WELCOME Our dear Partners

in the Ministry

October 21, 2009

BEC Center, Tagaytay City

BASIC WOMEN ORIENTATION COURSE& GENDER SENSITIVITY SEMINAR WORKSHOP

October 21, 2009

BEC Center, Tagaytay City

Levelling off4 main premises that the participants should keep in mind whenever issues of

gender equality are addressed:

NOT A WAR OF THE SEXES

NOT ANTI MALE

BOTH WOMEN AND MEN ARE VICTIMS, ALTHOUGH WOMEN

MORE THAN MEN

BOTH HAVE A STAKE IN THE STRUGGLE FOR GENDER EQUALITY

ACTIVITIES

A.CATCH ME

B.SAPOT NG GAGAMBA/ WEB CHART

THE WOMAN QUESTION

WOMEN IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY

THE MUJER INDIGENA In the family, social status , etc. In the economic life of the community In the political life In the religious life

THE DOMESTICATION OF THE MUJER INDIGENA

through religion

through education

No. 6 in the Global Gender Gap Report 2006 & 2008 The only developing country included in the The only developing country included in the

Top 10, along with Sweden, Norway, Finland, Top 10, along with Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Germany, New Zealand, Denmark, Iceland, Germany, New Zealand, Denmark, United Kingdom and Ireland.United Kingdom and Ireland.

Philippines acknowledged as successfully Philippines acknowledged as successfully being able to bridge the gender gap on areas being able to bridge the gender gap on areas of inequality such as economic participation of inequality such as economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, and opportunity, educational attainment, political empowerment and health and political empowerment and health and survival.survival.

CURRENT ISSUES OF WOMEN

INEQUALITY AND SUBORDINATION VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

RAPE DOWRY/ DOWRY DEATHS INCEST HONOR DEATHS BATTERING SUTTEE INFANTICIDE (FOETICIDE) WOMEN CIRCUMCISION, foot binding FEMINIZATION OF MIGRATION/LABOR

TRAFFICKING OF WOMEN PROSTITUTION MAIL ORDER BRIDES

FEMINIZATION OF POVERTY FEMINIZATION OF MIGRATION HUMAN TRAFFICKING

MIGRATION

dollar-earning venture

•It also defuses social tension given the government’s incapacity to offer enough permanent jobs for the huge labor force

(RE:The Plight of Modern-Day Slaves (Another story of sexual assault on Filipina OFW) -August 7, 2007

“The news showed of a Filipina being raped by her Arab master and being videoed while being abused. The news also showed a clipping from a cell phone video of another domestic helper in Saudi Arabia.

All she could do at the time was to weep- a very disheartening weep. ..the girl was being raped not only by her abusive employer but also by her employer’s son and their friends who visit them at home.

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

“Any act of gender-based violence that

results in, or is likely to result in physical,

sexual or psychological harm or suffering

to women, including threats of such acts,

coercion, or arbitrary deprivation of

liberty, whether occurring in public or

private life” Art. 1 UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against

Women

INEQUALITY & SUBORDINATION/DISCRIMINATION

ECONOMIC

- Women’s economic dependence on men

- Limited access to cash and credit

- - Limited access to education and training for women

POLITICAL

Under-representation of women in power, politics, the media and in the legal and medical profession

Domestic violence not taken seriously Notions of family being private and beyond

control of the state Risk of challenge to status quo/religious laws Limited organization of women as a political

force Limited participation of women in organized

political system

POLITICS is about POWER

Most social scientists definition of power:

The ABILITY TO COMPEL

OBEDIENCE

OR AS

CONTROL AND DOMINATION

power over someone-something possessed

Ex. Money- medium in the economy

BUT THERE IS AN ALTERNATIVE DEF. OF POWER

CORRUPTIONPROJECTS

$$$

NEDA

Other agencies DBM

Pork barrel

MilitaryPoliceLGU

POLICY VS.ACTIVITY(Survival)

WB, etc

Local Oligarchs

National Oligarchs

LT GKW

TA oil?

Corruption:

Projects/Pork BarrelsProcurementTax Evasion/SmugglingPolicy Corruption?

Business Stability

Middle classPOOR

Jobs, Poverty HungerEducation

Health

$$OF

WM

IDD

LE C

LAS

S

Gridlock?

STAGNAT ion

Lopez

Civil Society,

Senate

Media

ChurchAnti Birth ControlVarious

Causes:

Pork barrel

CULTURAL Gender –specific socialization Cultural definitions of appropriate sex roles Expectations of roles within relationships Belief in the inherent superiority of males Values that give men proprietary rights over

women and girls Notion of the family as the private sphere and

under male control Acceptability of violence as a means to resolve

conflict

CULTURE

a set of people’s values, beliefs, behavior, language and artifacts which distinguish them from other people.

Culture tells usWhat we ought to beWhat we ought to thinkWho we ought to beWhat we ought to expect of others

Situation of Women in the Philippine Context (2007)• one woman is raped every Nine hours • while a child is raped every 3 hours;

• a woman is battered every three hours while a child is maltreated every hour and a half;

• and a woman or child is sexually harassed every 18 hours

Kabuuang Bilang ng Karahasan Laban sa Kababaihan (2008)

Kaso KabuuanRape (incest, gang rape, statutory rape)

950

(RA 9262) Domestic Violence

3081

Sexual Harrassment/Acts of Lasciviousness

738

Sex Trafficking/ Pornograpiya/ Prostitusyon

33

Source: Center for Women` Resources

Kabuuang Bilang ng Biktima ng Karahasan sa mga Bata

PNP DSWD G Kabuuan

Rape(incest rape & Attempted Rape

3,222 1,964 17

5,203

(RA 9262) Domestic Violence (Physical Injuries, neglect & abandonment

44 548 592

Sexual Harrashment(Acts of Lasciviousness & pedophile

841 148 989

Child Trafficking (pornography, cyber pono.,prustitution &

Illegal recruitment )

68 293 361

Summary

There is 1 woman raped every 8 hours while

A child is raped every 1 and a half hours.

There is also 1 woman victim of sexual harassment & 1 woman victim of domestic violence for every 2 hours and 6 minutes.

THE WOMAN QUESTION

THE WOMAN QUESTIONis the fact that there is

discriminationsubordination

exploitation, andoppression

of women AS WOMEN,that cuts across

class, race,nationality and creed.

It is an IDEOLOGICAL, STRUCTURAL, Cultural, and GLOBAL problem.

PATRIARCHY is defined by the feminists as the basic cause

of women’s oppression. Coined from the Greek pater/patros (father) and arche (origin, ruling power or authority), it is described as a social system based “on the absolute and unaccountable power over wives and concubines, children, servants, slaves, animals and real property enjoyed by the paterfamilias, i.e. the father who is the head of the family, clan or tribe.

INSTITUTIONS THAT PROMOTE GENDER BIAS

The individual male or female within a given culture acquires gender roles/relations through socialization.

Socialization- as defined is the process by which an individual learns to confirm to the norms of the group with which one is born with and internalizes these norms to acquire status and to plan corresponding roles. Social institutions are mechanisms that maintain gender within a society.

Gender Construction/SocializationR

elig

ion

Family

MediaChurch

School

PAANO BA AKO PINALAKI NG AKING MGA MAGULANG?

HOW DID MY PARENTS/GUARDIANS RAISE ME AS A CHILD- A boy/girl AT THAT?

What are some of my childhood memories/experiences of gender bias?

What is SEX What is Gender

what makes one male and female

biologically determined Refers to physical

chartacteristics

Constant across time Constant across

different societies and cultures

What makes one masculine or feminine

Socially determined; culturally defined

Learned behavior Changes across time Changes across places

and culture

Determinants of Sex

Male Female Genitalia penis vagina, clitoris

Reproductive Organs testes ovary, uterus

Chromosomes XY XX

Hormones testosterone estrogen

androgen progesterone

GENDER

is a socio-economic variable to analyze roles, responsibilities, constraints, opportunities and needs of men and women in any context.

Since GENDER is a social construct, the particular socio-economic and cultural/religious context cannot be ignored in determining women’s roles, needs, priorities and activities.

GENDER ROLES

Tasks and activities traditionally assigned by society to women and men because of popular perception that they have the qualities and capabilities to better perform them

Gender Roles have three aspects

POSITIONS within the social structure indicating where women and men belong or are expected to belong

RULES FOR BEHAVIOR AND INTERACTION prescribed for men and women

RELATIONSHIPS between women’s and men’s roles

The-public –private life

Men engage in the public world of WORK and POLITICS

Women are confined to the private concerns of the HOME and FAMILY; outside work are extensions of their domestic functions.

GENDER DIVISION OF LABOR

The assignment of tasks and roles to men and women on account of sex

May result into women’s multiple roles, multiple burden at home - reproductive roles At work - productive roles (ex.

Homemaker) In the community - community management

and political roles

MANIFESTATION OF GENDER BIAS

VIOLENCEMarginalization

Sub-Ordination

Against Women

Multiple Burden Stereotyping

GROUP WORK- ANALYZE SITUATIONS GIVEN

GENDER ROLE STEREOTYPING

Constant portrayal of women and men as performing roles traditionally associated to them.

Stereotyping prevents both from shifting to non-traditional roles.

TRADITIONAL GENDER ROLE RESTRICTIONS – LIMIT THE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND POTENTIALS OF HUMAN BEINGS

Men are denied the access to

nurturing emotion other –oriented WORLD OF DOMESTIC

LIFE

Women are denied access to:

work

achievement independence

power

POEMS ON GENDER STEREOTYPING

Man for the field and woman for the hearth;Man of the sword and for the needle she;Man with the head and woman with the heart;Man to command and woman to obeyElse all confusion

--Alfred Lord Tennyson

Else all confusion

Who cares what face she carries of what she wears? But woman’s body is the woman.

--Ambrose Bierce

Nature intended women to be our slaves…They are our property, we are not theirs.They belong to us, just as a tree that bears fruit belongs to the gardener.What a mad idea to demand equality for women!….Women are nothing but machines for producing children.--Napoleon Bonaparte

BUT THEY DO CHANGE

PEOPLE SHAPE CULTURE

CULTURE SHAPES PEOPLE

GENDER SENSITIVITY AND AWARENESSIs the ability to recognize gender

issues and especially the ability to recognize women’s different perceptions and interest arising from different social location and different gender roles.

Gender Sensitivity is often used to mean the same as gender awareness, although

Gender awareness can also mean the extra ability to recognize gender issues which remain “hidden” from those with a more conventional point of view.

We define Gender sensitivity as the beginning of gender awareness, where the latter is more analytical, more critical and more “questioning” of gender disparities.

GENDER AWARENESS

The ability to identify problems arising from gender inequality and

discrimination, even if these are not evident on the surface, or are

“hidden,” i.e. are not part of the general or commonly accepted

explanation of what and where the problem lies

POEMS ON GENDER AWARENESSby Nancy Smith

For every woman who is tired of acting weak

When she knows she is strong,There is a man who is tired of appearing

Strong when he feels vulnerable

For every woman who is tired of acting dumb,

There is a man who is burdened with the constant expectation of knowing everything.

For every woman who is tired of being called “ an emotional female,”

There is a man who has been denied the right to weep and be gentle.

For every woman who feel “tied down” by her children,

There is a man who has been denied the full pleasure of shared parenthood.

For every woman who is denied meaningful employment and equal pay,

There is a man who must bear full financial responsibility for another human being.

For every woman who takes a step toward her own liberation,

There is a man who finds that the way to freedom has been made a little easier.

RECOVERING THE FEMINIST PRINCIPLE- Equality, Partnership,

mutuality-respect, relational. POWER WITH IN

EQUALITY – WORTH, DIGNITY, RESPECT AS PERSONS; RIGHTS

MUTUALITY/partnership- RESPECT, Willingness to learn from the other, means something that is shared/jointly between people, accept other views and opinions, honoring each other’s gifts, understanding the other.

Inclusivity- includes all angles of an item, an association, feeling without excluding or discounting anything at all – opposite of exclusivity or the view that only those in one’s group are right or favoured;

POWER WITH IN – The spiritual strength and uniqueness that resides in each of us & makes us truly human. ITS BASIS:

Self-acceptance & self Respect which extend, in turn, to respect for & acceptance of others as equals.

POWER –WITHIN

RECOGNIZES THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES THAT EXIST IN ALL OF US

AND DOES NOT AUTOMATICALLY CONDEMN DIFFERENCE, OR

CATEGORIZE IN EITHER/OR TERMS.

RELATIONAL – interconnectedness with one another including the rest of God’s creation

RECOVERING THE FEMINIST PRINCIPLE-

BASIS-- Women created in the image and likeness of God (Gen. 1:26-28)--Women called to be responsible for creation (Gen. 1:30-31)--Women as participant in the Exodus (Ex. 15:18-21)--Women part of the covenant with Israel (Ex. 21-23, Dt.15,

Levi.25)-- Attitudes and actions of Jesus to women

NEED TO RECLAIM THE FEMINIST PRINCIPLE TO RESTORE WOMEN’S POSITION AND RIGHTFUL ROLE.

TOWARDS INTEGRATION OF WOMEN AND MEN, RESTORATION OF CREATION

HOW WE MUST SEE WOMEN: In the Family

Confront family problems and accept the need for family counseling.

Refuse to accept and tolerate domestic violence and offenders.

How We Must See Women: At School

Must Practice a gender-fair education and non-sexist kind of education.

Include rights of women and young girls in their curricula

Develop textbooks and materials which present realities of children, women and families.

Provide for a gender-sensitive guidance and counseling program.

Provide for a values education program which seeks to build self-esteem of young girls; and address issues of violence against women.- sexual harassment

How We Must See Women: Church & Religion

Provide a women-friendly and gender –sensitive family counseling.

Refuse to accept and tolerate domestic violence and offenders.

Provide a safe environment where women can discuss their realities and needs.

How do we see women in the Church

Confront the issue of violence against women and educate the congregation.

Rebuke offenders from biblical perspective.

How We Must See Women: In Media

Must stop the practice of sensationalizing news about violent crimes against women and children.

Depict and present women and women's realities in a just and fair way.

How We Must see Women: In Media

Prioritize safety and justice for women and children over profit.

Take an active role in educating the public about violence against women.

Expose and condemn offenders.

WOMEN’S ALTERNATIVES

FEMINIST THEOLOGY WOMEN’S STUDIES ECOFEMINISM FEMINIST COUNSELLING HERSTORY ALTERNATIVE MEDIA WOMEN’S STUDIES

CASE SAMPLE: ST. SCHOLASTICA’S COLLEGE INTRODUCTION TO WOMEN’S STUDIES HISTORY OF THE INSTITUTE OF WOMEN’S STUDIES THE LOGIC OF WOMEN’S STUDIES IMPACT OF WOMEN’S STUDIES

WOMEN’S MOVEMENT

ORGANIZING PRINCIPLES STRATEGIES:

ORGANIZATION MOBILIZATION CONSCIOUSNESS -RAISING GENDER MAINSTREAMING IN SCHOOLS AND IN

NGO’S LEGAL STRATEGIES CRISIS INTERVENTION CULTURAL STRATEGIES SOLIDARITY

POINTS FOR

REFLECTION

AKO BILANG BABAE

SINO AKO BILANG Babae/Lalaki? PAANO/GAANO KO PINAHAHALAGAHAN

ANG aking sarili bilang babae? ANO ANG MGA PAGKUKULANG KO BILANG

BABAE/LALAKI sa mga kababaihan/kalalakihan?

ANO ANG MAAARI KUNG GAWIN PARA MABAGO KO ANG SITUASYON KO/ NG MGA KABABAIHAN?

THANK YOU…