Will Magna Carta of Women be enforced?

The Magna Carta of Women (MCW) has been enacted at last. It not only reinforces the existing laws’ command to the government, national and local, to physically protect women and girl-children, it also promotes the welfare of marginalized women and enumerates the rights that women have and the state must make sure no ones deprives them of the exercise of these rights.

The MCW requires the mandatory training on human rights and gender sensitivity of all government people involved in the protection and defense of women against gender-based violence.

Will the government, local and national, and the law-enforcement agencies really enforce the MCW, though?

The Kababaihan Laban sa Karahasan (Women Against Violence), and other women’s rights and welfare NGOs, including Church-backed ones, in 1994 persuaded the government to have a “Policewomen’s Desk” in every precinct and station to make sure women victims of abuse were properly protected and their abusers apprehended and charged.

Only a few such desks had been set up until the Anti-Violence against Women and Children Act of 2004. After the law became part of the country’s statutes, the PNP itself formed a Women’s and Children’s section, which is always headed by very high-ranking woman police officers. Yes, the apprehension of abusers increased although their prosecution and conviction could still be improved. But the fact is that every barangay captain knows who the battered women are in the neighborhood and who the cruel and violent husbands are. And yet, violence against women continues.

The most recent case to achieve national notoriety is that allegedly committed by the Deputy National Security Adviser, Luis “Chavit” Singson. There have been many such notorious cases. One involved a nationally-known politician whose wife, described by her own children and her husband as someone who was mentally disturbed, finally committed suicide. Another involved a scion of one of the country’s wealthy business families who kept battering his wife. Several other cases involved, always, some kind of lord of wealth and power, the elite of this country.

This makes us worry that—unless a more morally grounded national government takes office, its highest officials imbued with virtues that give them the political will and the passion for the rule of law to make sure that justice reigns—the provisions of the Magna Carta of Women will again be ignored by those who should carry them out.

The Magna Carta of Women makes it mandatory for local officials to do certain acts—like establishing a Women’s Desk—in every barangay. But so do other laws make it criminal for officials to neglect doing certain duties and for them to lie, steal, falsify records and harm citizens. And what do we see instead? The officials guilty of dereliction of their duties, of committing corrupt practices and stealing from government project-funds and, according to witnesses and victims, of harming them or even killing their relatives are among the most favored allies of the Palace.

MCW declares new rights

Protecting women and girl-children from physical harm is only one objective of the Magna Carta of Women.

A goodly part of the law gives rights to women belonging to poor and marginalized sectors of our society.

It is now a law, under the MCW, that women have the “right to food” in other words not to be hungry. This should greatly reduce the women who belong to the 3.7 million Filipinos who tell survey researchers they have experienced hunger. How will this be carried out? Will the government’s Social Welfare police stop the good hearted mothers who will give the government dole out of food for their own use to their also hungry children?

Women now have a “right to housing.”

They now have the “right to decent work.” Those who will enjoy this right include mothers and housekeepers who also wish to have careers. If the women among the 2.8 million unemployed Filipinos (there must be more but this is the government figure) all get employed, will the menfolk demand a Magna Carta for Men?

Women now have the “right to credit, capital and technology.” The last-mentioned is only crucial to women in the marginalized sector because women who excel in the professions and the technical and scientific sector now probably outnumber men. But it is true that in the world of business women entrepreneurs still have to deal with male bankers.

Women’s right to education is another that in the middle and upper classes is already being enjoyed by most women who want to exercise it. In fact, women are surpassing men in academic achievement. But the marginalized women and girl-children who want to go to college or even just high school have to be shunted aside in favor of their male siblings.

The MCW also commands that special measures be taken to hasten and widen the participation and equitable representation of women in all spheres of society, particularly in the decision-making and policy-making processes in government and private institutions.

It requires the increase of the number of women in third-level positions in government (secretaries of government agencies, undersecretaries and assistant secretaries) so that a 50-50 gender balance. Since the 50 percent who are anatomically male will include those who are psychologically and emotionally female, will the menfolk protest this provision? Or will the law be amended so that instead of a 50-50 balance there will be a 33.33-33.33-33.33 balance accommodating homosexuals?

Whatever, as the incompletely thoughtful would say, it is now a fact, thanks to MCW, that “gender equality is now a national policy.” –Manila Times