On the first day of a 18-day global campaign to end violence against
women, feminist groups in the Philippines highlighted the call for a permanent
ceasefire as a step towards a permanent solution to the question of Palestine.
“War is violence against women. It is as clear as day in the ongoing
hostage and prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas that women are
disproportionately victimized in war. The history of conflicts reveals this
ugly truth. Thus, we call for a stop to the war in Palestine and elsewhere. And
demand a just peace,” argued Judy Ann Miranda, secretary general of Partido
Manggagawa (PM). PM is among the groups that participated in today’s activity.
A hundred women leaders from various organizations that comprise the
World March of Women-Pilipinas marched to the grounds of the Commission of
Human Rights today for a rousing and festive program to launch the violence
against women campaign. Community assemblies in several working class areas in
Metro Manila followed later in the day.
The launch of the campaign served as an opportunity for women to raise
the urgent call for solidarity to the people of Palestine. In the statement
released for the event, the World March of Women-Pilipinas, stated that
“Israeli forces through persistent bombings on Palestinian communities,
kill[ed] more than 14,000 Palestinians. Most hurt were women and children, as
hospitals were also bombed. World March of Women members in Palestine were [also
among those] attacked.”
“The so-called humanitarian pause should give way to a sustained
ceasefire in both Gaza and the West Back. A permanent ceasefire then enables
political negotiations to end the Israeli occupation of Palestine,” Miranda
explained. The women’s groups’ call for solidarity with Palestine is part of a
sustained advocacy by social movements, trade unions, human rights
organizations and grassroots communities in the Philippines.
Next week, on November 30, which is a traditional day of mobilization
for workers in the Philippines, trade unions along with other civil society
groups will also underscore the demand for a permanent ceasefire and a stop to
the genocide in Palestine. Today, a rally is being held in Manila by Muslim and
Christian organizations together with progressive groups. The mobilization is
billed as a march for peace and justice in Palestine.
All these solidarity actions build upon earlier activities by numerous
organizations in different parts of the country, including in the southern
island of Mindanao which has a substantial Muslim population. Among those
actions was a rally outside the Catholic Church in Manila last November 4 which
was a local response to the call by the International People’s Assembly for a
global day of action for Palestine.
“The drums of war are beating so hard that they are not only
deafening but are inciting harm and violence against women,” according to the
World March of Women-Pilipinas. It added
that “Historically, women and children suffer the most during war in the
form of hunger, sexual assault, physical violence including unjust imprisonment
as hostages of warring parties, loss of home and of family members.”
Miranda
averred that “Women also do not want to be caught in the middle of the US and
China conflict. We call for a peaceful solution to the West Philippine Sea
issue. Through negotiations among the claimants, we want to guarantee the right
of fishers, Filipinos and other nationalities, to gainful livelihood in what
should be treated as common fishing grounds.”
Tensions in the South China Sea are escalating with the
United States forming various military alliances such as the Quad and the AUKUS
in a bid to contain China and maintain control over the busy shipping lanes in
the region. The Quad is an alliance between the US, Japan, Australia and India
while AUKUS unites Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Recently the US has avowed that it will respond
to an attack on Philippine ships in the disputed sea according to terms of a
mutual defense treaty. Meanwhile, talks are ongoing for a visiting forces
agreement with Japan.
The threats of war in the South China Sea has
become a convenient pretext for an influx of the American soldiers and weapons
to the Philippines. In 1991, US military bases in the country were kicked out
in the culmination of a long struggle led by progressive movements to assert
national sovereignty and an independent foreign policy. However, the war on
terror opened the door for the return of the American military as so-called
“visiting forces.”
The feminist groups recalled that prostitution
and abuse of women and girls flourished around the sites of the former US
military bases in the Philippines. Since the return of US troops in the country,
they have been involved in two separate incidents involving the rape of a woman
and the murder of a trans. All of the accused soldiers are now back in America after
controversial decisions of acquittal or pardon.
November 25, 2023
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