Organized by the PUP Gender Equity, Diversity, and Social Inclusion Office and the PUP College of Law, the event features local women leaders from Ina ng Bayan sa Sais, District 6 Manila lady kagawads, and youth groups and organizations within the university.

Senator Risa Hontiveros was also invited as a guest speaker to discuss existing and proposed legislation on women’s rights and the continuing challenges faced by women of all ages and sectors across the country, including the need for more accessible geriatric care and facilities.

“The fight is far from over,” Hontiveros said in Filipino.

During the panel discussion, local barangay kagawads emphasized key issues affecting women in their communities, including the need to strengthen healthcare services and improve access to medicine, as well as programs and facilities that are more accessible for senior citizens.

Youth groups also raised concerns about teenage pregnancy, calling for the implementation of comprehensive sexuality education (CSE).

Legislation and measures on providing free and accessible menstrual or period products were also highlighted.

LOOK: Student groups within the PUP community, together with Gabriela Women’s Party Representative Cong. Sarah Elago, stage a One Billion Rising dance protest, demanding accountability on alleged stolen funds, stronger protections for women and LGBTQ+ rights within the university, and the removal of value-added and excise taxes.

Groups also urge for greater participation in the “Pandaigdigang Araw ng mga Kababaihang Anakpawis” protests at Liwasang Bonifacio, Manila this coming Sunday, March 8.

KARAPATAN NG MAMAMAYAN! EDUKASYON!

The mobilization raises the calls of women and students amidst the widespread corruption issues in the country. Representatives from various student organizations spoke about the burden that corruption creates on the youth and student sector. They emphasized the reality that students in the country face: higher taxes, substandard services, a worsening educational crisis and a government that prioritizes its own interests.

A representative from Kabataan Youth specifically emphasized the additional burden, discrimination, and harassment that women carry and endure in their education and in their daily lives, calling out the recent sexist remarks of Quezon City Representative Bong Suntay.

“Ngayon, kulang na kulang sa hiya at sobra-sobra sa kakapalan ng mukha ang mga bastos na opisyales,” the representative states.

BANGON! BABAE BANGON!

The UP Diliman Gender Office leads the crowd of the university’s Purple Day of Action in the One Billion Rising dance protest along the stretch of Roxas Avenue, Diliman, calling for the end of gender-based violence and discrimination.

Zen Soriano, Amihan National Chairperson, led the discussion with members of the UP community.

“9 out of 10 farmers remain landless, with no recognition for the land rights of peasant women,” she shared, emphasizing the “persistent landlessness, the high cost of rent for farming lands, and the low wages of female agricultural workers.”

“We really don’t have rice self-sufficiency in our country and now, most farmers are buried in debt with the low buying rate of rice,” Soriano stated in a mix of English and Filipino, noting the higher importation rate of cheaper agricultural products that is pushing farmers further into poverty.

“The poverty incidence among farmers is at 31.6%,” she added.

Soriano also highlighted the lack of sufficient social services for peasant women, specifically the inaccessibility of healthcare and medicines and the negative effect of the ‘No Home Birth’ policy for peasant women who live in more rural and mountainous areas.

She ended the discussion with a call to join the fight against corruption and the upcoming mobilizations for the International Women’s Day on March 8.