Chapter 7 - Discrimination

Discrimination, defined
 The failure to treat everyone alike according to the standards and rules
of action.
 The basic provisions in the UN Charter and Universal Declaration of
Human Rights focus on the equality, dignity, and rights of human
beings without distinction as to race, nationality, or religion.
 The foundation of freedom, justice, and peace in the world will be
achieved only through the equal rights of men and women.

Kinds of Discrimination
 Racial Discrimination
o Adopted om 1965, the International Covenant on the Elimination
of All Forms of Racial Discrimination entered into force in 1969
and was ratified by the Philippines on September 15, 1967.
o Racial Discrimination, defined
 Any distinction, exclusion, or preference based on race,
color, descent, or national, or ethnic origin which has the
purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition,
enjoyment, or exercise, on an equal footing of human
rights and fundamental freedoms in the political,
economic, social, or cultural, or any other field of public
life.
o Each State Party is directed to review all governmental policies
and amend or nullify any law which have the effect in creating or
perpetuating racial discrimination. They should also prohibit any
propaganda of people or organizations which advance the theory
of superiority of one race or group or to attempt or to justify and
promote racial hatred.
o Brown vs Board of Education
 The segregation of children in public schools solely on the
basis of race even though facilities are equal with the
school attended by the whites, deprived the minority group
of equal educational facilities.
o Cultural Minorities
 In the Philippines, Racial Discrimination does not exist.
However, it is present in the form of cultural discrimination
or the discrimination of indigenous people.
 Tribal Indigenous People is the descendants of the original
inhabitants of many lands who retain a strong sense of
their distinct culture.
 The Constitution protects Indigenous People. It states that
“the State shall recognize, respect, and protect the rights
of indigenous cultural communities to preserve and
 develop their cultures, traditions, and institutions. It shall
consider these rights in the formulation of national plans
and policies”.
 The Ancestral Domain Act was enacted to recognize and
promote the indigenous and cultural rights of indigenous
tribes over lands they and their ancestors have occupied
and cultivated.
 Sex Discrimination
o The Universal Declaration on Human Rights states that all human
beings are born free and equal in dignity without distinction as to
race or sex.
o Definition of Sex Discrimination
 Any distinction, exclusion, or restriction made on the basis
of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or
nullifying the recognition, enjoyment, or exercise by
women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of
equality of men and women, of human rights and
fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social,
cultural, civil, or any other field.
o Duties of State Parties
 Every State Parties to the convention are obliged to
implement this principle of equal protection of men and
women in their national constitutions, and adopt legal
measures to prohibit discrimination against women.
 Eliminate discriminatory laws and practices against women
in education and in their right to work and employment
opportunities.
o Philippine implementation of the Women’s Convention
 The Philippine Constitution states that “The State
recognizes the role of women in nation-building, and shall
ensure the fundamental equality before the law of women
and men”.
 “The State shall protect working women by providing safe
and healthful working conditions, taking into account their
maternal functions, and such facilities and opportunities
that will enhance their welfare and enable them to realize
their full potential in the service of the nation.”
 Some laws concerning the rights of women
 RA 7912 “Women in Development and Nation-
Building Act”
 RA 7877 “An Act Declaring Sexual Harassment
Unlawful in the Employment, Education, or Training
Environment, and for Other Purposes”
 RA 9262 “An Act Defining Violence Against Women
and Children”
 Religious Discrimination
o Freedom of thought, which includes freedom of religious beliefs,
is basic in the society of free men.
o Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and
religion, this right includes freedom to change his religion or
belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others
and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in
teaching, practice, worship, and observance.
o The UN General Assembly adopted on November 25, 1981 the
Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of
Discrimination Based on Religion or Beliefs.
o The Philippine Constitution prohibits religious discrimination
providing that “no religious test shall be required for the exercise
of civil or political rights.”