1.

1 Gender and society

Gender is also a social construct. As the World Health Organization (WHO)Trusted Source explains:
“Gender refers to the socially constructed characteristics of women and men, such as
norms, roles, and relationships of and between groups of women and men. It varies from society to
society and can be changed.”
Gender roles in some societies are more rigid than in others. However, these are not
always set in stone, and roles and stereotypes can shift over time. A 2018 meta-analysis of public
opinion polls about gender stereotypes in the U.S. reflects this shift.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

People often use the terms “sex” and “gender” interchangeably, but this is incorrect. Sex and
gender are different, and it is crucial to understand why.
“Sex” refers to the physical differences between people who are male, female, or intersex.
A person typically has their sex assigned at birth based on physiological characteristics, including
their genitalia and chromosome composition. This assigned sex is called a person’s “natal sex.”
Gender, on the other hand, involves how a person identifies. Unlike natal sex, gender is not
made up of binary forms. Instead, gender is a broad spectrum. A person may identify at any point
within this spectrum or outside of it entirely.
People may identify with genders that are different from their natal sex or with none at all.
These identities may include transgender, nonbinary, or gender-neutral. There are many other ways
in which a person may define their own gender.
Gender also exists as social constructs — as gender “roles” or “norms.” These are defined as
Trusted Source as the socially constructed roles, behaviors, and attributes that a society considers
appropriate for men and women.
1.2 Definition of Sex vs. Gender
At birth, the difference between boys and girls is their sex; as they grow up, society gives
them different roles, attributes, opportModules, privileges, and rights that in, the end, create the social
differences between men and women.
Sex Gender
Biological characteristics (including genetics, Socially constructed set of roles and
anatomy and physiology) that generally define responsibilities associated with being girl and boy
humans as female or male. Note that these or women and men, and in some cultures a third
biological or other gender.
characteristics are not mutually exclusive;
however, there are individuals who possess
both male and female characteristics.
Born with. Not born with.
Universal, A-historical Gender roles vary greatly in different societies,
No variation from culture to culture or cultures and historical periods as well as they
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GEC ELEC | GENDER AND SOCIETY
 time to time.
Cannot be changed, except with the
medical treatment.
Example: Only women can give birth.
Only women can breastfeed.
GEC ELEC | GENDER AND SOCIETY
depend also on socio-economic factors, age,
education, ethnicity and religion.
Although deeply rooted, gender roles can be
changed over time, since social values and norms
are not static.
Example: The expectation of men to be economic
providers of the family and for women to be
caregivers is a gender norm in many cultural
contexts. However, women prove able to do
traditionally male jobs as well as men (e.g. men
and
women can do housework; men and women can
be leaders and managers).
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 Legal basis for the study of Gender and Society

INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES

After studying this module, you are expected to:
a. Familiarize with the Philippine Laws concerning sex and gender.
b. Recognize the significance of knowing the Philippine laws concerning sex and
gender.
c. Create a timeline of the following the social changes in the creation of laws
strengthening gender development in the country.

Overview

This lesson will look at the developments that have occurred in the introduction of
legislation that promotes gender equality in the country, from the international bill CEDAW to the
Republic Act 9710: Magna Carta of Women. This lesson will also give a foundation for the laws and
agreements that will be explored later in this lesson.

DISCUSSION
What is CEDAW?

Known as the International Bill of Rights of Women, Convention on the Elimination of all
Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) was adopted by the United Nations in 1979 and
took effect on 3 September 1981. The Philippines signed the CEDAW on 15 July 1980 and ratified
it on 5 August 1981, the first ASEAN country to do so. As of May 2015, the Convention has been
ratified by 189 states.

The Philippines also ratified the Optional Protocol to the CEDAW on November 12, 2003,
which established two mechanisms that enable women to seek redress for violations of CEDAW
through the communication procedure and the inquiry procedure.

The CEDAW is the only human rights treaty which affirms the reproductive rights of
women and targets culture and tradition as influential forces shaping gender roles and family
relations. It affirms women’s rights to acquire, change or retain their nationality and the nationality of
their children.

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 The Convention defines discrimination against women as “any distinction, exclusion or
restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the
recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of
equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic,
social, cultural, civil, or any other fields.”

The CEDAW Convention is built on three foundational principles: non-discrimination, state obligation
and substantive equality.

o Non-discrimination is integral to the concept of equality. The Convention seeks to eliminate

discrimination against women in all fields and spheres, and holds both state and non-state
actors in the case of violation of rights.
o State obligation embodies the elements, that is, respect, protection, promotion, and fulfillment
of human rights. It also upholds the concept of due diligence which demands ensuring the
prevention, investigation, and sanctioning of private acts of discrimination. The legislature,
executive and judiciary organs of government are responsible for the fulfillment of all state
obligations.
o Substantive equality acknowledges as products of negative female stereotypes, and
consequently seeks to eliminate discrimination at the individual, institutional, and systemic
levels through corrective and positive measures including enabling conditions and affirmative
actions. It seeks to correct imbalance and focuses on achieving “equality of outcomes” by
ensuring equal opportunities, access and benefits for women.
Aside from ratifying the CEDAW, the Philippines can be credited for creating its first working draft
through Dr. Leticia Ramos-Shahani, who was working as a diplomat at the Department of Foreign
Affairs at the time and would eventually become the Secretary-General of the World Conference on
the UN Decade of Women in Nairobi, Kenya in 1985 and the UN Assistant Secretary-General for
Social and Humanitarian Affairs. Dr. Ramos-Shahani sought the support of Russian delegate Tatiana
Nikolaeva for the CEDAW draft, famously earning the ire of then Foreign Affairs Secretary Carlos P.
Romulo. The CEDAW draft was successfully adopted as the basic working paper.

The 1987 Constitution states two prominent provisions. The first in the Declaration of Principles
Article II Section 14, which asserted that “The State recognizes the role of women in nation-
building and shall ensure the fundamental equality before the law of women and men.”
Additionally, the Article XIII-Labor: Section 14 provided that “The state shall protect working
women by providing safe and healthful working conditions taking into account their maternal
functions, and such facilities and opportunities that will enhance their welfare and enable them to
realize their full potential in the service of the nation”.

The 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines – Article IRepublic Act 7192:
Women in Development and Nation Building Act

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 AN ACT PROMOTING THE INTEGRATION OF WOMEN AS FULL AND EQUAL PARTNERS OF MEN IN
DEVELOPMENT AND NATION BUILDING AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.

Section 1. Title. — This Act shall be cited as the “Women in Development and Nation Building Act.”

Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. — The State recognizes the role of women in nation building and shall ensure the
fundamental equality before the law of women and men. The State shall provide women rights and opportunities
equal to that of men.

To attain the foregoing policy:

(1) A substantial portion of official development assistance funds received from foreign governments and
multilateral agencies and organizations shall be set aside and utilized by the agencies concerned to support programs
and activities for women;
.
(2) All government departments shall ensure that women benefit equally and participate directly in the
development programs and projects of said department, specifically those funded under official foreign development
assistance, to ensure the full participation and involvement of women in the development process; and

(3) All government departments and agencies shall review and revise all their regulations, circulars, issuances and
procedures to remove gender bias therein.
Sec. 3. Responsible Agency. — The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) shall primarily be
responsible for ensuring the participation of women as recipients in foreign aid, grants and loans. It shall determine
and recommend the amount to be allocated for the development activity involving women.

Sec. 4. Mandate. — The NEDA, with the assistance of the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women, shall
ensure that the different government departments, including its agencies and instrumentalities which, directly or
indirectly, affect the participation of women in national development and their integration therein:

(1) Formulate and prioritize rural or countryside development programs or projects, provide income and
employment opportunities to women in the rural areas and thus, prevent their heavy migration from rural to urban
or foreign countries;
.
(2) Include an assessment of the extent to which their programs and/or projects integrate women in the
development process and of the impact of said programs or projects on women, including their implications in
enhancing the self- reliance of women in improving their income;

(3) Ensure the active participation of women and women’s organizations in the development programs and/or
projects including their involvement in the planning, design, implementation, management, monitoring and
evaluation thereof;

(4) Collect sex-disaggregated data and include such data in its program/project paper, proposal or strategy;

(5) Ensure that programs and/or projects are designed so that the percentage of women who receive assistance is
approximately proportionate to either their traditional participation in the targeted activities or their proportion of
the population, whichever is higher. Otherwise, the following should be stated in the program/project paper,
proposal or strategy;

(a) The obstacle in achieving the goal;

.
(b) The steps being taken to overcome those obstacles; and

(c) To the extent that steps are not being taken to overcome those obstacles, why they are not being taken.

(6) Assist women in activities that are of critical significance to their self-reliance and development.

Sec. 5. Equality in Capacity to Act. — Women of legal age, regardless of civil status, shall have the capacity to act
and enter into contracts which shall in every respect be equal to that of men under similar circumstances.
In all contractual situations where married men have the capacity to act, married women shall have equal rights.

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 To this end:

(1) Women shall have the capacity to borrow and obtain loans and execute security and credit arrangement under
the same conditions as men;
.
(2) Women shall have equal access to all government and private sector programs granting agricultural credit,
loans and non-material resources and shall enjoy equal treatment in agrarian reform and land resettlement
programs;

(3) Women shall have equal rights to act as incorporators and enter into insurance contracts; and

(4) Married women shall have rights equal to those of married men in applying for passport, secure visas and other
travel documents, without need to secure the consent of their spouses.

In all other similar contractual relations, women shall enjoy equal rights and shall have the capacity to act which shall
in every respect be equal to those of men under similar circumstances.

Sec. 6. Equal Membership in Clubs. — Women shall enjoy equal access to membership in all social, civic and
recreational clubs, committees, associations and similar other organizations devoted to public purpose. They shall be
entitled to the same rights and privileges accorded to their spouses if they belong to the same organization.

Sec. 7. Admission to Military Schools. — Any provision of the law to the contrary notwithstanding, consistent with
the needs of the services, women shall be accorded equal opportunities for appointment, admission, training,
graduation and commissioning in all military or similar schools of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the
Philippine National Police not later than the fourth academic year following the approval of this Act in accordance
with the standards required for men except for those minimum essential adjustments required by physiological
differences between sexes.

Sec. 8. Voluntary Pag-IBIG, GSIS and SSS Coverage. — Married persons who devote full time to managing the
household and family affairs shall, upon the working spouse’s consent, be entitled to voluntary Pag-IBIG
(Pagtutulungan
— Ikaw, Bangko, Industriya at Gobyerno), Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) or Social Security System
(SSS) coverage to the extent of one-half (1/2) of the salary and compensation of the working spouse. The
contributions due thereon shall be deducted from the salary of the working spouse.

The GSIS or the SSS, as the case may be, shall issue rules and regulations necessary to effectively implement the
provisions of this section.

Sec. 9. Implementing Rules. — The NEDA, in consultation with the different government agencies concerned, shall
issue rules and regulations as may be necessary for the effective implementation of Sections 2, 3 and 4, of this Act
within six (6) months from its effectivity.

Sec. 10. Compliance Report. — Within six (6) months from the effectivity of this Act and every six (6) months
thereafter, all government departments, including its agencies and instrumentalities, shall submit a report to
Congress on their compliance with this Act.

Sec. 11. Separability Clause. — If for any reason any section or provision of this Act is declared unconstitutional or
invalid, the other sections or provisions hereof which are not affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and
effect.

Sec. 12. Repealing Clause. — The provisions of Republic Act No. 386, otherwise known as the Civil Code of the
Philippines, as amended, and of Executive Order No. 209, otherwise known as the Family Code of the Philippines, and
all laws, decrees, executive orders, proclamations, rules and regulations, or parts thereof, inconsistent herewith are
hereby repealed.

Sec. 13. Effectivity Clause. — The rights of women and all the provisions of this Act shall take effect
immediately upon its publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

GEC ELEC |
Beijing Platform for Action GENDER AND
SOCIETY
9|Page
 The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action or BPfA is a landmark document for
advancing the rights of women and gender equality worldwide agreed during the 4th World
Conference on women in 1995. The international community came to a consensus and agreed to a
comprehensive blueprint of commitments supporting the full development of women and their
equality with men in 12 areas of concern: (1) women and poverty; (2) education and training of
women; (3) women and health;
(4) violence against women; (5) women and armed conflict; (6) women and the economy; (7) women
in power and decision-making; (8) institutional mechanisms; (9) human rights of women; (10)
women and media; (11) women and the environment; (12) the girl child.
The BPfA affirmed the principles that would govern future actions and strategies for
women, and firmly set in place an agenda for empowering women by integrating their concerns in
national plans and policies. Governments and the UN agreed to promote gender mainstreaming as a
strategy to ensure that a gender perspective is reflected in all policies and programs at the national,
regional and international levels.
For the Philippines, the Beijing Conference broadened the discussions on women’s rights to
include violence against women, women’s leadership and political participation and economic
concerns. It connected what were previously regarded as women’s issues with other pressing
concerns on the environment, human rights, population, and armed conflict. The country also
adopted gender mainstreaming as the strategy to advance women’s rights in the country.
The country submitted its Philippine Progress Report on the Implementation of the Beijing
Declaration and Platform of Action and the Outcomes of the 23rd Special Session of the General
Assembly (2000) or BPfA+20 in 2015. It provided an overview of the major achievements and
challenges since the passage of the BPfA in 1995; updates on the 12 BPfA areas of concern covering
the period 2009-2013; as well as the emerging issues to inform the future process of selecting the
post- 2015 development agenda and successors to the Millennium Development Goals.
In 2019, the State has submitted the BPfA+25 Progress Report which includes an
assessment of current challenges that affect the implementation of the agreements enshrined in the
BPfA. It also highlighted major achievements on gender equality and empowerment of women and its
contribution towards the full realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development through a
gender perspective. The Report was launched officially in August, 2019 as part of the 10th
anniversary celebration of the passage of the Magna Carta of Women.
Republic Act 9710: Magna Carta of Women
The Magna Carta of Women (MCW) is a comprehensive women’s human rights law that seeks to
eliminate discrimination through the recognition, protection, fulfillment, and promotion of the rights
of Filipino women, especially those belonging in the marginalized sectors of the society. It conveys a
framework of rights for women based directly on international law.
The MCW establishes the Philippine government’s pledge of commitment to the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women’s (CEDAW) Committee in its 36th Session
in 2006 and to the UN Human Rights Council on its first Universal Periodic Review in 2009. It is the
local translation of the provisions of the CEDAW, particularly in defining gender discrimination,
state obligations, substantive equality, and temporary special measures. It also recognizes human
rights guaranteed by the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).
Salient features of the law include:
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• Increasing the number of women in third level positions in government to achieve a fifty-fifty
(50- 50) gender balance within the next five years while the composition of women in all levels of
development planning and program implementation will be at least 40 percent;
• Leave benefits of two (2) months with full pay based on gross monthly compensation for women
employees who undergo surgery caused by gynecological disorders, provided that they have
rendered continuous aggregate employment service of at least six (6) months for the last twelve
(12) months;
• Non-discrimination in employment in the field of military, police and other similar services that
include according the same promotional privileges and opportunities as their men counterpart,
including pay increases, additional benefits, and awards, based on competency and quality of
performance.
• Provision for equal access and elimination of discrimination in education, scholarships, and
training. Thus, “expulsion, non-readmission, prohibiting enrollment, and other related
discrimination of women students and faculty due to pregnancy out of marriage shall be
outlawed.
• Non-discriminatory and non-derogatory portrayal of women in media and film to raise the
consciousness of the general public in recognizing the dignity of women and the role and
contribution of women in family, community, and the society through the strategic use of mass
media;
• Equal status given to men and women on the titling of the land and issuance of stewardship
contracts and patents.
In addition to guaranteeing substantive rights, the MCW establishes the responsibility of the
government to take actions in order to end discrimination against women. It provides that the
Philippines government must “ensure the substantive equality of men and women” and mandates the
State to take steps to review, amend or repeal existing laws that are discriminatory towards women.
The Government, in its entirety, shall fulfill these duties through the development and
implementation of laws, policies, regulatory instruments, administrative guidelines, and other
appropriate measures. It shall also establish mechanisms to promote the coherent and integrated
implementation of the MCW and other related laws and policies to effectively stop discrimination
against Filipino women.
The MCW mandates all government offices, including government-owned and controlled
corporations and local government units to adopt gender mainstreaming as a strategy for
implementing the law and attaining its objectives. It also mandates (a) planning, budgeting,
monitoring and evaluation for gender and development, (b) the creation and/or strengthening of
gender and development focal points, and
(c) the generation and maintenance of gender statistics and sex-disaggregated databases to aid in
planning, programming and policy formulation.
ASSESSMENT
GEC ELEC | GENDER AND SOCIETY

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