Gender equality in the Philippines whose primary goal is to have a leverage towards equality

among men and women as pointed out in the readings of Carlos Antonio Q. Añonuevo entitled, “An
Overview of the Gender Situation in the Philippines” is said to be characterized by sharp
contradictions. In many times and places in the past, people have insisted that women and men
have similar capabilities and have tried to better the social position of all women. However, the
colonialism spirit has been imparted to most Filipinos and remained to this day wherein the
conception of women as full-time homemakers, as subordinated to men, violence against them is
private, as reserve labor force, and as sexual objects is now being worn by modern women asserting
themselves in many aspects of life. As an organized movement, legal and policies arose from the
strong voice of women after the anti-dictatorship, the time when Corazon Aquino finally take over
the highest office in the country. However, the social fabric remains tainted by arrogance of male
power. This is very evident through the existence of prostituted women, battered wives,
economically disadvantaged women and exploited migrant workers. Here lies then the ever-ending
question, have we truly achieved gender equality?

Upon reading Carlos Antonio Q. Añonuevo’s overview of the gender situation in the Philippines, as a
woman and a Filipino citizen, I come to an understanding that the author’s point of view is indeed
realistic basing it correspondingly to my own experiences and observations. Gender equality is said
to be well advanced in the Philippines. Yes, the country scores well on international gender equality
measures and indices, but more is needed to sustain the achievements and to overcome remaining
challenges. Despite a favorable policy environment – the Philippines is signatory to international
human rights instruments and has successfully enacted policies and laws for the protection and
promotion of women’s rights. Nevertheless, the implementation of policies appears uneven and
slow. Although the legal framework is there, the actual situation mirrors the deep gender divide.
First, in the aspect of women in politics. The Declaration of Principles Article II Section 14 asserted
that "The State recognizes the role of women in nation-building and shall ensure the fundamental
equality before the law of women and men." Despite the enactment of this provision, notable
success of several women is still overshadowed by the actual ground level statistics. Based from the
reading, the lady Vice-President is up to now a “shoo” in the next presidential elections in 2004. In
which I have also observed in the news that the current lady Vice- President in some way was being
neglected by the head of the state’s current administration when it comes to decision making.
Additionally, based on research, women’s representation in politics, although it is improving, still
continues to be low. Less than 20% of the seats in Congress and 13% in the Senate are occupied by
women. As a Public Administration student who is aiming to enter the world of politics in the near
future, this situation somehow discouraged me to compete and win the battlefield of political affairs.
Meanwhile, in the circumstance of women in labor and employment, the Article XIII-Labor: Section
14 provided that "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".
However, even with the execution of this provision, the current state of women in terms of labor
and social status in the society remains stagnant. Based on research, more than ten million Filipino
women still live today in poverty, with rural and indigenous women being the most vulnerable.
Maternal mortality and access to reproductive health care services are among the most pressing
concerns in the country. Eleven women die every day due to pregnancy and child birth-related
causes. Furthermore, the International Labor Organization (ILO) reports that less than half (45.9%) of
working age women are able to access decent and productive employment, compared to 3 in every
4 males (72.6%) of working age. In the agricultural sector, men receive 20% higher wages than
women. This leaves them exposed to employment insecurity and unfair compensation schemes and
also pushes them to seek employment overseas. This is precise and factual for me as I have also
observed this in my home town which is Masbate City wherein there is a clear huge gap in terms of
the employment rate between men and women. The majority of the population of women are
unemployed while men are the wage and salary earners in the household. This might be because of
the influence of the culture wherein the conception towards Filipinas are ‘fulltime home-makers’
wherein they are expected and obliged to stay at home and fulfill the role of motherhood in the
household. Discovering the depth of this situation, as a Filipina, I am very much saddened.
Moreover, with regards to the matter of violence against women, tons of polices and legal
framework have also been implemented which includes the following; Anti-Sexual Harassment Law,
Anti-Rape Law, Magna Carta of Women (Republic Act No. 9710), and the newly implemented Anti-
Bastos Law or also known as RA No. 11313. Nevertheless, in spite of all the enacted policies by the
government, the Philippines’ social fabric was still stained by arrogance of male power. Based on the
reading, in 1998, 6,518 cases of violence against women were reported with rape accounting for
1,054 cases and physical injuries at a high of 2,633 cases. Last year, the former was pegged at
13.79% and the latter reached 35.17% of the cases reported. Also, according to the 2004-2010
Report on the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women
(CEDAW), 1 in 5 Filipino women over 4.6 million have experienced physical violence since age 15.
Relating this to my own experiences, I can really hardly tell that there is a gender equality in the
country. Like any other Filipina, I have also experience violence even at my young age. I have
experience sexual harassment and psychological abuse because of ‘stalking’ and ‘cat calling’ by some
of disrespectful men in the country. This is a clear manifestation that even to this modern age,
women are seen as sexual objects. This results to a clear negative implication towards the safety of
women in the country. Most of us now is shivering out of fear and distress of coming home late and
walking alone in the streets thinking that someone might harm and attack us. Controversially, I can
also relate this matter to the situation of our household before. Out of 30% of battered wives in the
country, my mother is one of the many populations that suffered violence and abuse from their
spouse. At a young age, I have witnessed how the two genders differ in terms of the ability to exert
physical strength and authority in a household. Unfortunately, my father used his strength in a
hideous manner. This results to causing serious short- and long-term physical, mental, sexual and
reproductive health problems for my mother. This also affect us, their children, which in fact lead to
our trauma and depression. This situation actively illustrates that up to this day, women are
perceived as subordinated to men and that violence against them is private. These are just few of
the many manifestations of how gender equality in the Philippines is ironically characterized by
contradictions.

Above all of these, although the legal framework has bequeathed basic frameworks and processes
for women empowerment and gender fairness, the dynamics of political and social institutions
reinforced by the cultural standpoints continue to provide a push-pull effect on gender equality.
With this, I strongly agree to the argument of Carlos Antonio Q. Añonuevo that the statistics on
women remain indicative of the deep-rooted and widespread problems they encounter in their daily
lives. The labor market has stereotyped women, disadvantaged them in jobs and incomes, and even
forced them into prostitutions and slave-like work. The social image of a Filipina is still that of a weak
person, poster girl of domestic help, expert in double burden, and a sexual object. While the
mainframe of gender politics is changing, the struggle of women to escape from the traditional mold
everyday life continues. By these, I therefore conclude that we haven’t truly achieved the extent of
gender equality in the country. As a woman and a Filipino citizen who also experienced the noted
detriments due to gender gap, I can say that the authorities and we, as a community must
continuously exert efforts into advocating gender equality in to a widespread audience within the
country to untie the patriarchal culture among Filipinos and to change the traditional conception
among women to fully achieve gender equality in the country.