Magna Carta of Women Bill

Legislative Advocacy of the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women:
(taken from www.ncrfw.gov.ph)

National Situation

* The Magna Carta of Women aims to respond to the situation and needs of half of the Philippine population. A quick glance at the situation of Filipino women reveals the following information:

* Population Size. There were 76.5 million Filipinos in May 2000, and estimated to reach 88 million in 2007. 37.9 million or 49.6% of the 2000 total population are females, with 21.6 million women (57% of total females) in their productive and child-bearing age. (NSO 2007)

* Health and Nutrition. The 2003 NDHS revealed that there has only been a 2% increase in the number of women who sought prenatal care from doctors/nurses/midwives, from 85.7% in 1998 to 87.6% in 2003, resulting in high number of at-risk pregnancies and births. Thus, maternal mortality rate remains high at 162 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births. (DOH 2005) The National Statistics Office revealed in March 2007 that unless health program implementers redouble their efforts, the MDG target of reducing maternal rate to only 53 deaths per 100,000 live births (or a 75% decrease) by 2015 cannot be achieved.

*Infant mortality or the number of infants who die before reaching the age of one registered at 24 per 1,000 live births in 2006, while the number of young children who die before reaching the age of 5 registered at 32 per 1,000 live births, still at a considerable distance from the Millenium Development Goal of 21 deaths per 1,000 live births. (NSO 2006)

* The Filipino woman's desired number of children is 2.5. However, the actual fertility rate is 3.5 children or a difference of one child. This difference is due mainly to the lack of information on and access to family planning services. (NSO, NDHS 2003)

* Only 49.3% of women use any method of contraception, with the use of the pill as the leading contraceptive method, followed by female sterilization, and the calendar rhythm. Condoms, even though widely distributed, accounted for only 1.9% of the total usage. (NSO-FPS 2005)

* The current unmet need for contraceptives is 23.15% for poor women and 13.6% for women who are not poor. The use of modern family planning methods increases with the increase in the level of education of women. (NDHS 2003)

* Education and Training. 55% of the total enrollees 2003-2004 were females. (DepEd,2004)

* The literacy rate of females 10 years old and older is 86.3% compared to 81.9% for males in the same age. (Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey, 2003)

* More women have been able to finish elementary and secondary schooling in accordance with the required number of years for each level. The elementary completion rate of females was 66.9% while the comparative figure for males was only 57.8%. The secondary education completion rate of females was 63.7% compared to 48.8% for males. (FLEMMS 2003)

* There are considerably more women licensed professionals. From 2000-2003, women accounted for 65% of the total passers in professional board examinations.

* Labor and Employment. Despite women's higher educational attainment, their labor force participation rate is low at 48.8% compared to 79,.1% of males. (NSO 2007)

* Gender tracking in employment continues; women still dominate occupation groups that may be considered as extension of their reproductive roles in the home such as home management and professional services, while men are still largely located in mechanized and heavy industries.

* In October 2004, men account for 60.9% of the officials in government, corporate executives, managers, and managing proprietors and supervisors, compared to 39.1 % for females in the same occupation group. Meanwhile, females dominate the clerks occupation group with 63.1% compared to 36.9% for males. (NSO 2006)

* 56% unpaid family worker are women, while 64% of wage and salary workers and 67% of own account workers are men.

* Overseas Employment. The number of overseas Filipino workers is generally increasing for both sexes.

* There is almost an equal level of participation between women and men. But the context of their participation is very much different. In 2004, women accounted for 51% of the total number of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) yet their average monthly cash remittance represents only 57% of the Php 74,267 million average cash remittance of Filipino men. This is because Filipino women are likely to end up in jobs that are low-paying and often unprotected.

* Politics and Governance. Women make up the majority of the government bureaucracy, accounting for 57.6%, but they are mostly in the technical or second level positions and seem unable to break through the glass ceiling. Meanwhile, men are likely to be clerks or managers/executives. Only about 30% of those in third level positions are women. (CSC 2004)

* In 2004, the average proportion of women in key elected posts was no more than 17%.

* There is still a need to broaden the base of women's participation in local governance and political decision-making. Specifically at the sanggunians, women comprise only 15% of councilors compared to men who comprise 85%. (COMELEC: 1992-2001)

* Violence Against Women (VAW). Reported cases to the police increased six-fold, 1,100 in 1996 to 6, 505 in 2005. The highest recorded number of cases peaked in 2001 at 10,345. Atotal of 5,758 VAW cases have been reported to the police in 2006. (PNP 2006)

* The police report shows that physical injury is the most common type of reported VAW case, accounting for 38.86% of the cases, while cases of violence against women in domestic and intimate relationships rank second, accounting for 26.07% of VAW cases. Rape accounts for 16.65% of VAW cases.

Legislative "Herstory"

* The first version of the Magna Carta of Women was filed during the 13th Congress, principally by Rep. Josefina Joson and initially titled 'Magna Carta for Women'. A TWG composed of a number of government agencies and NGOs was formed to enhance the bill.

* In a bid to make the Magna Carta of Women a priority bill of the administration, the NCRFW consulted with Fr. Romeo Intengan regarding the acceptability of the provisions relating to women's health. Revisions were made according to the suggestions of Fr. Intengan which were incorporated in the revisions introduced by the House Committee on Women.

* The substitute bill, HB 5285 reached 2'6 Reading in the House of Representatives, pending debate or interpellation.

* The Study and Action Core Group (SACG) composed of PILIPINA as convenor and other women's NGOs and POs, NCRFW and a number of government representatives from the NCRFW, the Supreme Court, and staffs of legislators, were established initially to study how the CEDAW can be translated into a national legislation. It was on the first meeting of the SACG that the decision to incorporate in the Magna Carta of Women the essential provisions of CEDAW that eliminate discrimination against women and promote women's rights.

* Senator Jamby Madrigal, chair of the Committee on Women called a TWG meeting in the last months of the 13th Congress to discuss the Magna Carta.

* Senator Sergio Osmena filed the Magna Carta for Women Bill near the close of the 13th Congress.

* As of this writing, two Magna Carta of Women bills have been filed in the House of Representatives for the 14th Congress, namely HB 164 authored by Reps. Juan Edgardo Angara and Mary Ann Susano, and HB 797 authored by Rep. Ma. Isabelle Climaco.

Salient Features

The Philippines is duty-bound to implement the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), specifically the UN CEDAW Committee's Concluding Comments, which among others, urges the government to (1) enact a comprehensive legal framework for the promotion of gender equality and women's empowerment, specifically to ensure the Convention's applicability and/or translation into the national legal system, and (2) strengthen the national machinery for the advancement of women and provide it with the authority, decision-making power and human and financial resources necessary to work effectively to promote gender equality. To holistically and effectively address the concerns of women, the NCRFW advocates for a Magna Carta of Women that has the following essential features:

* It recognizes the role of women in nation building and ensures the substantive equality of women and men. It condemns discrimination against women in all its forms and pursues all appropriate means to eliminate discrimination against women, in accordance with the provisions of CEDAW.

* It ensures the fulfillment of the human rights of women provided for in other international treaties and national laws such as (a) protection from violence, (b) participation and representation in all spheres of society, especially policy- and decision-making in private and government entities, (c) equal treatment before the law, (d) equal access to and elimination of discrimination in education, scholarships and training, (e) access to information and services related to women's health, and (f) equal rights in all matters relating to marriage and family relations.

* It recognizes that women from the following groups are marginalized and therefore entitled to special measures to guarantee their social and cultural well�being and accelerate the efforts to attain gender equality: (a) small farmers and rural workers; (b) fishers; (c) urban poor; (d) workers in the formal economy; (e) workers in the informal economy; (f) migrant workers; (g) indigenous peoples; (h) Moro; (i) girl-children; (j) senior citizens; (k) persons with disabilities; (l) lesbians, bisexuals and transgenders; and (m) solo parents.

* It recognizes women's, especially marginalized women's rights to (a) food and resources to food production, (b) housing, (c) livelihood, credit, capital and technology, (d) education and training, (e) participation and representation, (f) information, (g) social protection, (h) recognition and preservation of cultural identity/integrity, (i) peace and development, (j) protection of girl-children, and (k) protection of senior citizens.

* It mandates agencies and other relevant institutions and organizations to adopt gender and development mainstreaming as a strategy to eliminate discrimination in their structures,' systems, policies, programs, processes and procedures and to ensure the effective implementation of this Act.

* It provides for the creation of a gender and development otiibud, which shall among others, investigate or hear administrative complaints involving the possible violations of this proposed Act.

* It provides incentives and awards to deserving entities which exemplify outstanding performance in promoting, fulfilling and upholding the rights of women.

Written by: Grace Bernabe