QUEU>N CITY COUNCIL

QuaonC'tty
19th City Council
P019CC-594

88th Regular Session

ORDINANCENO. SP-_2_5_0_1__ , S-2016

AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. SP-1401,
S-2004, ENTITLED "AN ORDINANCE PROVIDING FOR A CITY
GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT CODE, AND BOR OTHER
PURPOSES," TO HARMONIZE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF.
REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9710, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS
"THE MAGNA CARTA OF WOMEN," AND TO ADOPT THE UN
WOMEN'S SAFE CITIES AND SAFE PUBLIC SPACESINITIATNE.

Introduced by Councilor LENA MARIE P. JUICO.

Co-Introduced by Councilors Anthony Peter D.
Crisologo, Ricardo T. Belmonte, Jr., Victor V.
Ferrer, Jr., Alexis R. Herrera, Precious Hipolito
Castelo, Voltaire Godofredo L. Liban III,
Ranulfo Z. Ludouica, Ramon P. Medalla,
Estrella C. Valmocina, Allan E3:ittedictS. Reyes,
Gian Carlo G. Sotto, Franz S. Pumaren,
.. . . , Eufemia C. Lagumbay, Jose Mario Don S. De
Leon, Jaime F. Barres, Jesus Manuel C.
Suntay, Vincent Dt). Belmonte, Raquel S.
. Malangen, Jessica Castelo Daza, Bayani V.
· Hipol, Jose A. Visaya, Julienne Alyson Rae V.
.Pefedalla,Godofredo T. Liban II, Andres Jose G.
/Yltana, Jr., Allan Butch T. Francisco, Karl
Edgar C. Castelo, Candy A. Medina, Marivic
.Co-Pilar, Rogelio "Roger" P. Juan, Melencio
· -<<~obby" T. Castelo, Jr., Donato C. Matias and
Ricardo B. Corpuz.

WHEREAS, Section 11, Article II, of the 1987 Philippine

Constitution states that the State values the dignity of every
human person, and guarantees full respect for human rights;

WHEREAS, Section 1 (a}, Article-Xlll, of the 1987 Philippine

Constitution states that the enactment of measures that protect
and enhance the right of the people to human dignity, reduce

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social, economic, and political inequalities, and remove cultural
inequities shall'be given highest priorit~ ~
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WHEREAS, Section 1, Article III of the 1987 Philippine

Constitution, guarantees that no person shall be deprived of life,
liberty and property without due process of law, nor shall any
person be denied the equal protection of the law;

WHEREAS, the Philippines being a state-party to the

United Nations (UN) Convention on the Elimination of all Forms
of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) also known as the
International Bill of Rights of Women, which it signed on
July 15, 1980, and ratified on August 15, 1981, shall pursue
and implement programs, projects and activities that will
contribute to the achievement of women's empowerment and
gender equality;

WHEREAS, on February 3, 2004, the Quezon City Council

approved the Ordinance No. SP-1401, S-2004, entitled "AN
ORDINANCE PROVIDING FOR A CITY GENDER AND
DEVELOPMENTCODEAND FOR OTHERPURPOSES";

WHEREAS, on August 14, 2009, the Philippine Commission

on Women (PCW), the Department of the Interior and Local
Government (DILG), Department of Budget and Management
(DBM), and the National Economic Development Authority
(NEDA) have issued Joint Memorandum Circular 2013-01, to
prescribe guidelines in mainstreaming and aligning Gender and
Development in the planning, programming, budgeting,
legislation and monitoring and evaluation of local government
units;

WHEREAS, the Localization of the Magna Carta of Women

prescribes the creation and strengthening of an LGU Gender and
Development Focal Point System (GFPS), an institutional
mechanism.for GAD implementation;

WHEREAS, the Magna Carta of Women also recognizes the

woman's right to protection from all forms of violence. Agencies
of government shall give priority to the defense and protection of
women against gender-based offenses and help women attain
justice and healing. It also ensures mandatory training on
human rights and gender sensitivity to all government personnel
involved in the protection and defense of women against gender-
based violence; )4 L/ .~ i-.
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 WHEREAS, Section 2 of Republic Act No. 7877 also known
as the "Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995" states that "the
State shall value the dignity of every individual, enhance the
development of its human resources, guarantee full respect for
human rights, and uphold the dignity of workers, employees,
applicants for employment, student or those undergoing
training, instruction or education. Toward this end all farms of
sexual harassment in the employment, education, or training
environment are hereby declared unlawful";

WHEREAS, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality

and the Empowerment of Women also known as UN Women has
selected Quezon City as one of the pilot cities all over the wotld
of its Safe Cities and Safe Public Spaces Initiative;

WHEREAS, the UN Women Safe Cities Free of Violence

Against Women and Girls Global Initiative seeks to increase
safety and improve the quality of life of women, youth and
children by developing and testing a local safe city approach in
Quezon City through strategies such as capacity-building of
local authorities, conducting public awareness activities to
mobilize the community, and facilitating policy linkages and
coordination across local and national levels;

WHEREAS, in Quezon City, sexual harassment (SH) and

sexual violence (SV) in public spaces are a daily occurrencefor
women, rooted in longstanding gender biases against women
and exacerbated by a culture of silence on these various forms
of harassment and violence that women experience in public
places;

WHEREAS, there is now a need to amend the Quezon City

GAD Code in order to harmonize the same with the provisions of
aforementioned laws, and to adopt the said UN Women's
initiative. ! / 6 b
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 BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF QUEZON
CITY IN REGULAR SESSION ASSEMBLED:

BOOK I-GENERAL PROVISIONS

CHAPTER I - BASIC PRINCIPLES

ARTICLE I

TITLE AND GENERAL POLICY

SECTION 1. Title. - This Ordinance shall be known as the

"GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT CODE OF QUEZON CITY."

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy and Principles of the

Quezon City Government. - It shall be the policy of the City
government to ensure both women/ girls and men/ boys benefit
equally and participate directly in the development programs
and projects of its various departments and ensure the full
participation and involvement of both men and women in the
development process, pursuant to Republic Act No. 7192,
WOMEN IN DEVELOPMENT AND NATION BUILDING ACT, and
Republic Act No. 9710: MAGNA CARTA OF WOMEN. It shall also
uphold the rights of women/ girls and the belief in their worth
and dignity as human beings, in accordance with the
fundamental freedoms guaranteed under the Constitution and
the Provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women and other international human rights
instruments, of which the Philippines is a party. Women shall be
recognized as full and equal partners of men in development
and nation-building, and men shall share equally with all forms
of productive and reproductive activities. The City government
shall actively contribute to the establishment of a national and
international economic order based, on sustained equitable
growth, and balanced ecology. Any development effort it
undertakes should realize the rights of women, enhance
women's full potentials, uplift their status and lead to the
improvement , of the quality of lives, their families and
communities.
shall pursue and
Toward this end,
implement vigorou~ly r:
the City government
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Ord. No. SP- S-2016 ,,.
Page -5- P019CC-594

development policies, design and integrate specific gender

support systems, take into consideration women's and girl's
right to economic survival, political participation, self-
determination and personal empowerment; adopt and
implement measures to protect and promote their rights; and
ensure the widest participation of women from the local
government, nongovernmental . organizations (NGOs) and
people's organizations (POs), and the private/ business sector in
all phases of the development program cycle.

TOATTAIN THE FOREGOINGPOLICY:

1. All City government departments, offices, and

instrumentalities shall ensure that women and
girls benefit equally and participate directly in
the development programs and projects of said
departments and agencies, specifically those
funded under official foreign development
assistance, to ensure the full participation and
involvement of women in the development
process, pursuant to Republic Act No. 7192,
otherwise known as the Women in Development
and Nation Building Act.

2. All City government project proposals shall

ascertain the inclusion of gender responsive
indicators and guidelines while not being remiss
in locating the root of women's oppression,
pursuant to the United Nations Declarations and
Conventions of Women of which the Philippine .
Government is a signatory.

3. All City departments, offices, and instru-

mentalities, upon effectiuits], of this Code, shall
review and revise all their regulations, circulars,
issuances, and procedures to remove gender bias
therein, if any. ~
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4. All City government departments, offices and

instrumentalities shall reaffirm the right of
women in all sectors to participate in policy
formulation, planning, organization, implemen-
tation, management, monitoring and evaluation
of all programs, projects and services. It shall
support policies, researches, technology . and
training programs and other support services
such as .financing, production and marketing to
encourage active participation of women in local
and national development, pursuant to Republic
Act No. 9710 or the Magna Carta of Women.

ARTICLEII

Related Principles

SECTION3. Rights of Women De.fined - Women's rights

are the rights of women that are defined and declared by the
United Nations under the Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) which are
hereby adopted as follows:

a. Women have the right to the prevention of and

protectionfrom all forms of violence and coercion
against their person, their freedom, their
sexuality, and their individuality.

b. Women have the right to freely and fully

participate individually or collectively in the ·
political processes of their communities and
nations.

c. Women have the right to the means for assuring

their economic welfare and security.

d. Women have the right to the necessary knowledge

and, means for the full exercise of their
reproductive choice in accordance to the
Constitution and their beliefs. a~d pre~erences. )I ~·,

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 e. Women have the ,righl to dlfJOSe a .spouse· m
accordance with their values and preferences:,,
maintain equality in marriage or its dissolution,
and obtain adequate support for rearing and
caring of their children.

f Women have the right to an adequate, relevant,

and gender-fair education throughout their lives,
from childhood to adulthood.

g. Women have the right to adequate nutrition and

proper health care.

h. Women have the right to humane living

condition.

i. Women have the right to nurture their

personhood, collectively and individually, to
secure an image of themselves as a whole and
valuable human beings, to build relationships
based on respect, trust and mutuality.

J. Women have the right to equality before the law

in principle, as well as in practice.

SECTION 4. Definition - for the purpose of this Code, the

following terms shall mean:

Gender - refers to socially constructed

difference between men and uiomeri for all sexual
orientation and gender identities, created artificially,
partly through socialization, and partly through
positive and negative discrimination in the vanous
institutions and structures of society; )4

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Ord. No. SP- 2501 , S-2016

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Development - refers to the improvement of the

quality of life of all regardless of age, sex, gender,
tribe, race, creed, and religion. It is characterized by
an enrichment of Filipino indigenous resources,
sustainable utilization of the natural resources of the
country and freedom from dependency. It is
therefore, sustainable, equitable, and gender-
responsive;

Gender and Development (GAD) - refers to the

development perspective and process that is
participatory and empowering, equitable,
sustainable, free from violence, respectful of human
rights, and supportive of self-determination and
actualization of human potentials. It seeks to achieve
gender equality as a fundamental value that should
be reflected in development choices; seeks to
transform society's social, economic, and political
structures and questions the validity of the gender
roles they ascribed to women and men; contends
that women are active agents of development and
not just passive recipients of development
assistance; and stresses the need of women to
organize themselves and participate in political
processes to strengthen their legal rights;

Discrimination Against Women - refers to any

[gender-based] distinction, exclusion or restriction
made on the basis of sex has the purpose or effect of
impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or
exercise by women of their rights, irrespective of •
their marital status;

Commodification of Women - refers to a

practice which puts women in subordinate situation
which results in the treatment. of women as both
consumers and objects. As consumers, women
are enticed to buy beauty products to enhance their
physical attractiveness. As objects of consumption, 14

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Ord. No. SP- 2501 S-2016

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women are reduced to a sexual commodity for

manipulation and utilization for one's. sexual desire
or interest usually in exchange of money or goods so
that women have no control or power to reject such
utilization or manipulation;

Women Empowerment - refers to the provision,

availability, and accessibility of opportunities,
services, and observance of human rights through
life-cycle and rights-based approach which enable
women to actively participate and contribute to the
political, economic, social, and cultural development
of the nation as well as those which shall provide
them equal access to ownership, management, and
control of production, and of material and
informational resources and benefits in the family,
community, and society;

Marginalization - refers to a condition where a

whole category of people is excluded from useful and
meaningful participation. in political, economic,
social, and cultural life;

Marginalized refers to the basic,

disadvantaged, or vulnerable persons or groups who
are mostly living in pouertu and have little or no
access to land and other resources, basic social and
economic services such as health care, education, ·
water and sanitation, employment and livelihood
opportunities, housing, social security, physical
infrastructure, and the justice system;

These include but are not limited to, women in

the following sectors and groups:

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a. Urban Poor - refers to those residing in urban

or blighted areas, with or without the benefit
of security of abode, where the income of the
head of the family cannot sustainably
provide for the family's basic needs of food,
health, education, housing, and other
essentials in life;

b. Workers In The Formal Economy - refers to

those who are employed by any person
acting directly or indirectly in the interest of
an employer in relation to an employee
and shall include the government and
all its branches, subdivisions, and
instrumentalities, all Government-owned and
Controlled Corporations (GOCCs) and
institutions, as well as non-profit private
institutions or organizations;

c. Workers In The Informal Economy - refers to

self-employed, occasionally or personally
hired, subcontracted, paid and unpaid
family workers in household incorporated
and unincorporated enterprises, including
home workers, micro-entrepreneurs and
producers, and operators of sari-sari stores
and all other categories who suffer from
violation of workers' rights;

d. Moro - refers to people who are of the Islamic

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e. Children - refers to those who are below

eighteen (18) years of age or over but are
unable to fully take care of themselves or
protect themselves from abuse, neglect,
cruelty, exploitation, or discrimination
because of a physical or mental disability or
condition;

f. Senior Citizens - refers to those sixty (60)

years of age and above.

g. Persons With Disabilities (PWDs)- refers to

those who are suffering from restriction or
different abilities, as a result of a mental,
physical, or sensory impairment, to perform
an activity in the manner or within the range
considered normal for a human being as
defined in Republic Act No. 7277 as
amended by Republic Act No. 9442,
otherwise known as the "Magna Carta for
Disabled Persons";

h. Solo-Parents - refers to those who fall under

the category of a solo parent defined under
Republic Act No. 8972, otherwise known as
the "Solo Parents' WelfareAct of 2000";

i. Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT)

- refers to a diverse and complex range of
identities based on sexual orientation,
gender identity and expression (hereinafter
"SOGIE").The term "LGBT"refers to gender
and sexually non-conforming persons,
including, but not limited to lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgender and queer persons.
(adopted from the Quezon City Gender-Fair
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Substantive Equality - refers to the full and

equal enjoyment of rights and freedoms
contemplated under RA 9710. It encompasses de
jure and de facto equality and also equality in
outcomes;

Gender Equality - refers to the principle

asserting the equality of men and women and their
right to enjoy equal conditions realizing their full
human potentials to contribute to and benefit from
the results of development, and with the State
recognizingthat all human beings are free and equal
in dignity and rights;

Gender Equity refers to the policies,

instruments, programs, services, and actions that
address the disadvantaged position of women in
society by providing preferential treatment and
affirmative action. Such temporary special measures
aimed at accelerating def acto equality between men
and women shall not be considered discriminatory
but shall in no way entail as a consequence the
maintenance of unequal or separate standards.
These measures shall be discontinued when the
objectives of equality of opportunity and treatment
have been achieved;

Gender Mainstreaming - refers to the strategy

for making women's as well as men's concerns and
experiences an integral dimension of the design, ·
implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of
policies and programs in all social, political, civil,
and economic spheres so that women and men
benefit equally, and to ensure that inequality is not
perpetuated. It is the process of assessing the
implications for women and men of any planned

all areas and at all levels; '/' •6

action, including legislation, policies, or programs in

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