JDV bats for united alliance; Legarda on Filipino women
There can be no hedging, no turning away, but facing up to the challenges of our turbulent times and finding solutions, was the simple message put across by Jose de Venecia to world leaders in his address before the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) 6th Global Forum held in Bali, Indonesia. The issues that must be tackled to ensure peaceful and harmonious relationships among nations are poverty, the fight against corruption, violence and extremism, and climate change and environmental degradation.
De Venecia was speaking as founding chair and chair of the standing committee of the International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP). ICAPP is a fraternal association of more than 300 political parties both ruling and in opposition from 52 Asian states.
He said that although large pockets of poverty in Asia remain, the battle against poverty is close to being won on many national fronts. However, it is social and income inequality that is growing dangerously most everywhere in our continent, he said. He thus urged the leaders “to begin thinking of growth not just in terms of GDP but in terms of people in the child saved from hunger and raised in knowledge; in the family lifted to a life of dignity and well-being; in the local community transformed from stagnation and despair into a net contributor to local creativity and national vigor.”
Subscribing to the basic beliefs of the UN Alliance of Civilizations, ICAPP, he said, is organizing a tri-continental alliance of political parties from the developing world from Asia, Latin America and Africa that “we hope can work with our Alliance of Civilizations under our shared vision of a multi-religious, multicultural, multi-civilizational world unified by peace, fraternity, and mutual prosperity.”
For the nations to help defuse the tensions between cultures, it is instructive for the Alliance to build on the symbiotic past relationship between East and West. It should stimulate studies and research on how the great civilizations had dealt with one another in the past as a guide to how our peoples might live together in the future.”
De Venecia brought up the proposal he presented to the Heritage Foundation in Washington D.C. in 2009 which called for a “re-think” of the dominant global political and economic system in the aftermath of the Wall Street meltdown. “I suggested then that there might be merit in bringing together the best elements of both capitalism and socialism in a new applied art of governance based on what works best for a particular society over a specific historical period.
“I do not know what specific ideas and ideals will shape this new economic ideology. I only know the various regions in the world need to find a way out of our seemingly endless cycles of boom-and-bust.”
He said members of ICAPP, the Permanent Conference of Political Parties of Latin America and the Caribbean, the Centrist Asia Pacific Democrats International, and the International Ecological Safety Collaborative Organization ( have established the Global Parties Climate and Ecological Alliance as a global united front in the battle against climate change, environmental degradation, and ecological crisis.
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At the World Assembly for Women 2014 held in Tokyo, Japan last week, International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director Christine Legarde urged governments to “unleash the economic power of women” to boost sluggish global growth. Gender gaps in labor force participation exist all over the world ranging from 12 percent in the developed economies to 50 percent in the Middle East and North Africa.
“When women do participate, they tend to be stuck in low-paying, low-status jobs. Globally, women can earn only three-quarters as much as men this is true even with the same level of education, and in the same occupation.”
Globally, women also tend to be locked out of leadership positions, where gender seems to matter more than ability. They account for only 24 percent of senior management positions around the world.
“Clearly, the global economy is not using its productive resources very effectively. It is tossing away economic growth at a time when it cannot afford such wanton waste. This needs to change.”
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Speaking on the condition of Filipino women at the assembly, Sen. Loren Legarda presented high marks for Filipino women. They are present in more than a hundred countries around the world, caring for children and parents not their own, and operating businesses and industries “as part of the force that drives the growth of the global community. We are sharing 10 million Filipinos with the rest of the world, and 60 per cent of them are women.”
In an interview with Philippine STAR reporter Helen Flores in Tokyo, Senator Legarda said there is still much to be done to empower the women, and that the government must provide more support to empower them, especially in rural areas. There is a need, she said, to provide them with viable income alternatives, in addition to the laws that support women micro-entrepreneurs, particularly the indigenous women.
In a speech before the assembly, she spoke of the gains made by Filipino women in the area of politics and governance: Two female presidents, six women senators out of the current 24, and 75 of 287 members of the House of Representatives. Also, 2 per cent of the provinces are headed by women governors, and at the municipal level, there is one woman in every five mayors.
Indeed, women have ruled and continue to rule the Philippines, but challenges will never go away and in most communities, there are continuing barriers to women empowerment, she said.
The safety of women is one pressing concern, she said. The U.S. Department of State estimates that at least 300,000 women and 60,000 children are trafficked worldwide annually. The Philippines is considered as a source country for individuals subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor. Furthermore, estimates suggest that 50,000 to 100,000 Filipino women are advertised as mail order brides.
Statistics also show that one out of every five Filipino women aged 15-49 has experienced physical violence. In 2011, 15,104 cases of domestic violence were recorded by the Philippine National Police. This is alarming considering that it is significantly higher than the previous year’s figure of 9,485 cases.
“These realities compel us to continuously search for measures that will protect our women at home and beyond.”
The Philippines remains deeply committed to the Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the Beijing Platform of Action, and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and to the Magna Carta of Women, which guarantees social, economic, civil and political rights of women.
Other measures crucial in strengthening the campaign towards protection and empowerment are the Anti-Violence Against Women and Children Act, Domestic Workers Act, and Expanded Anti-trafficking in Persons Act
Another challenge that must be addressed is the vulnerability of women to disasters, said Legarda. “As disaster risks abound amid our fast changing environment, disasters affect yearly about 200 million people all over the world, half of them women or girls.”
When Typhoon Haiyan lashed Central Philippines in November 2013, more than 3.5 million women and girls were affected, and 250,000 of them were pregnant and 169,000 were breastfeeding. Their distinct nutritional needs have made coping with disasters even tougher for them. Also, their displacement from their homes put them at greater risk of sexual violence and of falling prey to human traffickers.
“ These disaster impacts on women convey to us the importance of making gender-sensitive and risk-sensitive development policies, plans and programs.”
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