Improve Justice and Human Rights for Women
A Statement marking UN Day for Women and International Peace (8 March) & Women’s Month (March)
7 March 2009 - The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) calls on all government branches to improve their protections and programs for the human rights of women, including the quick passage into law of the Magna Carta on Women and strengthened application of the Law against Violence against Women and their Children.
In a statement marking UN Day for Women and International Peace (8 March), the CHR said, “Women and girls, as human beings, have the equal right as men and boys to enjoy civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights. Because there are certain issues that are more problematic for women than men, there needs to be stronger protections for them.“
The main issues that threaten the human rights of women in the Philippines include domestic violence, sexual assault and harassment, extrajudicial killings, unequal job opportunities, internal displacement due to armed conflict, health care including reproductive health, education and literacy, and proper treatment in the criminal justice system.
“Equality and non-discrimination are not achieved by having gender-neutral laws per se, or by having laws that are ‘equally applicable to men and women, ’ “said CHR Chairperson Leila M. de Lima. “Instead, equality and non-discrimination are fulfilled by having laws that, in their implementation allow both genders to live their lives in dignity and in full enjoyment of their human rights.”
The CHR urges the President to sign into law at the soonest possible time the Magna Carta for Women, which covers a wide range of matters pertaining to women, is vital to improve the protections for the female population, which is about half of the national population. The Senate passed the bill on the Magna Carta just before International Women’s Day.
Whether as victims, witnesses, suspects or even when already convicted, the specific needs of women have to be addressed in terms of proper facilities and gender-sensitive official personnel and procedures.
The CHR also called on the police, the judiciary and all pillars of the criminal justice system to fully apply the Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act (R.A. 9262 of 2004). Some judges and police officers have been reluctant to apply this law, feeling that it is not applicable to Filipino families. There have been several cases of judges urging women to return to husbands who abuse them physically, emotionally or psychologically.
“Personal feelings aside, the anti-VAWC law is already part of Philippine law and therefore all law enforcers and members of the bench –as well as government agencies such as the DOJ, DSWD are required to apply existing law,” said Commissioner Cecilia Quisumbing. “If they feel the law is wrong or faulty, they should campaign in Congress for amendment or repeal of the law or test it in the Supreme Court. For now, anti-VAWC is law.”
In 2006, a petition was filed before the Supreme Court questioning the Constitutionality of the Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act (R.A. 9262) but it has not yet been decided upon by the high court.
The theme for the recent International Women Judges Association conference hosted by the Philippine Women Judges Association just this past week from March 4 to 6 at the Manila Hotel was “Lady Judges Protecting Family and Human Rights.”
7 March 2009 - The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) calls on all government branches to improve their protections and programs for the human rights of women, including the quick passage into law of the Magna Carta on Women and strengthened application of the Law against Violence against Women and their Children.
In a statement marking UN Day for Women and International Peace (8 March), the CHR said, “Women and girls, as human beings, have the equal right as men and boys to enjoy civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights. Because there are certain issues that are more problematic for women than men, there needs to be stronger protections for them.“
The main issues that threaten the human rights of women in the Philippines include domestic violence, sexual assault and harassment, extrajudicial killings, unequal job opportunities, internal displacement due to armed conflict, health care including reproductive health, education and literacy, and proper treatment in the criminal justice system.
“Equality and non-discrimination are not achieved by having gender-neutral laws per se, or by having laws that are ‘equally applicable to men and women, ’ “said CHR Chairperson Leila M. de Lima. “Instead, equality and non-discrimination are fulfilled by having laws that, in their implementation allow both genders to live their lives in dignity and in full enjoyment of their human rights.”
The CHR urges the President to sign into law at the soonest possible time the Magna Carta for Women, which covers a wide range of matters pertaining to women, is vital to improve the protections for the female population, which is about half of the national population. The Senate passed the bill on the Magna Carta just before International Women’s Day.
Whether as victims, witnesses, suspects or even when already convicted, the specific needs of women have to be addressed in terms of proper facilities and gender-sensitive official personnel and procedures.
The CHR also called on the police, the judiciary and all pillars of the criminal justice system to fully apply the Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act (R.A. 9262 of 2004). Some judges and police officers have been reluctant to apply this law, feeling that it is not applicable to Filipino families. There have been several cases of judges urging women to return to husbands who abuse them physically, emotionally or psychologically.
“Personal feelings aside, the anti-VAWC law is already part of Philippine law and therefore all law enforcers and members of the bench –as well as government agencies such as the DOJ, DSWD are required to apply existing law,” said Commissioner Cecilia Quisumbing. “If they feel the law is wrong or faulty, they should campaign in Congress for amendment or repeal of the law or test it in the Supreme Court. For now, anti-VAWC is law.”
In 2006, a petition was filed before the Supreme Court questioning the Constitutionality of the Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act (R.A. 9262) but it has not yet been decided upon by the high court.
The theme for the recent International Women Judges Association conference hosted by the Philippine Women Judges Association just this past week from March 4 to 6 at the Manila Hotel was “Lady Judges Protecting Family and Human Rights.”
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