This story
was taken from Bulatlat, the Philippines's alternative weekly
newsmagazine (www.bulatlat.com, www.bulatlat.net, www.bulatlat.org).
Vol. V, No. 5, March 6-12, 2005
The Filipino Women’s
Century-Old Struggle for National Liberation
The struggle of Filipino women
for national liberation turns a century this month. For more than a century,
from the revolutionary contributions of the woman General Gabriela Silang
against colonialism to the very first suffragist organization founded in 1905,
the women’s liberation movement in the Philippines has made considerable
development in terms of advancing the cause of women against feudal and colonial
oppression and exploitation.
For this year, militant women’s groups, led by
Gabriela, the largest multi-sectoral alliance of women’s organizations in the
country, launch a campaign against President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her
anti-national, anti-people and anti-women policies.
Historical significance
International Women’s Day falls on March 8
because of its historical significance in women activism. It was in March 8,
1957 when women workers of garment factories in New York marched to protest
against low wages, 12-hour daily work schedule and the oppressive working
conditions. This was prompted by the death of women and children when a garment
factory caught fire because they were locked inside at night. The demonstration
was violently dispersed.
It was in March 8, 1908 that marked the
extensive protest of women against capitalist exploitation. On this day, 30,000
women workers marched to call for more humane working conditions and legislation
against child labor and the right to suffrage of women.
March 8 was then proclaimed as International
Women’s Day in 1977, when the United Nations General Assembly passed a
resolution mandating the observance of International Women’s Day by its member
nations. But as early as 1910, international labor groups have paid tribute to
women’s heroic struggles by celebrating March 8 as International Women’s Day,
several decades before the UN would do so.
In the Philippines, the first feminist
organization, Asociacion Feminista Filipina, was established in 1905. Although
it focused largely on social issues, such as maternal and child care,
prostitution and gambling, and consisted mainly of women from the upper and
middle classes, its birth signaled the awakening of the Filipino women’s
feminist consciousness and later paved the way for the establishment of militant
and political women’s groups.
The first observance of International Women’s
Day in the country was in 1971 when Makibaka (Makabayang Kilusan ng Bagong
Kababaihan or Patriotic Movement of Modern Women) and Katipunan (Katipunan ng
Bagong Kababaihan or Association of Modern Women) mobilized women in protest of
poverty.
When martial law was declared, mass
demonstrations were prohibited and Makibaka went underground, becoming one of
the first organizations to be a member of the National Democratic Front of the
Philippines (NDFP). It was only in 1984 when militant March 8 commemorations
once again commenced, spearheaded by Gabriela.
Advances in the women’s movement
According to Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Liza
Maza, herself a former Gabriela secretary general, the fact that women are being
organized and the militancy of women is being sustained, are manifestations of
the movement’s development, especially since the patriarchal value system is
deeply rooted in the Filipino culture.
She added, “There is now legislation on defining
violence against women as a crime. So in that sense, the women’s movement, I
think that is not just an achievement on legislation, but largely the
achievement of the women’s movement that have lobbied and advocated for
enshrining the rights of women in the law.”
According to Joms Salvador, national chairperson
of GABRIELA Youth, the movement has reached a lot in terms of popularizing the
cause. More women’s organizations are established. Internationally, the
Philippine experience in organizing women is looked upon. Salvador adds that the
diversity of women organizing in the country is a measure of how stable and
strong the women’s movement is.
Women’s situation
Still, feudal and foreign oppression and
exploitation of women continue. Majority of women, who are rural-based, do not
enjoy the right to own land. In a study conducted by Amihan (National Federation
of Peasant Women), the disparity can run as high as 10 centavos for a woman
agricultural worker for every peso that a man earns.
The same trend applies to female workers who are
victims of contractualization and poor working conditions, usually employed in
the manufacturing and service sectors. Because of retrenchments and lax labor
laws in these sectors, more and more women are forced to emigrate. This, aside
from the added burden to women for their traditional roles as homemakers.
In a study conducted by Gabriela, seven out of
10 Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) are female, 44 percent of whom are employed
in the service sector while 33 percent is in the entertainment sector. The
miserable situation of female OFWs is heightened by racial discrimination and
racism.
However, the exploitation of women OFWs roots
not just from the racial discrimination in foreign countries or the gender-based
oppression, but also from the factors that force them to leave the country:
widespread poverty and the government’s labor export policy.
The emigration of females is encouraged by the
labor export policy of the Arroyo administration that contributes to the massive
global sex trade and modern-day slavery of Filipino women and children,
according to Ninotchka Rosca of the Purple Rose Campaign.
Under the Arroyo administration, Filipinos are
exported as sex commodity to nearly 200 countries and is a major exporter of
women as virtual sex slaves around the world. Almost 600,000 Filipino women are
trafficked worldwide under the euphemisms “Guest Relations Officer,”
“entertainer” and “cultural dancer.”
Alarmingly, incidences of violence against women
and children have risen, particularly rape and sexual abuse. Ten years ago,
statistics show that six women and children are raped daily. Last year the
figure doubled as 12 women and children become victims of sexual abuse daily.
Domestic violence remains widespread with 18 women and children becoming victims
of battering daily. This number would surely rise with the current economic
crisis. Studies reveal that majority of urban-based domestic violence center on
money. In a separate study, more incidences of domestic violence happen during
the months of December and May wherein money is needed for the holiday season
and the incoming school year.
Economic crisis as the most urgent issue
Of all the issues faced by women, the most
pressing would be the economic crisis. According to Maza, the crisis has
specific impact on women because they are looked upon as secondary providers.
Their contribution in production is valued less than that of men’s.
They don’t receive social services like health
and education. And because of their traditional roles, they are burdened with
stretching every peso to make both ends meet.
“As one becomes so economically disempowered,
the more you become victims of violence. Especially now that poverty is so
acute, more violence is present, even in the homes,” she adds.
The passage of the additional 2 percent Value
Added Tax (VAT) would then certainly make it harder for women. Gabriela listed
seven basic commodities whose prices will surely rise: rice, milk, liquefied
petroleum gas (LPG), sugar, coffee, soap and cooking oil. All these are
commodities that concern mothers and housewives.
For these reasons, the theme of this year’s
International Women’s Day call on militancy to oppose the anti-national,
anti-people and anti-women policies of the Arroyo administration.
Struggle for national liberation, too
According to Maza, it is important to account
the long years of women’s struggles and triumphs in order for society to look
into the future and see what else needs to be done. It is a testament to how the
women’s movement developed in the Philippines as against the feminist construct
with the sole perspective of individual rights.
“I think it is high time to look at it as an
overall achievement of women, to look into this undeveloped perspective that the
Filipino women have really contributed a lot in our struggle for freedom and
democracy and the struggle for the women’s empowerment and the recognition of
women’s rights and welfare,” she adds.
The annual observation of International Women’s
Day is an effective venue for the re-education of society in understanding our
history to discern the historical roots of gender oppression in the country and
the role of women in history, Maza also said. The main enemy of women and of the
oppressed and exploited peoples is US imperialism which preserves fascism and
national, religious and racial chauvinism in the country through the family,
religion, state and the media. All these aim to perpetuate the degradation of
women and further divide the working class and the people at large, she added.
Bulatlat © 2004 Bulatlat
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