Filipinas

On March 8 the world celebrates International Women’s Day. While there is no single theme that will mark this year’s celebration, it would be noteworthy to remember that the first IWD was held 1911, March 19 to be exact, in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland.

Of course, awareness of women’s rights in that part of the world had started way before the first IWD. As the West entered an era of industrial growth in the early 1900s, women seriously started calling for equality in terms of wages, work hours and voting rights.

In the Philippines, the issue of women’s rights has not had such a colorful history due in part to an education system introduced in 1863 that established at least two free primary schools – one for boys and another for girls – in each Philippine town under Spanish rule.

When the Americans took over from the Spaniards in 1898, they guaranteed equal education opportunities for all Filipino children regardless of sex. Even at a time when European and American women were sweeping the streets in protest, young Filipina children were preparing for leading roles in politics, business, and family.

On equal footing

On the whole, our women are doing well in terms of gender equality. The Philippines’ scorecard to meeting the Millennium Development Goal No. 3 on Gender Equality and Women Empowerment shows that we are on our way to accomplishing our commitment by 2015, particularly in providing our girls with equal education opportunities and our womenfolk with work.

This is not to say that all is well. As in any development, there will always be those sectors or regions that lag behind. For example, on the issue of reproductive health, there is a big gap that divides wives and husbands on family planning.

Surveys have indicated that Filipino men generally do not favor using condoms or having a vasectomy to limit the number of children; on the other hand, Filipino wives have expressed a strong desire to space or limit the size of their family.

Maternal deaths

This in fact does not only limit a woman’s opportunity to be productive but is a major reason for the high maternal death ratios that the Philippines currently experiences. And if there is one issue that would galvanize our women, it is this.

According to latest data, the Philippines is in very grave danger of not meeting MDG 5, that which commits to a reduction by three quarters the maternal mortality ratio by 2015, as well as to achieving universal access to reproductive health.

Maternal mortality, defined as the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management, is cause of an estimated 12 deaths in the country every day.

Our mothers are dying, and it is not just because there are still too few maternal health clinics or personnel that will provide support services to pregnant women and those that have given birth, but also because the number of risky adolescent pregnancies is rising.

Lifestyle issues

One other immediate cause of maternal mortality that is increasingly being monitored is hypertension, also referred to as high blood pressure. This is alarming since this ailment has been increasingly observed among women who are child-bearing, therefore of a relatively young age.

It should be noteworthy to mention that hypertension is not just a leading indicator in maternal mortality but also among Filipinos regardless of gender or age.

And the number one reason for hypertension especially among the young and not so young is often traced to unhealthy lifestyles: diets rich in fats and salt, stress and excessive fatigue from work, too much alcohol intake, smoking, and the lack of exercise.

Poverty’s ugly head

The prevalence of poverty also plays a major role in the high maternal mortality rates. Without the means to go to health centers or clinics, often located miles away from most rural homes, hypertensive pregnant mothers are not able to get proper advice on dealing with the problem.

When these mothers give birth, usually at home under the supervision of a local but not competent kumadrona, complications arising from hypertension often prove lethal. Because of poverty, they rarely are brought to the nearest hospital.

Poverty, coupled with insufficient education on reproductive health and responsible parenthood, is likewise a reason for the still high rates, albeit one that has held steady over the last couple of years, of teenage 15-19 years old pregnancies.

Need for contraceptives

This brings me to the topic of contraception, one that has never been fully discussed without incurring threats and protests from the Roman Catholic Church and those against the current deliberations of the pending Reproductive Health bill.

Contraceptive use, including the artificial method of using condoms, among Filipinos continues to be the lowest in Asia. This could be correlated to our high population growth rate, another issue that economists and the Church do not agree on.

Dignity of life

Going back to the observance of International Women’s Day, I support the Filipino women’s struggle to raise the dignity of their lives. They should have a say in how many children they want, and the right to choose how they would do this while respecting the right to life.

Filipinas have come a long way, from the days of kapitanas and the matriarchs of haciendas. But there is still a long way to go: some are old battles, some are new. We certainly would want to see more Filipinas fighting for the right to a decent and productive life.

Should you wish to share any insights, write me at Link Edge, 25th Floor, 139 Corporate Center, Valero Street, Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City. Or e-mail me at [email protected]. For a compilation of previous articles, visit www.BizlinksPhilippines.net.