Hundreds of women gather to craft the 2022 Women’s Electoral Agenda

Center for Women's Resources Events 0 Comment

Women community leaders, activists, and advocates convened for the hybrid 2022 National Summit this March 6, Sunday, to craft the Women’s Agenda for the 2022 National Elections.

More than 100 women from Luzon joined the face-to-face gathering at the Quezon City University Auditorium in Novaliches, Quezon City, while participants from Visayas and Mindanao joined the virtual conference.

The national summit started with a discussion of the situation of women in the last six years. Participants then joined the workshops to raise their local situations and their demands to build the agenda.

In the afternoon, the Women’s Agenda were collated and presented to local and national politicians to sign their commitment in forwarding women’s issues as part of their electoral agenda.

The Women’s Agenda

The Agenda disclosed the concerns that women want to put forward to the candidates. It included the issues on employment, national industrialization, agricultural support, human rights, assurance of sovereignty, free from violence, and non-discrimination of marginalized sectors including LGBTQ and indigenous peoples, among others.

“Women have suffered the brunt of a worsening socioeconomic crisis in the last six years,” said Cham Perez, Executive Director of the Center for Women’s Resources, a research institution for women.

Perez said that women’s unemployment rate remained high while those employed suffered low wages and job insecurity. She noted that neoliberal policies of liberalization and privatization made it even more difficult for women to realize decent work, stable livelihood, food security, and access to social services such as health and education.

“The minimum wage has not increased since 2018, while prices of basic commodities continue to rise since the implementation of the TRAIN law in the beginning of 2018,” Perez explained.

Perez also noted that women’s economic insecurity made them more vulnerable to different forms of abuse and violence.

Women’s participation in the coming elections

Babae, Bantayan ang Eleksyon (BaBaE Network), an election watchdog network of individuals and organizations, reminded women to scrutinize platforms and programs of candidates. BaBaE Network also raised alarm over reports of election irregularities in the months leading to election day.

“We must remain vigilant during the campaign season, as we move closer to May 9. We enjoin everyone to watch our votes and to immediately report any forms of election fraud,” said Professor Pau Hernando, BaBae Network spokesperson.

Hernando suggested that women should support candidates who forwarded the women’s agenda, and should reject those who have records of misogyny, corruption, fraud, and violence.

The need to mobilize beyond the electoral season

During the summit, participants also affirmed the need to organize and mobilize beyond the 2022 elections.

“While we see the 2022 National Elections to forward women’s issues and concerns, we believe that our political participation should not be limited in casting our votes on May 9,” remarked Gert Libang, National Chairperson of GABRIELA National Alliance of Women.

She explained that the current political system dominated by elites resulted to limited opportunities for societal change.

“The change that we want must continue to organize ourselves and mobilize to raise our grievances and clamor for genuine social change”, she concluded.

The National Women Summit was organized by GABRIELA – Alliance of Filipino Women, Center for Women’s Resources, Babae Bantayan ang Eleksyon, GABRIELA-Youth, Kilusan ng Manggagawang Kababaihan, Amihan – National Federation of Peasant Women, BAI Indigenous Women, Girls for Peace, and Bahaghari.


Unite against the return of the Marcoses to Malacanang! Unite for genuine freedom, development, and democracy!

Center for Women's Resources Statement, Statements and Media Releases 0 Comment

The Center for Women’s Resources joins the commemoration of the 1986 EDSA People Power that led to the fall of the Marcos Dictatorship as we unite to prevent them from returning to Malacanang in the coming National Elections.

Today, we remember those who have been killed, tortured, disappeared, raped, detained, and many others who lost their homes and livelihood during Martial Law. We vow to never forget the attacks against the people, to hold the Marcoses accountable for their ill-gotten wealth, to combat disinformation and historical revision, and to never again allow them to return and maintain power.


The militant and arduous struggle of the Filipino people to defy one of the darkest times in our history remains the legacy of EDSA People Power. Women have stood at the forefront, from the streets to the countryside, to challenge the dictatorship and to assert genuine freedom, development, and democracy.

While the following administrations have maintained power and control to the ruling elites in the guise of democracy, as they continued to be slaves of imperialist masters through neoliberal policies and measures that suppress the people’s democratic rights, EDSA People Power remains to be a reminder of people’s unity and decisiveness to clamor for change.

The same militancy fuels the women and people’s movement until today, in their continued commitment in pursuing genuine social change amid worsening attacks against human rights defenders and the people during the Duterte administration.

In their campaign for the two highest seats in office for the 2022 National Elections, Marcos Jr. spews empty rhetoric on “unity” while Sara Duterte vows to continue what his father has started. Thus, a continuation of ballooning debt, skyrocketing prices, misogyny, rabid human rights violations and failed pandemic response. There is no basis of unity with them when there is no justice to their atrocities.

We call on women and all Filipino people to commemorate People Power by rejecting tyrants, plunderers, and human rights violators, and prevent them from returning to power. We must work hand-in-hand to fight their dirty tricks of disinformation, fraud, and violations especially towards the national elections. Ultimately, we must continue to exercise our right to political participation beyond the 2022 elections.

Stand for women’s rights and welfare this 2022 National Elections

Center for Women's Resources Statements and Media Releases 0 Comment

The Center for Women’s Resources enjoins everyone to stand for women, and with women for the 2022 National Elections.

As the official campaign period for national positions begins today, February 8, we call on all women to amplify their voices and ensure that candidates for electoral positions prioritize the welfare of women and heed their calls for genuine change.

In the last six years, we have witnessed the decades-long exploitation and oppression of Filipino women worsen, especially those belonging to the basic sectors. Under the Duterte administration,they have experienced further economic and socio-political crises. Duterte’s adherence to the neoliberal agenda continued to prioritize profit of corporations, landlords, and the ruling elite instead of the welfare of ordinary people, aggravating inequality and maldevelopment in the country.

Deregulation of prices of food and other basic commodities have severely impacted the lives and livelihood of women who carry multiple burdens at work and in their homes. In 2018, the implementation of TRAIN Law caused the inflation rate to surge from 3.45% in January to 6.7% in September of the same year. Furthermore, workers in the National Capital Region experienced the least and lowest wage increase compared to past administrations, with only two wage hikes in the last six years, with a cumulative percentage increase of 9.4%.

Agricultural liberalization through ease of restrictions on imported products and lack of support for local food production leave farmers to suffer in landlessness and debt. One year after the implementation of the Rice Tariffication Law, local rice farmers lost an estimate of Php 68.18 billion as palay farmgate prices fell by Php 3.62 per kilo. The price of palay also dropped to as low as Php10 per kilo in 2020.

Women who belong to the informal economy continue to experience lack of social protection measures and are most vulnerable to abuses. In total, 1 out of 2 employed women belong to the informal sector. In 2020, CWR estimates that 19.54 million Filipino women are economically insecure.

When the COVID- 19 pandemic hit, the already detrimental conditions of women and their communities were aggravated even more. Lockdown restrictions close down factories and offices leaving thousands of women unemployed. Peasant and indigenous women were prevented from going to their farms and tending to their livelihood, while millions lost their livelihood in the informal sector. Women continue to suffer hunger, poverty, landlessness, and joblessness in the middle of the deadly virus spread. These conditions further put women vulnerable to gender-related abuses.

The failed government response of militaristic lockdowns, arbitrary detentions, and lack of enough social amelioration has further pushed women to find means to survive every day. Repressive policies such as restrictions of mobility and transport for unvaccinated individuals also exist today. Amid all these, shrinking of civic space and direct attacks against rights defenders continue.

This election season, we challenge political aspirants to veer away from failed neoliberal, repressive and corrupt policies and instead, support the women’s agenda. We challenge them to make a commitment to prioritize the rights and welfare of women and children when elected in public office, to uphold transparency and accountability. We call on everyone to reject candidates with records of misogyny, plunder, and human right abuses. It is our duty to ensure that those who perpetuate abuse and continue to misrepresent, belittle, and disrespect women, be removed and prevented from staying in power.

Furthermore, we call on our sisters in the struggle to make our votes matter and be vigilant against any form of electoral fraud and violence. Importantly, we call on all women to continue to stand in the frontlines in our fight for genuine change for ourselves, our families, and our communities. #

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