15-2.rowena Legaspi-hr Situtation Of Women And Children In The Philippines

PHILIPPINES SITUATION OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN: Law, Policy and Human Rights

Rowena Legaspi Executive Director Children’s Legal Rights and Development Center, Inc. URL: http://clrd-org.ph.tc

Human Rights are entitlements afforded to people by virtue of their being human!

Principles of Human Rights Translating Concepts to Praxis

EQUALITY UNIVERSALITY

INTERDEPENDENCY

INDIVISIBILITY

INALIENABILITY

HR

RESPONSIBILITY

HUMAN DIGNITY

NON DISCRIMINATION

HUMAN DIGNITY 

Founded on the notion that each individual, regardless of age, culture, faith, ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation, language, disability, or social class deserves to be honored and esteemed

How are Rights Protected, Promoted, Defended and Fulfilled? Principle of State Complicity

SOURCES OF RIGHTS       

International Documents Constitution Jurisprudence Statutes and Laws Ordinances Codes PD’s, EO’s, RA’s,

THE PHILIPPINE LEGAL SYSTEM

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Not indigenous: borrowed from US, Spain Founded on laws which are rules of human conduct, just and obligatory, to which the greater body of inhabitants render habitual obedience Criminal and Civil Punitive, Regulatory, Preventive and Rehabilitative Nature

STATE OBLIGATIONS  Obligation

to RESPECT  Obligation to PROTECT  Obligation to ENSURE AND ENFORCE  Obligation to PROMOTE

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights ARTICLE 1 – UDHR, 1948

Everyone is entitled to all rights and freedoms…without distinction of any kind such as race, color, SEX, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.

ARTICLE 2 – UDHR, 1948

Half the sky is held by women – Mao Tse Tung The truth being…

Women and Children: Ethnic Divide 

Being minorities, the Lumad, Moro women and children become doubly disadvantaged.

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Discrimination limits their chances in the various spheres of life - be it in employment, public life, government bureaucracy or social movements.

Women and Children: Health

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ARMM posted the lowest life expectancy and high levels of infant and maternal mortality, principally outcomes of poverty and official neglect. As of 2001, Region XII (59 percent) and ARMM (54 percent) have the lowest proportion of households with access to potable water. This further burdens women on whose shoulders rest family care responsibilities and negatively affects their health and income-earning capacities.

Women and Children: Family Planning 

Women who would like to limit or space their children do not have the means to do so since many health centers are found dismally lacking in family planning information and services.

Women and children in Education 

Extreme poverty, aggravated by the lack of peace and security, has deprived many women especially in Mindanao where Lumad and Moro women lack basic education. Overall, Mindanao performed poorest in simple and functional literacy and participation rates, and had the highest dropout rates.

Women and Children: Stereotypes 

Although women outnumber men in tertiary enrolment and graduation, courses taken up by women and men are evidence of gender segregation or stereotyping. Women are in “soft” courses (accountancy, nursing, midwifery, teaching education, computer secretarial, hotel & restaurant management, etc.) while the men are in “hard courses” (engineering, electronics & communications, criminology, law, architecture & town planning, etc.). In the case of children, girl children are discriminated in education in terms of priorities.

Women in Labor 

Women are at a disadvantaged position compared with men as evidenced by a greater number of males than females in the labor force and more males (64.27 percent) than females (35.73 percent) employed. Conversely, there are more females (50.5 percent) than males (14.8 percent) not in the labor force; and more females (48.1 percent) than males (41 percent) underemployed. More females (43.38 percent) than males (32.17 percent) work as laborers and unskilled workers; and more females (56.43 percent) than males (43.57 percent) work as unpaid family labor. (LFS 2003)

Women and children Migration

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In 2002, there were 135,000 Mindanaoans who joined the international labor market. The majority were women (88,000) and girl children, while 47,000 were males. Due to lack of choices and opportunities within the country, many girl children/minors choose to engage in highrisk occupations abroad, including being trafficked in prostitution. Mindanao is the main source of so-called Japayukis working as Overseas Performing Artists or OPAs in Japanese clubs and entertainment houses.

Children in Hazardous Labor 

5 Million or 17.2 % of 25.8 million children aged 5- 7 years old are actively involved in child labor.

Women in Armed Conflict 

In the ARMM and in bailiwicks of local Moro landlords and politicians, intermittent conflicts arising from family or clan feuds or rido, a source of tension and general lack of peace in the area. These sporadic clashes often lead to killings and the evacuation of civilians who fear being caught in the crossfire. At high risk in this ritual of revenge are the female members or children of the family involved who may be kidnapped or taken hostage as a way to dishonor or get back at the opponent’s family.

Children in Armed Conflict 

More than 175,000 civilians have been displaced in Basilan, Sulu and Midsayap, North Cotabato from January 2007 to August 2008. Women and children were the most affected.

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Sulu was the hardest hit by a combination of ground troops commandos and indiscriminate aerial bombardment, with a total of 58,500 persons displaced due to three military operations conducted by Task Force Comet (combined units from the Philippine Marines, Army, Air force and CAFGUs).

WHY DO WE HAVE TO PROTECT WOMEN AND CHILDREN?     

Largest group of VAW victims is composed of women between 18-25 years Almost 2/3 occurred inside the house More than 1/3 of VAW cases were inflicted by their husbands 7 out of 10 victims/survivors of rape were raped by men known to them 6 out of 10 were victims of pre-marital rape by their present husbands/live-in partners and this forced them into early marriages with abusers

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3 out of 10 were later forced into prostitution/sexual slavery 8 out of 10 rape survivors reported reproductive tract infections 8 out of 10 have sleeping disorders (insomnia, nightmares and oversleeping) 5 out of 10 (50%) were abused when they were 10 years old and below 3 out of 10 are victims/survivors of multiple incest 2 out of 10 reported temporary loss of sanity (nasiraan ng bait)

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Almost all (97%) of the incest survivors reported shame, guilt and loss of self-esteem 7 out of 10 survivors blamed themselves for the abuse 6 out of 10 incest survivors reported that their mothers are also physically and psychologically abused 1 out of 3 were abused by their own biological fathers 5 out of 10 (50%) of the assailants were between the ages of 30-49 when the abuse occurred 1 out of 10 was abused by her stepfather 2 out of 10 incest and rape survivors had unwanted pregnancies

Women and the Law 

The “othering process” – women’s issues are considered other issues, the miscellaneous  Construction and/or definition of legal rules according to the generic male standard  Women being considered as a deviation from the norm  Construction of women and their sexuality from the male point of view  Trivialization in law of women’s concerns, issues and activities

Example Jurisprudence 

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“A rape victim’s failure to escape from or plead with her rapists could only mean that she gave her full consent, and that she prostituted herself.” People vs, Navales, 102 SCRA 86 (1981) “The crime of rape is not presumed. Consent and not physical force is the common origin of the acts between man and woman.” People vs. Agripa, 130 SCRA 185 (1984) “Experience has shown that unfounded charges of rape have frequently been proffered by women actuated by some sinister, or ulterior or undisclosed motive.” People vs. Salarza, 277 SCRA 578 (1997)

International Women’s Rights Instruments Treaties, Conventions, Declarations

Bringing the Instruments Back Home Philippine Responses to International Policy Mandates

PHILIPPINE COMMITMENT       

RA 7877, Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995 RA 8353, Anti-Rape Law of 1998 RA 7192, Women in Nation-Building Act Executive Order No. 273 (Philippine Plan for Gender Responsive Development, 1995-2025) RA 8369, Family Courts Act RA 9208, Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act RA 9262, Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act of 2004

Fill in the Gaps Towards Achieving the Dreams of CEDAW

Still a way ahead… 

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There is still NO definition of discrimination, encompassing both direct and indirect, in national legislation No revisions have been made to the discriminatory provisions in national laws and NO legal framework pertaining to gender equality No institutional authority to effectively support gender mainstreaming in all sectors (i.e. government and education)

Walking the Talk… 

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Intensify awareness raising and public educational campaigns in view of eliminating stereotypes Review marcoeconomic policies and their impact on women and the overrepresentation of women in the informal economy There has to be sexuality education for boys and girls with special attention to prevention of early pregnancies and STI’s Absence of a comprehensive framework to promote and protect reproductive rights