ONE IN EVERY FIVE ELECTED public officials in the country is a woman. Filipinas have clearly permeated the traditionally male-dominated public domain, holding 3,601 of the 17,385 elected posts, according to government research body Philippine Commission on Women. Filipinas are generally considered as among the most empowered women in Asia, much as the country is known for catapulting two women to the presidency through massive demonstrations. Last year supposedly marked another milestone for the Filipina, with the appointment of Maria Lourdes Sereno as the High Court’s first woman chief justice. Indeed, the ascension of women to seats of power has become a redeeming value for the country’s political system that supposedly fosters equal opportunities. As the elections loom, increased women’s participation in politics as sharply defined by their right to vote and to be voted seems to strengthen the notion of women empowerment. In reality however, the impacts of such democratic exercises in effecting genuine change for women, remain limited.
Seats of power
The country’s pre-colonial narrative depicts a society that values women, most notably with the stature of the babaylan or priestess who assume key roles in early communities as healers or advisors. History illustrates how the Spanish colonizers forcedly confined Filipino women to the traditional Marian standards of women conduct like being
meek, domesticated and submissive. For centuries, the Filipina’s worth would depend on how she conforms to such expectations— not until women freedom fighters like Gabriela Silang and Melchora Aquino broke these stereotypes, and made substantial contributions to liberate the country from oppression. Clearly, women have always struggled to assert their valued position in the country’s political and economic affairs despite systemic efforts to curtail their participation. In contemporary times however, electing women into positions does not necessarily translate to advancing women’s cause. Not even the passage of “pro-women” laws could ease the burdens experienced by majority of women. For instance, while Gloria Arroyo’s administration saw the legislation of the Magna Carta of Women, the condition of women worsened during her term. Research institution Center for Women’s Resources (CWR) cites 1,010 cases of state-perpetrated violations of women’s rights during Arroyo’s term. For 2011 and 2012, seven cases of sexual harassment perpetrated by military members to women under the counterinsurgency plan Oplan Bayanihan have been reported by national women’s alliance GABRIELA. Moreover, women candidates who participate in the elections hardly invoke women empowerment as central to their intentions for running. The study Participation of Women in Politics and Society reveals that most women seeking elections merely serve as
an “alternate” to a family relative whose term is either unfulfilled or nears expiration. Such is the case of senatorial aspirant Cynthia Villar and gubernatorial candidate Imee Marcos, whose family relatives currently hold key positions. Majority of known women politicians also hail from influential families with established political mileage, like Arroyo and Corazon Aquino. The social class interests of most women leaders clearly prevail over her membership to a marginalized sector like women, notes GABRIELA Secretary General Joms Salvador. With a largely elitist system of elections, the chances of women being elected is restricted by her socio-economic status. Contrary to claims of providing equal opportunities to everyone, the elections remain an exclusive game for the rich; a limited arena to advance the interests of the majority of women from underrepresented sectors.
Counting votes
The right of women to vote is considered as one of the concrete gains achieved by women’s movements across the world. While the idea of women voting now passes as conventional wisdom, such rights were painstakingly advanced by women advocates. Not even American colonizers, with their much-celebrated d e m o c r a c y,
have extended women the right to have their votes counted. The first general elections in the country were for the educated and propertied elite men, to the dismay of their female counterparts like Concepcion Felix de Calderon and Josefa Llanes-Escoda, who eventually lead the crusade for women’s suffrage rights in the Philippines. After organized efforts lead by groups like Asociacion Feminista Filipina, over 440,000 Filipina voters were able to vote for the first time in April 1937. Such suffrage rights however, were initially reserved to rich and educated women. Evidently, the elite have a clear history of dominating the supposedly democratic process of elections. In 2010, around 18.8 million or 75.2 percent of registered women voters cast their votes. Participation in the elections is a positive indicator of women’s increasing level of political consciousness, says CWR’s Cielito Perez. Despite this however, a women’s vote does not exist, asserts UP Prof. Judy Taguiwalo. She explains that the lack of sensible and
Advancing the cause
Filipinas have yet to realize true emancipation. Despite much hype, the presence of women candidates in the elections does not signify hope for women. At most, such kinds of political participation have mostly concerned middle class and elite women than those who toil in vast farmlands or factories. Women can only be empowered if they live free from violence, hunger, poverty and other forms of oppression, says Salvador. GABRIELA was among the first women’s groups in the Philippines who have linked gender issues faced by women to the greater context of structural inequalities and social injustices. LATHALAIN
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functional women laws and policies indicate the absence of a women’s vote. Truly, the existence of a united women’s vote would have the capacity to compel candidates to address legitimate women concerns. While more women engage in the elections either as voters or candidates, women’s representation remains very limited and constrained by the domination of men in government who have different views, says Perez. As such, as long as individual women vote without a definite consciousness of the collective plight they share as women, then the exercise of voting will remain to be impotent, isolated tools in advancing their rights and welfare. Ultimately, the elections alone could never liberate women from all forms of oppression.
After all, aside from issues of gender violence, women are still confronted by the daily challenges mounted by high prices of commodities and basic utilities, massive unemployment, and lack of adequate social services. For instance, women who often take charge of the family’s finances, are perennially burdened by high prices of food, transportation, electricity and making ends meet, explains Perez. As the proud history of the women’s movement shows, organized and collective efforts that banded women together against prevailing social orders still wields the most potential in effecting genuine change. Women should organize among their ranks, and learn to transcend the narrow boundaries of gender issues to the greater plight of all oppressed sectors, says Salvador. In the end, grassroots women’s organizations who clearly understand how women’s issues are integrated in the broader scheme of things could enjoin the empowerment of women regardless of socioeconomic origins. With the elections looming, women may utilize this single grand event to maximize their gains and promote their legitimate interests. For the rest of the years however, women can rely in their collective strength that has decisively challenged and changed the course of their continuing story.
Huwebes 7 Marso 2013