In 1991, Beatrice Fernandez was dismissed from her job as an air stewardess because she was pregnant. She inter alia claimed a pregnancy-based discrimination and filed a case in the High Court, citing Article 8 (equality before the law and equal protection of the law) of the Federal Constitution.

Last year the Court of Appeal did not find the dismissal wrong. On March 11, three days after International Women's Day, Beatrice was refused leave to appeal to the Federal Court.

This case is the indelible smear to Malaysia's proclaimed achievement of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDG), more specifically MDG 3: the promotion of gender equality and empowerment of women. The Malaysian Millennium Development Goals Report was launched by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on Jan 28 this year.