MANILA (Mindanao Examiner / Mar. 8, 2012) – Presidential peace adviser Teresita Deles has joined the celebration of the International Women’s Month and gave her words of inspiration and encouragement to civil workers during a general assembly.
“Women’s Day reminds us that we should celebrate and honor all women who have contributed and sacrificed in the name of peace,” Deles said in a statement sent to the Mindanao Examiner.
“It is also a day to challenge women and continue vigilance so that they can truly participate in sharpening the peace discourse. Women should be able to stand front and center, able to debate the hard issues on the table and bring the yearnings of the rest of the women on the ground,” she said.
During peace briefings and gatherings both here and abroad, Deles champions the work being done by Filipino women on the different peace tables in the country today.
Currently, there are four women working as government peace negotiators – Jurgette Honculada, veteran labor and women’s rights advocate; and Maria Lourdes Tison, civil society peace and environment advocate; Miriam Ferrer, an academician and human rights expert; and Yasmin Lao, a peace and gender justice advocate.
Working behind the peace tables are several government panel secretariats headed by women – Carla Villarta for talks with communist rebels; Iona Jalijali for talks with Muslim rebels; Susan Marcaida for the review process of the implementation of the 1996 peace agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front, and Gettie Sandoval for the closure process with the Cordillera People’s Liberation Army. The legal staff of the government panel for Moro Islamic Liberation Front talks is also headed by a woman, Johaira Wahab.
During the general assembly, Deles also commended the work being done by women on the ground.
“We know that the ground women are always there. Those who are in PAMANA know that there are barangay captains, mayors (who are women). Increasingly, women are taking those formal roles on the ground. They are the ones who ensure that there is feeding, shelter,” she said.
PAMANA, which stands for Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan (Peaceful and Resilient Communities), is the government’s program for peace and development in areas affected by conflict, as well as communities covered by existing peace agreements.
Deles said that women should remain active in taking on formal roles, stressing they “should not be invisible” because it is in these roles where they act as “provider, healer, organizer, peacemaker, peacekeeper, even combatant and fighters.”
She closed her message in hopes that “more women will emerge and be recognized for their fundamental nature that is nourishing, nurturing, resilient and peace-loving.”
March 8 marks the celebration of International Women’s Day. This year’s theme is “Women Weathering Climate Change: Governance and Accountability, Everyone’s Responsibility,” which focuses on women’s rich contribution in climate crisis currently experienced globally.
20