‘Philippines still has a long way to go to closing gender gap’

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines still has a long way to go to close the gender gap in the country due to cases of unreported domestic abuse against women and child marriages, according to the United Nations Population Fund country representative Leila Joudane.

“We see many Filipinas in top positions not just in government but also in the private sector and most especially in civil society,” Joudane said in a statement on Friday when the country commemorated International Women’s Day.

“Women in the Philippines experience many freedoms, at least when compared to their peers in other countries… But while we enjoy such successes, the Philippines, alongside other countries, still has a long way to go towards achieving the… goal for gender equality,” she added.

She lauded the Philippines for ranking 16th among 146 countries in the 2023 World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index report.

But there remain cases of gender-based violence in the country, Joudane said, citing the 2022 Philippine National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) which showed that 18 percent of Filipino women suffered physical, sexual or emotional abuse from their partners.

Two of five victims of gender-based violence in the Philippines did not seek help, she added.

The NDHS report also showed that 286,000 or 5.6 percent of girls aged 15 to 19 were married or in union, worsening the problem of child marriage in the Philippines that impede the youth from finishing their education.

While the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) lauded the Philippines for passing the Anti-Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children law, the UN panel said there remain “high levels of violence and insecurity” and “intersecting forms of discrimination” against women, which are worsened by natural disasters and the pandemic.

The country representative reiterated the call for more pro-women pieces of legislation following the passage of the law that punishes child marriages in the country.

She cited the proposed “Adolescent Pregnancy” law – approved in the House of Representatives and pending in the Senate – which seeks to address adolescent pregnancies by allowing reproductive health services for those aged 15 to 18 without the need for parental consent.

“But it’s not just about women’s health. It’s about dismantling the power structures that perpetuate gender inequality,” she added.

Meanwhile, the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) has vowed to close the gender gap and promote women empowerment in the cybersecurity sector.

“With the growing number of cyber attacks around the world, women continue to be marginalized. While women hold up half the sky, they account for only a quarter of the world’s cybersecurity jobs,” CICC executive director Alexander Ramos said.

Ramos cited the Women in Cybersecurity 2022 Report released last year, which showed that women hold 25 percent of cybersecurity jobs globally in 2022.

Although this was a significant improvement from 20 percent in 2019 before the pandemic and from 10 percent in 2013, the increase in women’s representation in this sector has been slow.

CICC hopes to address this with the launching of three flagship courses on cybersecurity, specifically in social media analytics, digital forensics and data privacy. All of these courses will be free of charge and will be held at the National Cybercrime Hub every quarter.

CICC also launched the Gawad Hiraya Awards to recognize ASEAN women with outstanding contributions or achievements in cybersecurity.

Court language

The Supreme Court (SC) reminded judges and lawyers to use gender-fair language after a Pasig court judge and prosecutor used “sexist language” during court proceedings.

In a decision penned by Acting Chief Justice Marvic Leonen, the SC’s Second Division took exception to the language used by the judge and prosecutor during a marriage annulment proceeding.

The case stemmed from a petition filed by Aiko Yokogawa-Tan before a Pasig City Regional Trial Court (RTC) in 2016 to annul her marriage with Jonnell Tan on the grounds of psychological incapacity.

The case, however, was dismissed by both the RTC and the Court of Appeals for insufficiency of evidence.

This prompted Yokogawa-Tan to elevate her petition before the high court.

In the decision, the SC reversed and set aside the rulings of both lower courts.

It also declared Yokogawa-Tan’s marriage null and void after finding clear and convincing evidence that her husband was psychologically incapacitated.

In the decision, the SC also took the opportunity to remind both the Pasig judge and prosecutor to be circumspect in their language after observing that non-gender-fair language was used during court proceedings.

According to the high court, the RTC’s decision implied that “Yokogawa-Tan was at fault and should not be afforded relief” after she married her husband despite knowing he had an affair.

“Here comes the petitioner, praying to this Court that her marriage to the respondent be declared null and void on the ground of psychological incapacity of the respondent,” the RTC’s decision read.

Aside from this, the SC said the RTC’s decision further implied that Tan’s infidelity was a contest between the two women as both of them were pregnant at the time.

“The petitioner appears to have won when she got the blessings of the respondent’s parents to marry her,” the RTC’s decision read.

The SC also pointed out the following question asked by the judge and the prosecutor: “So you’re the winner? So it seems you just forced him to marry you, is that it?”

The SC noted that disparaging language shifts the blame on the woman for marrying the unfaithful man after getting pregnant “as if society did not stigmatize single mothers.”

Following the case, judicial officers are reminded to abide by the guidelines on the use of gender-fair language to combat “sexist language” in the judiciary. — Jose Rodel Clapano, Nillicent Bautista