we made up for it with lots of energy and commitment!

We started with a phone line that women experiencing crisis could call. When the number of cases increased, we began to offer face-to-face counselling.

The First Decade (1986-1995)

In the early days, we did not have funds to provide a dedicated shelter for abused women in emergencies, so sympathetic friends and supporters opened up their homes and spare rooms to us. We knew we needed a safe house for our abused women and decided that one of the first things we had to do was to raise funds to get a proper safe house.

With the help of dedicated supporters and friends, we raised enough funds to buy a small house in 1989. Our refuge opened its doors on 1 June 1990 and within a year, our tiny house became a much-needed sanctuary for 17 women, some with children.

Even our first WCC office was just a cramped room which we rented from the local municipality. We were doing our work from 57, Jalan Macalister and some eight years later, in July 1993, we moved into a double-storey terraced house at 24-D, Jalan Jones.

In the mid-90’s, like all organisations, we suffered some strains and stresses due to our expansion and differences in our members’ personal and ideological orientations. Most importantly, we bounced back through standing firmly by our principles of respect and diversity, strengths that we continue to nurture and demonstrate until today.

As we continued to improve the lives of women in our community and reached out to other NGOs and government agencies, we began to undertake research work besides the counselling and community awareness talks and activities that we were already doing.

The Second Decade (1996-2005)

One of the milestones of this decade was our work with the One-Stop Crisis Centre (OSCC) established within the Penang General Hospital when the Domestic Violence Act was enforced from 1996 onwards. We worked closely with OSCC to ensure that domestic violence and sexual abuse victims had immediate access to medical and police services. We also began to train healthcare professionals, welfare staff and the police so that they could understand the issue better and have greater sensitivity when dealing with the already traumatised victims.

Again, we knew that we needed to reach out to the community so we started to extend our Bijak Itu Selamat and Respek programmes to primary and secondary schools respectively. When legal reforms affecting women and children in Malaysia became a priority, WCC led the campaign to lobby for a sexual harassment law together with other women’s NGOs in the coalition known as the Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG).

In 2002, WCC took a significant step to change our name to Women’s Centre for Change, to better reflect our organisation’s wider focus on women’s empowerment through education and advocacy. Services for women in crisis remained at the core of our work, but we also recognised the importance of creating other solutions to address social justice and gender equality concerns happening in the post-2000 world.

The Third Decade (2006-2015)

The year 2008 saw the momentous victory of the Pakatan Rakyat (now Pakatan Harapan) taking over the Penang State Government from Barisan Nasional at the 12th General Election on 8 March. The new Penang State Executive Councillor for Women, Family and Community Development, YB Lydia Ong Kok Fooi, together with the then Member of Parliament, YB Chong Eng, met up with all the women NGOs in Penang to work out strategies for the state government to improve the lives of women. One of the strategies was to form smart partnerships with experienced NGOs to provide better services for women and children, especially in underserved areas.

In recognition of WCC’s two decades of service and experience in helping women and children in crisis, the Penang State Government entered into a smart partnership with WCC to expand its services to the mainland. The state government agreed to provide the funds for a new service centre in Seberang Perai while WCC was tasked with training and management of new staff and operation of the centre. The resulting joint project was aptly named Pusat Perkhidmatan Wanita (PPW). On 19 January 2009, PPW proudly opened its doors to the public in Seberang Perai.  

Also, in 2009, WCC strengthened its collaboration with the Penang General Hospital for systematic victim support for domestic violence and sexual crime victims seeking treatment at the OSCC in the Emergency Department of the hospital. WCC staff would go to the OSCC to attend to victims of sexual crimes or domestic violence when consent had been obtained from adult victims or guardians of child victims. Victim support for those attending OSCC at the Penang General Hospital was formalised in 2010. The following year, in 2011, WCC extended this service to Hospital Seberang Jaya on the mainland through our PPW office.

In 2012, the WCC Penang island office moved to our three-storey building at 241, Jalan Burma, a building that we purchased through our huge fundraising efforts. It was also in our third decade, especially from 2015 onwards, that WCC began systematically compiling data on our victim support services within the criminal justice system, including court support, and advocating for improvements at state and national government agency levels.

The Fourth Decade (2016 & Beyond)

Today, WCC is recognised nationwide as a reputable women’s organisation. Our goals of eliminating violence against women and children and the promotion of gender equality remain the cornerstone of our work.

We have a team of 16 staff and some 30-50 regular volunteers from different ethnic, social and professional backgrounds who work closely in all areas of outreach, services, publications and advocacy.

Our work has expanded over the decades. Apart from counselling and shelter services, we conduct outreach programmes in schools, colleges and community groups and provide sexual assault victim support.

In 2020, the unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns revolutionised the way many organisations worked. Almost overnight, WCC had to adapt to the “new normal”. With physical programmes no longer an option, we leveraged on the power of social media by developing and reinventing our programmes and activities online. These shifts have enabled us to transcend geographical boundaries, reach a huge number of people nationwide, and build new networks and partners beyond our expectations.

Together with the Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG), we continue to actively lobby the government for better enforcement of the law and better support for victims of sexual assault. We also continue to actively engage with the media to spread awareness on gender equality and issues affecting women and children, especially gender-based violence.

Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG) Members

JAG is a coalition of 14 women’s rights organisations in Malaysia. We have been advocating for law and policy reforms focusing on women and children. JAG consists of the following members:

Women’s Centre for Change (WCC)
Tel: 04-228 0342
Email: wcc@wccpenang.org
Website: wccpenang.org

All Women’s Action Society (AWAM)
85, Jalan 21/1, Sea Park, 46300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Tel: 03-7877 4221
Hotline: 03-7877 0224 / 016-237 4221
Email: awam@awam.org.my
Website: www.awam.org.my

Association of Women Lawyers
Email: awlmsia@gmail.com
Website: www.awlmalaysia.org

Foreign Spouses Support Group (FSSG)
Email: foreignspouses@gmail.com
Website: fssg.com.my

Justice for Sisters
Email: justiceforsisters@gmail.com
Website: justiceforsisters.wordpress.com

KRYSS Network
Email: info@kryss.network
Website: kryss.network 

Persatuan Kesedaran Komuniti Selangor (EMPOWER)
D-3-33, Block D, 8 Avenue, Pusat Perniagaan Section 8,
Jalan Sg Jernih 8/1, 46050 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Tel: 03-7960 4977
Email: info@empowermalaysia.org
Website: empowermalaysia.org

Persatuan Sahabat Wanita Selangor (PSWS)
No. 11A, Jalan Restu 1, Taman Restu, 43000 Kajang, Selangor.
Tel: 03-8737 8380
Email: sahabatwanita@gmail.com
Website: persatuansahabatwanita.org

Perak Women for Women (PWW)
15, Market Street, 30000 Ipoh, Perak.
Tel: 05-246 9715
Email: perakwomenforwomen@gmail.com
Website: ngo.pww.org.my

Sarawak Women for Women Society (SWWS)
Unit 16, Level 4, La Promenade Mall 2, Hock Seng Lee Tower,
Kuching-Samarahan Expressway, 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak.
Tel: 082-368 853
Hotline: 013-804 4285 / 016-582 2660
Email: info@sarswws.org
Website: sarswws.org

Sabah Women’s Action-Resource Group (SAWO)
Lot 24, 2nd Floor, Block C Damai Point, 88300 Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.
Tel: 088-269 291
Hotline: 088-280 200 / 011-2790 8020
Email: sawo.women@yahoo.com
Website: sawo.org.my

Sisters in Islam (SIS)
No. 4 Lorong 11/8E 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Tel: 03-7960 3357 / 5121 / 6733
Email: sis@sistersinislam.org.my
Website: sistersinislam.org

Tenaganita
12, Jalan 6/11, 46000 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Tel: 03-7770 3671 / 3691
Hotline: 012-335 0512 / 012-339 5350
Email: general@tenaganita.net
Website: tenaganita.net

Women’s Aid Organisation (WAO)
P.O.Box 493, Jalan Sultan 46760 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Tel: 03-7957 5636 / 0636 (general enquiries)
Hotline: 03-3000 8858
SMS/WhatsApp TINA: 018-988 8058
Email: info@wao.org.my
Website: wao.org.my