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Both men and women are experiencing gender biases; however, most
of it are being experienced by the women. Man is perceived to be inherently
aggressive and violent, they do not feel pain or incapable of experiencing
deep human emotions. They are also inherently compulsive in their
sexuality and do not need closeness, reassurance, and attention. Men are
expected to be tough and not to show any signs of weaknesses. While the
women are exposed to economic marginalization, gender stereotyping,
multiple burden, subordination and violence.
Gender bias is an unequal treatment in employment opportunity
(such as promotion, pay, benefits and privileges), and expectations due to
attitudes based on the sex of an employee or group of employees. Gender
bias can be a legitimate basis for a lawsuit under anti-discrimination
statutes.1 It hampers development because it prevents people from
attaining their full potentials. It aggravates social inequity and inequality.
These gender issues are deterrents to development. Thus, it is important to
address them in development planning.
basis of sex. The focus on women's reproductive roles, as women were seen
as wives and mothers and their main issues were supposed to be obtaining
access to food, contraceptives, nutrition and health care.
In 1970's to mid-1980's, marked a new phase in which the debate
moved beyond women's equality and the domestic sphere of women's role
as wives and mothers onto the global stage where the role of women was
promoted as an aid for economic development. There are also important
events that signifies the beginning of the gradually increase of recognition
of women through other parts of the world.
In 1974, the first World Conference for Women was held in Mexico.
UN also declared a decade of women in 1976-1985. They have also came
up with Promotion of the Women In Development (WID) approach which
emphasized on women's right to development, recognition of women's
economic role in national economies and, most significantly, gave a voice to
women in developing countries. Though the WID approach has its
shortcoming, it fell short in improving unequal relationships and there are
also significant number of projects that were unsustainable as development
projects failed to consider the multiple roles carried out by women, leading to
a development model that in the end disadvantaged women.
In the late 80, the Gender and Development (GAD) approach was
developed with the idea of improving the development model by removing
and
equity
in
the
distribution
of
resources
and
opportunities, freedom from violence, respect for human rights and support
for
self-determination and
actualization
of
human
potential;
Thus,
Philippine Plan for Gender-Responsive Development (PPGD) which is a 30year plan that aims to mainstream gender concerns into the governments
mechanisms, systems, procedures and programs. Likewise, Republic Act
7192 An Act Promoting The Integration Of Women As Full And Equal
Partners Of Men In Development And Nation Building And For Other
Purposes was also passed directing all government department and
agencies to review and revise all regulations, circulars and procedures to
ensure removal of gender biases.
Furthermore, Republic act 9710 or the Magna Carta of Women was
also enacted to a law. The Magna Carta of Women is a comprehensive
womens human rights law that seeks to eliminate discrimination against
women by recognizing, protecting, fulfilling and promoting the rights of
Filipino women, especially those in the marginalized sectors. It aims to fully
comply with international commitments under the Beijing Platform for
Action on Women and the UN Convention on the Elimination of all forms of
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). This also served as an effective
tool
to
fully
implement
and
mainstream
gender
concerns
in
the
To
To
To
The Convention is the only human rights treaty which affirms the
reproductive rights of women and targets culture and tradition as
influential forces shaping gender roles and family relations. It affirms
women's rights to acquire, change or retain their nationality and the
nationality of their children. States parties also agree to take appropriate
measures against all forms of traffic in women and exploitation of women.
On the other hand, Beijing Platform for Action (PFA) of the 4 th World
Conference on Women also mandated government actors to promote an
active and visible policy in mainstreaming gender perspective in all policies
and programs. Some of its goals of development are to promote the human
rights of women and girls, eradicate poverty among women, remove
obstacles to womens participation in public life and decision-making,
eliminate all forms of discrimination against women and ensure equal
access for girl children and women to education and health. We are also
working towards the attainment of Millennium Development Goals which
mandates state signatories to Promote Gender Equality and Empower
women by 2015.
The
Beijing
Platform
for
Action
is
an
agenda
for
women's
prerequisite
for
equality,
development
and
peace.
transformed
The Platform for Action also emphasizes that women share common
concerns that can be addressed only by working together and in
partnership with men towards the common goal of gender* equality around
the world. It respects and values the full diversity of women's situations
and conditions and recognizes that some women face particular barriers to
their empowerment.
concerted action by all to create a peaceful, just and humane world based
on human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the principle of
equality for all people of all ages and from all walks of life, and to this end,
recognizes that broad- based and sustained economic growth in the context
of sustainable development is necessary to sustain social development and
social justice.
to
the
developing
countries
from
all
available
funding
sub
regional,
regional
and
international
institutions;
international
establishment
or
bodies
and
policy-
strengthening
of
making
mechanisms
processes;
at
all
and
the
levels
for
There are a lot of gender problems, concerns, and issues that arise
from the inequality status of a man and a woman including the difference
in roles, characteristics and expectations attributed by society to the both.
These societal expectations and perceptions, which are reflected in and
perpetuated by laws, policies, procedures, systems, programs, projects and
activities of government, could hamper women's full development and their
participation in and equal enjoyment of the fruits of development. This also
creates gender gaps between men and women in terms of how they benefit
from education, employment, services, and so on.
It is important for this study to know the policies and laws that pave
way in the gender gaps. Also, for the people especially the women, to be
enlighten about the laws and policies that establishes their rights to gain
greater control over the circumstances of their lives.
society particularly between the man and the woman. This will also discuss
about the roles of men and women in the society and their differences. This
includes the gender discrimination or the gender biases.
practices,
values,
roles,
attitudes
and
structural
arrangements. Our culture influences us what are the roles man and
woman should play in our society.
The work given to a man differs to work load given to a woman in
consideration of their physical capabilities. Most often, our gender roles is
dictated by our sex. Sex is determined by biological characteristics of men
and women which is a natural trait and cannot be changed. While gender,
is a social characteristics imparted to us by social institutions. Gender is
dictated to us culturally and socially that determines our roles and
behaviour in the society. The assignment of roles created a divide between
men and women which limits certain roles, traits and characteristics given
to women or to men.
Lets take for example the roles and responsibilities given to men and
women inside the house. The men are perceived as strong, firm and more
capable of doing work outside the house thus they are observed to be the
provider and the decision-maker. While the women, are conceived as soft
and submissive they are believed to be the caregiver or the one in charge of
the household chores and one who should look after their children. These
perceptions should be changed since the role of the husband and wife in
the management of the household should be fair and equal. This is even
reflected in the Family code of the Philippines:
The spouses are jointly responsible for the support of the family.
(Title III, Art. 70.)
The management of the household shall be the right and the duty of
both spouses. (Title III, Art. 71.)
These discriminations or biases are also prevailing in the work place.
Many people would consider that occupations such as engineers, miners
and architects are only appropriate for men. Even though there are
engineers, miners and architects who are women while men can also be a
full-time caregivers for infants or kindergarten teachers, although these are
generally considered more appropriate for women.
The gender roles considered appropriate for women and men differ
among societies. For example, in some societies, all trading is considered to
be a mans role, but in Cambodia and in many North African countries
trading, especially small scale, is considered to be a womans role. Gender
roles can also change over time in response to economic and social change.
In almost all societies, womens primary gender roles are those of mother
and wife/housewife. These are the roles by which womanhood is defined
and individual women are typically judged (and often evaluate themselves)
by how successfully they perform these roles. Thus, they incur a double
burden of domestic and market work. Mens primary gender role: is that of
the main economic provider or breadwinner in the household.
Men are
usually judged (and judge themselves) by their success in this role, which is
why in the current Asian crisis unemployment is such a devastating
experience for many men.
Gender equality is essential for the achievement of human rights for
all. Yet discriminatory laws against women persist in every corner of the
globe and new discriminatory laws are enacted. In all legal traditions many
laws continue to institutionalize second class status for women and girls
with regard to nationality and citizenship, health, education, marital rights,
employment rights, parental rights, inheritance and property rights. These
forms of discrimination against women are incompatible with womens
empowerment.
Women form the majority of the worlds poorest people and the
number of women living in rural poverty has increased by 50% since 1975.
Women work two-thirds of the worlds working hours and produce half of
the worlds food, yet they earn only 10% of the worlds income and own less
ratified the Convention shall accord to women equality with men and article
2 commits States who have ratified the Convention to take all appropriate
measures, including legislation, to modify or abolish existing laws,
regulations, customs and practices which constitute discrimination against
women.
Thirty years since the Conventions entry into force, the recognition
and enjoyment of equal rights with men still remains elusive for large
sections of women around the world. CEDAW has been ratified by 186
States yet has the record number of reservations to core articles such as
articles 2 and 6 which impact upon young girls and womens personal and
family life.
Despite CEDAW requiring State who have ratified the Convention to
eliminate discrimination against women by all appropriate means and
without delay, too many States still pervasively retain their discriminatory
laws
which
indicates
that
the
pace
of
reform
is
too
slow
for
of Women. The thematic study will be addressed at the 15th session and a
half day discussion will be held to consider taking further action at that
session.
Gender Discrimination can be seen at all ages and stages of
development for women not just in the Philippines but in different parts of
the world
Fetus & Infancy
UNICEF notes that Where there is a clear economic or cultural
preference for sons, the misuse of [pregnancy diagnostic tools] can facilitate
female feticide. This means that in parts of the world, like China, parents
will abort their child or put the child up for adoption on the basis that its a
girl.
Childhood
A principal focus of the middle years of childhood and adolescence is
ensuring access to, and completion of, quality primary and secondary
education. With a few exceptions, it is mostly girls who suffer from
educational disadvantage.
Adolescence
Among the greatest threats to adolescent development are abuse,
exploitation and violence, and the lack of vital knowledge about sexual and
vulnerable.
Wage Discrimination
According to Inter Press Service, "On a global scale, women cultivate
more than half of all the food that is grown. In sub-Saharan Africa and the
Caribbean, they produce up to 80 percent of basic foodstuffs. In Asia, they
account for around 50 percent of food production. In Latin America, they
are mainly engaged in subsistence farming, horticulture, poultry and
raising small livestock." Yet women often get little recognition for that. In
fact, many go unpaid. It is very difficult for these women to get the financial
resources required to buy equipment etc, as many societies still do not
accept, or realize, that there is a change in the "traditional" roles.
Reasons for such disparity include the fact that women are generally
underpaid and because they often perform low-status jobs, compared to
men. UNICEF notes that the data isnt always perfect, and that
generalizations can hide wider fluctuations. In Brazil, for example, women
under the age of 25 earn a higher average hourly wage than their male
counterparts. However, in developing nations and in most industrialized
nations, men are usually paid more than their female counterparts in the
same field. Millions of women throughout the world live in conditions in
which they are deprived of their basic human rights for no other reason
than their gender.
bride has often been associated with derision, stigma and illegality such
that the bride herself would not dare claim such status, if only to avoid the
unwarranted connotations and stereotypes that come with the label,
regardless of the reasons why she entered into such a context.
In a country where it is a reality that mail-order brides continue to
proliferate, the question arises as to how the Philippines have protected the
women who become part of the mail order bride industry. Where the mail
order bride industry is illegal in the Philippines and legal in receiving
countries like the United States of America, Japan and South Korea, to
name a few, the appropriateness of the response of the Philippines to the
issue of Filipino mail-order brides comes into picture.
The whole concept of mail order brides has its risks undoubtedly
given the unique circumstances surrounding it, compared with any other
kind of man-woman relationship. Here the woman is not in need of love
but in need of money, large amount of money that they are ready to risk
their selves into this kind of situation.
A story often told of Filipino mail order brides concerns their
exploitation at the hands of criminal syndicates and often relates to acts of
trafficking. Analyn, 20 years old at the time she was recruited to work in
South Korea, was one of those mail-order brides. Just like in the United
States of America and Japan, the mail order bride industry in South Korea
is legal. She was recruited to work in South Korea, and to be able to enter
the country, she was forced to marry a Korean twice her age. She was only
able to report her case with the Commission of Filipinos Overseas (CFO)
when she tried to secure from the latter a clearance certificate, a legal
requirement for all those seeking work abroad. The CFO is now helping
Analyn in her case against the traffickers. However, in view of the difficulty
of proving the exploitation element regarding her trafficking, the judge
wanted to try the case under RA 6955 or the 1990 Anti-Mail Order Bride
Law, rather than under the RA 9208, otherwise known as the 2003 AntiTrafficking in Persons Act.
Analyns case can be clearly seen as one of trafficking and the mode
of facilitating the crime is through a marriage ceremony. The difficulty
however of prosecuting such a crime constrains the courts to rely on the
tamer prohibitive law against mail order marriages. A clear understanding
of the pertinent laws affecting Analyns case is in order to appreciate the
implications of said laws on the lives of diasporic Filipina women who
enters into transnational or interracial marriages.
The former prevailing law in the Philippines affecting the mail order
bride industry frames the protective mechanisms for Filipino women on the
principle of protecting womens dignity while pursuing economic upliftment
towards achieving decent standard of living. Such law perceived that the
Towards
protecting the woman, Republic Act 6955 makes the following practices
unlawful:
subparagraph 1 hereof.
For the manager or officer in charge or advertising manager of any
newspaper, magazine, television or radio station, or other media, or of an
advertising agency, printing company or other similar entities to knowingly
allow, or consent to the acts prohibited in the preceding paragraph
The law was enacted as a reaction to the growing number of Filipino
women leaving the country as mail order brides. As then Representative
Lorna Verano Yap, main sponsor of the bill at the Lower House, argued that
Operated by unscrupulous and heartless individuals, the practice has not
only cast shame on our women in the international community, but have
also exposed thousands of impoverished Filipinas into further misery in the
hands of their foreign spousesThey are treated like cattle. When you
really come down to it, its like prostitution.
The Senate counterpart, on the other hand, supported the bill, and
elaborated that: By making Filipina brides a marketable commodity and
flaunting them as such like cattle in tawdry and revolting advertisements
this business has gravely insulted all that we, as a nation, hold sacred.
Republic Act 6995 does not prohibit the inter-marriage between
foreign nationals and Filipino women. The ban does not criminalize the act
of a woman who enters into such an arrangement through the mail order
bride business, but targets those who profit out of the act of match-
Institutionally, the
In case of
husband and by the man who has carnal knowledge of her knowing her to
be married, even if the marriage be subsequently declared void. Adultery
shall be punished by prision correccional in its medium and maximum
periods.
Art. 334. Concubinage. Any husband who shall keep a mistress in
the conjugal dwelling, or shall have sexual intercourse, under scandalous
circumstances, with a woman who is not his wife, or shall cohabit with her
in any other place, shall be punished by prision correccional in its
minimum and medium periods. The concubine shall suffer the penalty of
destierro.
Art. 202. Vagrants & Prostitutes
For purposes of this article, women, who for money or profit, habitually
indulge in sexual intercourse or lascivious conduct, are deemed to be
prostitutes. (Amended by RA 101518 Vagrancy is no longer a crime BUT
Definition of prostitutes remain the same)
Total Extinction of Criminal Liability
Art. 89. How criminal liability is totally extinguished. Criminal
liability is totally extinguished:
Par. 7. By the marriage of the offended woman, as provided in Article
334 of this Code.
(Art. 334, last par.:
Lasciviousness (SARA), the marriage of the offender with the offended party
shall extinguish the criminal action or remit the penalty already imposed.)
The provisions in the family code sets the standards that the husband are
still in the higher position in the decision-making at home when in fact that
should be a joint administration hence the opinions and the decision of the
spouses should be equal. This is also not beneficial for the wife because in
order for them to assail the decision of their partner they have to undergo a
tedious process in acquiring judicial recourse. In effect of this provision,
the wife tends to be quiet and no longer push through with her interest just
so they dont have to go through all these things.
On the other hand, Revised Penal Code undermines the welfare of the
women because the penalty imposes in other provisions are unequal and
impractical. In adultery, a single sexual intercourse may already constitute
the crime while concubinage has to be proven under a scandalous
circumstance or keeping the mistress in their conjugal dwelling place or
cohabiting with her in any other place before it will be constituted as a
crime.
defend them for their rights. Unfortunately, not only working women are
prone to abuse there are also housewives and children who are being
exposed to these dangers.
Republic Act 9262 Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children
Act was enacted to protect every women and children from any violence and
abuses. This penalizes as a crime commission of acts of violence against
women and their children perpetrated against them by their partners,
whether married or not. These abuses are categorized in four (4) forms.
They are Physical, Sexual, Psychological, and Economic.
The specific acts which constitute violence against women are:
a) Causing physical harm to the woman or her child;
b) Threatening to cause the woman or her child physical harm;
c) Attempting to cause the woman or her child physical harm;
d) Placing the woman or her child in fear of imminent physical harm;
e) Attempting to compel or compelling the woman or her child to engage in
conduct which the woman or her child has the right to desist from or desist
from conduct which the woman or her child has the right to engage in, or
attempting to restrict or restricting the woman's or her child's freedom of
movement or conduct by force or threat of force, physical or other harm or
threat of physical or other harm, or intimidation directed against the
woman or child.
another
that
alarms
or
causes
substantial
emotional
or
psychological distress to the woman or her child. This shall include, but not
be limited to, the following acts:
Chapter IV.
Conclusion
Despite the laws enacted and campaigns launched pertaining to the
gender equality and women empowerment, still there is a huge disparity
between the treatment of society to men and women. Women are still
perceived to be inferior to men that they are being taken for granted and
their rights and welfare not being given much attention.
For the past two years, the World Economic Forum has named the
Philippines the most gender equal nation in Asia as well as one of only two
developing economies to make its top ten equality list. Its findings are in
part based on statistics that show Filipino women hold the majority of jobs
in the legislative, top official and managerial occupational category. Though
there are many activist and experts that says that statistics dont tell the
full story.
The Philippines government's recent statistics paint a bleaker picture.
They say one in ten Filipino women have had a forced sexual encounter and
37 percent of women who were once married have experienced domestic
violence. Furthermore, a 2013 US State Department report criticized the
Philippines for not doing enough to stop the human trafficking of women.
And some local NGOs say that poor women in rural parts of the country
have no choice but to take informal jobs without any legal protection.
These women especially in the rural areas dont have maternity leave
and doesnt have the ability to do collective bargaining. And its not because
we already had 2 female presidents and a couple of female politicians it
already equates to gender equality because if you will look at the bigger
picture you will see that these women came from the privilege class. Hence,
they cannot relate to the needs of poor women from countryside
communities known as barangays.
We have the sharpest contradictions in gender equality today. Despite
the fact we are gaining significant number of women in the political arena,
academe and business, there are still a lot of women are undermined. In
general, the society still places many gender problems as trivial and
marginal. The legal framework for women seems impressive but the
challenges of implementation and cultural shift remains. The interplay of
culture and institutions like the government bureaucracy, political offices,
and the church makes the discourse on gender issues very animated and
usually polarized.
In the last population count by the National Statistical Coordination
Board (NSCB), the population of men to women is 46.5 million to 45.6
million. It doesnt differ much but if we will look at other statistics
conducted by NSCB it shows that in the Labour force Participation rate it is
78.3% for men while it is only 49.7% in women. This means that half of the
women populations are not given opportunity to work and participate in the
labor force.
The proportion of unpaid worker is 43.1% for men and 56.9% in
women. This reflects that women are discriminated because more than half
of working women are not getting the proper salary or worst they are not
being paid at all. Though there are also a large percentage of men who are
unpaid still women top the list.
When it comes to nation-building and public affairs there is still a big
difference between man and woman occupying the elective positions. 81.3%
of public officials are men while only 18.4% are women. This great disparity
is the result of gender stereo typing that men are leaders and women are
only their subordinates.
These
gender
issues
(marginalization,
subordination,
gender
stereotyping, multiple burden & VAW if left unattended will keep most
women out of the development process; and will result in a development
that does not respond to the needs and concerns of half of a nations
population. Hence, we should all work together to deter these gender
discriminations.
The process of correcting gender disparity in a society leads us to
improving the condition and status of women in all spheres (household as
well as community level) which is also termed as womens empowerment.
Recently, variables such as education and employment were commonly
used to capture empowerment and other related concepts such as womens
autonomy and status. Their use is justified by the fact that they have strong
positive correlation with the direct empowerment indicators. A womans
level of education, her employment status, particularly employment for
cash, and media exposure are expected to be positively related to
empowerment. Women who are educated, employed, and exposed to the
media are likely to be better equipped with the information and the means
needed to function effectively in the modern world. Together these factors
are expected to influence womens inherent abilities as well as their
attitudes on gender roles.
The search for more direct measures has focused on capturing
evidence of empowerment. One widely accepted measure of evidence (or
lack thereof) is womens participation in household decision-making. This
variable is increasingly used as an objective indicator of womens household
Recommendation
In order for us to address the gender roles issues and biases there are
steps that we have to follow: Gender Analysis, Gender Mainstreaming and
Women Empowerment.
Gender analysis refers to a variety of methods and techniques used
to understand the differences between men and women in terms of roles,
behaviors, activities, needs, opportunities, access to and control over
resources, and constraints in relation to one another. Gender analysis also
refers to the gender-based disaggregation and appraisal of available data to
pinpoint the difference between men and women on account of gender. As
stated in the introductory section of this paper, the roles, activities,
opportunities and access to and control over resources of men and women
vary across different socio-economic and cultural settings. Within the same
setting itself their roles and learned behavior could be different.
Men and women have different knowledge, experience, needs, and
access to resources. Different gender roles result in one sex having an
unequal role in decision making while the other has little or no and being
denied the benefits from development. Gender analysis, thus, explores
these differences and provides information about gender relations in
different settings.
Gender analysis is indispensable in order to promote gender equality
and achieve sustainable development. Careful analysis of the differences
between men and women enable researchers and policy makers to explicitly
show the disparities between the two sexes due to gender roles, in which
women are mostly affected, and challenge the disparity for equality to be
guaranteed. By doing so, gender analysis adds insight into how the issue of
gender equality is incorporated into development policies and programs to
pursue efficient development goals in which women generally participate in
and benefit from development programs.
women and women with children are likely to have greater status, rights
and responsibilities than younger women or women with no children. In
addition, the characteristics of the place of residence as well as the socioeconomic status of the household define the actual opportunities available
to women. Local studies on womens empowerment are rare. Particularly
studies based on direct indicators of empowerment such as decision
making power on household matters, autonomy in seeking health care,
attitude towards resisting wife beating and attitude towards right to refuse
sex with husband for any reason are scarce. As a result, there is lack of
comprehensive knowledge regarding different dimensions of womens
empowerment and the factors associated with them. It is believed that
implementation of pertinent policies and programs targeting gender
equality and womens empowerment can benefit immensely from current
studies in this area.
To increase the economic empowerment of women, the following steps
are highly recommended:
belief,
perceptions,
practices,
values,
roles,
attitudes
and
by
Queen B. Ang
College of Law
Polytechnic University of the Philippines
Sta. Mesa, Manila
October 2015