(Oct 22): The public should not look down on women who quit the workforce to take care of their children, as full-time mothers contribute to society just as much as CEOs, said former minister Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz today.

She told a panel discussion titled Women: The New Capital at the Global Transformation Forum in Kuala Lumpur that every women should have the freedom to leave their careers, without facing societal disapproval over their decisions.

"Every woman must make the right choice that's right for her. If she decides to drop out after having reached a certain level, because she's reached her ultimate level of contentment and would like to divert her energy to nurturing her children, so be it.

"Society should not mourn her departure from her CEO post. I will salute her because she's giving a part of herself to generating five, six adults-to-be in a society who could be useful to us," said Rafidah, to cheers and applause from the audience.

But she added that parenting should be a shared responsibility between both partners, rather than be seen as a purely woman's role.

The former international trade and industry minister also said that men were less likely than women to be pestered about their abilities to juggle family and work, adding that this was not fair.

She said society should stop relegating men and women into strict gender roles, and instead create an environment and discourse where all people were viewed only as "humans".

"Let's forget about women, the new capital. Just talk about how do we equip every human resources. Gender neutral. Can we begin with that?" said Rafidah.

"Let's talk about gender neutral situations. So that every woman forget she's a women when she's outside the home. Keep your femininity in the house. Outside, you're just another human." – The Malaysian Insider