Thursday

CHILDREN SPANKING, PENDING AT PHILIPPINE CONGRESS: It's about time!

Thursday

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) lauded the passing of a bill that penalizes spanking or hitting children as a form of discipline.


The Positive Discipline Act of 2011 passed the first reading at the House committee on the welfare of children. The bill is co-authored by Tarlac Representative Susan Yap and Bagong Henerasyon Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy.

The said bill promotes positive and non-violent forms of disciplining children.

High profile cases of child violence and beatings prompted Congress to act with a proposed legislation to assist parents in fulfilling their parental authority while upholding children's rights.

Once approved into law, the bill mandates a comprehensive program to protect children from all forms of physical or mental (psychological) violence, injury and neglect.

"At most the punishment would be an aresto major, which includes one to 60 days of imprisonment but for cases like this, usually the DSWD (Department of Social Work and Welfare) intervenes to reorient the parents on how to handle their children," said Herrera-Dy.

A study by Plan International, the United Nations Children's Education Fund (UNICEF) and Australian Aid (Ausaid) showed high incidence of school children being subjected to physical punishment to discourage misbehavior.

As defined under the bill, positive and non-violent discipline refers to "an approach to correct the behavior of a child and to teach a lesson that would build self-discipline and emotional control while nurturing a good relationship with the child by understanding his or her needs and capabilities at various ages".

The Department of Education has affirmed its support to the bill and has likewise initiated some actions together with UNICEF that would address violence against children not just in school but at home.

"Evidence stress that violence against children is harmful as it impedes their development and has negative impact on their childhood," noted Child Rights Network (CRN) co-convenor Selena Fortich. "This is an opportunity for the Philippines to be in the forefront of the advocacy to institutionalize and promote positive and non-violent ways of discipline for children."

* * *

By Anna Valmero, loQal.ph -- loQal.ph is a website owned and operated by Filquest Media Concepts, Inc. It works under the principle of giving voice to the voiceless, empowering Filipinos and uplifting the image of the Philippines by highlighting its unique culture. To do this, the loQal.ph team produces stories, video, photos and other multimedia content types to inspire and celebrate Filipino achievements, ideas, products and places.

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Tuesday

Iglesia Ni Cristo's stand on the RH Bill: THEY ARE IN FAVOR

Tuesday

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Monday

DSWD'S DINKY COMPLAINT AGAINST WILLIE REVILLAME: Again?

Monday

28 March 2011
  
MR. MANNY V. PANGILINAN
Chairman
ABC Development Corporation
  
Dear Mr. Pangilinan:

This is with regard to the 12 March 2011 episode of your show “Willing Willie”, which was brought to my attention by several concerned citizens and groups. In the said episode, a six year-old boy named Jan-Jan Estrada was made to repeatedly perform dance moves usually done by adult dancers in indecent shows. The poor child was in tears and looked scared the entire time, as show host Willie Revillame poked fun at him and the audience laughed and cheered.


Under Republic Act No. 7610, also known as "Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act”, the term “child abuse” includes the following acts: “psychological and physical abuse, neglect, cruelty, sexual abuse and emotional maltreatment,” and “any act by deeds or words which debases, degrades or demeans the intrinsic worth and dignity of the child as a human being.”

Given that definition, it is unmistakable that what happened last 12 March 2011 to Jan-Jan Estrada was child abuse.

Persuading a little child to dance sexy adult dances in exchange for a measly sum, while he is being laughed at and ridiculed will definitely traumatize the child. What kind of values are we teaching our children through these shows, especially after Willie Revillame pushed Jan-Jan to do something against his will and then told him that it’s alright because he will receive money in exchange for it?

Given the foregoing, I am requesting that:

(1) Young children not be allowed to appear in Willing Willie and other similar shows in the network that cashes in on poverty;
(2) Host Willie Revillame be rebuked for his insensitive and deplorable actions.

There are limits to children appearing on television, and clearly, your 12 March 2011 episode did not respect the rights of the child and traumatized the six year-old boy. I also wish to raise my concern that the show tends to cash in on the plight of the poor. There are other ways of helping the poor without having to degrade their dignity and earn money out of it.

I hope you can act on this swiftly and I would appreciate a response from your good office.

Thank you.
  
Very truly yours,
  
(sgd.)CORAZON JULIANO SOLIMAN
Secretary

Cc: Mary Grace Poe-Llamanzares,
Chairman, MTRCB


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Saturday

GREENBELT MALL PROHIBITS POOR PEOPLE? That's what the sign said

Saturday
“This is a private, controlled environment. Poor people and other 
disturbing realities strictly prohibited. 
Thank You!”

This sign was allegedly seen posted at the Greenbelt in Makati, owned by the Ayala Land Corporation and it elicited a lot of adverse reactions.

The Ayala Land Corporation was quick to react and issued this statement: 
“This is regarding the alleged signage that has been posted today, 
24 March 2011, at the Greenbelt Mall, a photo of which has been 
circulating online. This signage is not authorized and is not part of 
Greenbelt ’s official mall signage.We would like to reassure everyone that 
Greenbelt is for the enjoyment of the public and the community it serves.
The Ayala Malls Management does not tolerate any pranks. 
We shall be coordinating with the proper authorities for corresponding 
actions to be taken.”

The management insisted that it was a hoax, many have read it already before it was taken away. So, what do you think? Who's telling what? 

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I still have sex with my gay husband


Your Life - 10-03-11 - Still married to gay husband
by Joe Mellor, Daily Mirror
To the people in their village, Karl and Janet Lacks seem like the perfect couple. They have been married for almost 30 years, have four gorgeous kids and live in a stunning country cottage.
But things aren’t that simple because for seven years Jan has been sharing her husband – with other men.
She hasn’t left him. She hasn’t punished him for his betrayal. She has accepted the fact that he is attracted to men and done all she can to make him happy. She has allowed him to sleep with other men and continues to sleep with him herself.
“It seems incredible, but I didn’t know what else to do,” admits Jan, 55. “I didn’t want to lose him, and this was the only compromise I could think of.”
Karl’s revelation in 2003 can’t have come as a complete surprise for Jan because, before the couple married in their 20s, he admitted he had slept with someone else before her – a man. “I was shocked,” recalls Jan. “But we were so much in love I was sure I could make it work.”
The couple made a life in the West Midlands, and while Jan brought up their daughters, Karl was the breadwinner as a warehouse worker. Things went unremarkably for more than 20 years, until Karl dropped his bombshell.
“He told me he couldn’t hide his feelings any more,” recalls Jan. “He said he needed men for a physical relationship. I was numb. Why wasn’t I enough for him? I knew our sex life wasn’t quite right, but I never thought it would come to this.
“I was upset, but resigned to make him happy. I accepted what he said. That night we stayed together. He was still my husband. We talked and decided he could seek out someone to help with his feelings.”
The couple agreed Karl should use internet dating sites to find gay men for sex.
After a few weeks he met up with several men on separate occasions, but there was no spark between them. Then he met 17-year-old Joseph. The pair fell for each other and soon were in a fully-blown emotional and physical relationship. Jan’s plan to keep Karl sexually satisfied and emotionally loyal to her had backfired.
“He had fallen for a boy who was younger than our daughters,” recalls Jan. “Karl’s being gay made me question myself and my femininity many times. But for me Karl’s best interests were paramount. I was heartbroken to think that he had fallen in love with someone else.
“It felt as if everything I believed in meant nothing – the home we made, the family we cherished, the dreams we shared, were all a lie. He had been living a lie, but then again, so had I.
“He said their relationship was more than sex. He was physically and emotionally attached.
“I was so hurt,” she says. “I could just about cope with his physical relationship but when he actually fell in love with Joseph it felt like he had betrayed me. I was really sad. Our shared history and family meant nothing.”
Finally, the couple decided to separate, and Karl moved into a small cottage on his own. Jan also found a lover on an internet dating site and they started an intense but sporadic sexual relationship, which left her feeling more lost and disillusioned than she had ever felt.
She was also going through financial difficulties, so when the lease was up on Karl’s cottage, he asked if she and the girls would like to live with him again. At the time he was severely disabled with arthritis and Jan was glad to help him through two hip replacements. 
“When I saw how brave he was during those operations, I realised that I cherished the time we spent together, and that I wanted Karl and I to grow old together,” says Jan.
Their relationship certainly wasn’t conventional – the whole family knew it. But somehow it felt right. Jan had been sad, angry and even jealous at times. But she still felt there was something worth saving.
“When we were together we just felt comfortable. I guess love is a strange emotion and one you can’t control.”
Then, in 2005, Joseph dumped Karl. Jan was torn between relief and pity.
“He stood there in floods of tears. I walked over and held him in my arms. I still loved him so much,” she says.
The next day, the couple decided they needed a fresh start and began looking for a new home.
“We found a cosy little cottage just down the lane. It was a symbol that things were going to change,” says Jan.
As difficult as it might be to understand why Jan would choose to stay in a relationship with a gay man, she insists it felt like the most natural solution.
“There has been no blaring Scissor Sisters music, or donning of feather boas and pink cowboys hats,” she says.
“Karl was a regular husband and dad without a camp bone in his body – and still is. Of course I wish Karl was straight, but the fact is he’s not, and I’m still proud to call him my husband.
“When I look at Karl I see the man I married. Just because he is attracted to men doesn’t mean he and I can’t be a couple.”
Jan and Karl still sleep with each other, even though she knows he has sex with men. “It’s hard for me because I know he has been with other partners – male ones at that – during our marriage. But when the bedroom door is closed the only people who matter are me and him.”
Karl, 55, has known he is gay since he was about 11.
“These days, if you come out people as gay hardly bat an eyelid. But everyone I grew up with was homophobic, including my parents,” says Karl.
“My mother couldn’t understand how a man could be in a sexual relationship with another. There was no way I could tell her I was gay and she still doesn’t know.”
Karl says living life as a straight man was a conscious choice he made in his 20s.
“Somewhat immaturely, I made the decision that I wasn’t going to be gay. I wanted a family.”
So did he take advantage of Jan’s love for him to make a cover for himself?
“I didn’t use Jan to start a family,” he insists. “I genuinely loved her and still do, and in the early days we had a healthy sex life. I genuinely tried to put aside the feelings I had towards men, but every now and then they would re-emerge.
“When Joseph came into my life, I tried to fight it with all my heart. He was a teenager and I was a married man. The guilt nearly killed me. He was everything I never was, but wanted to be. He was open about being gay. I envied him. When he left me I was heartbroken.
“My relationship with Jan, like any other, is all about compromise, and this is more than any man could expect his wife to compromise on.
“I’m very lucky indeed to have such a wonderful woman in my life.”

SOURCE: http://www.mirror.co.uk



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Wednesday

A SALUTE TO A GRACIOUS AND WONDERFUL SELFLESS WOMAN - ELIZABETH TAYLOR

Wednesday

Screen legend Elizabeth Taylor, died early today from congestive heart failure at Cedars Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles. She was surrounded by her four children.
Taylor was 79.
Taylor was an ally to the LGBT community, and worked tirelessly on behalf of AIDS-related charities and fund raising. She helped start the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) after the death of her former co-star and friend, Rock Hudson.
She also created her own AIDS foundation, the Elizabeth Taylor Aids Foundation. By 1999, she had helped to raise an estimated $50 million to fight the disease.
Taylor won two Academy Awards, both for Best Actress — for “Butterfield 8″ (1960) and “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf” (1966) — and in 1992 was awarded the Jean Herscholt Humanitarian Academy Award for her work fighting AIDS.
She was hospitalized six weeks ago with congestive heart failure, “a condition with which she had struggled for many years,” according to a statement from her publicist.
In addition to her four children, Taylor is survived by 10 grand children and four great grandchildren.
May she rest in peace.(http://www.lgbtqnation.com)

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Saturday

MY STORY: END DISCRIMINATION TO TRANSSEXUAL WOMEN

Saturday
 By Ms. Bemz Benedito

           These past months have been a hectic one for me at work and my advocacy; I reasonably lost in touch with my sister who also happens to have a demanding work as a pharmacist in a public hospital. And so last night, when at last, our energies and time met and we planned to have some indulging and pampering and consequently, we headed at WENSHA SPA CENTER last March 16 at 12 midnight. We went to the WENSHA SPA CENTER located at Timog Ave. corner Panay Ave, Quezon City.
  
            We merrily entered the spa because of its good ambiance and it was our first time to experience some indulging and pampering at midnight. Actions and occurrences were initially without abrupt turns when we availed for their full packages promo – facial and body massage or foot massage or foot spa.  We were given bracelet keys for our lockers and colored rubber slippers. There was no sign that a deplorable situation will happen later.

            They were still gracious to ask us to proceed at the second floor. We then proceeded at the locker room to change.  At this point we noticed the lady guard at the door, because she was looking at me nastily and maliciously and as if it wasn’t enough she also gawkily watched me change my clothes all throughout.  I just ignored it and let it pass even if I knew I was the only one receiving her odd and awkward stares.

             I then proceeded to the facial room and while my sister went on to have her body massage.  An hour later, I was soothed after my facial treatment which was excellently done by my kind facial therapist, Angel.  My sister also arrived at the facial room to have hers. I told Angel and my sister that I needed to go first to my locker before proceeding to my body massage. I had to get some money for tip. Suddenly, my dear sister followed me and she seemed agitated. I asked her what’s wrong. She swiftly whispered that Angel had told her that there’s a problem because the lady guard and another staff informed her that I cannot have my body massage in the female section but instead I will be transferred to the male section. I felt so hurt and turned dazed and disoriented for a moment. My dear sister held my hands and only then that I regained my focus.  I quickly went back to the facial room and conversed to Angel to get the whole story. The apologetic, accommodating and kind Angel told me that the lady guard had informed her that I cannot be provided service in the female section because I will be sharing a room with other biological women and they might feel uncomfortable.  I also found out that some staff didn’t want me to be there, but rather at the male section. Embarrassed, capsized and distressed, I held back my tears and didn’t want to show any weakness. I remained gallant and unaffected and said my piece:  “This is discrimination. I am a transsexual woman and I deserve to avail of the services that I paid in this area. It will be very unpleasant for me and the men if you will insist for me to transfer. Besides you cannot assume anything unless one of the clients has already complained. “  
  
            The poor Angel was constantly apologetic and tried to pacify me by saying, “Ewan ko sa kanila ma’am, sorry po talaga. Retokada or naopera na daw po ba kayo? But if my vagina na po kayo ay sige po. Okay lang po ba kasi magtatanggal kayo lahat.” (I don’t know what’s wrong with them ma’am. I am really sorry. They were asking if you have undergone any operation, but if you have vagina then it will be fine. Would it just be okay for you to take off everything?)  The entire course of the conversation and questions was so humiliating and degrading so I told Angel that I will not push through with the body massage anymore and I will just settle for the foot massage. I was still hurting and starting to feel so depressed even if Angel accompanied me to the common foot massage section and got an equally kind massage therapist for me. Her name is Monet and I told her what happened. “Kaya pala ako pinaki-usapan ni Angel. Grabe naman sila ma’am”, she said. (That’s probably why Angel talked to me, they are so inconsiderate)I retorted back by saying that I felt bad and that they cannot do this to me. I’m an officer of Ladlad Partylist and this will definitely cause you in trouble. In my thoughts, I didn’t want to create a commotion because it might work against my part, so I remained composed, calm and collected. However, while having my foot massage, I couldn’t any longer take pleasure into it and I wanted to finish it. The violation already sank in my mind and heart. The feeling of unwanted and disrespect pervaded my system.

            After that incident, I asked the receptionist, She Viray if I can talk to the manager. She asked if there was a problem. I narrated to her what happened upstairs. Little did I know that she is aware of what’s happening. She even rudely told me that she didn’t know I was a transsexual woman and have she known she will not allow me. She then continued by saying that the manager is not around. Nonetheless, she called the supervisor on duty, Mr. Elmer Belarmino, who is also a gay man.  I was hoping that he will understand me better but I was mistaken.  He told me that when they called his attention about my situation, he allowed it anyway for the reason that I was already there at the female section. I calmly told him that the lady guard and some staff have already offended me by their attempt to refuse me in the female area and as well to their insensitive questions.

            However, Mr. Belarmino’s concept of transsexualism is someone whose organ is “cut-off” or “naopera” na, in which I informed him that he is using wrong, selective definitions and terms. In Filipino, I lectured him, “transsexual women are those who identify themselves as women and they may choose to express it in different nuances. It doesn’t necessarily mean that they have to undergo surgery. That is our right or your right Mr. Belarmino – to determine your own gender and live by it. I am the chairperson of Ladlad Partylist and we are looking after the welfare of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights. If you can do this to me then how about those who cannot fight and assert for their rights?  Bawal po ang pagtrato ninyo sa amin. Ito po ay diskriminasyon. (You don’t treat us well. This is simply discrimination.)”  To my surprise, his response was way out of context. “Nakita ko nga sa TV yung sa UP, ano yun talagang naopera na?” (Yes, I’ve watched the UP issue in the television, but what it is? Has the person really undergone operation?).  I already felt frustrated and notified him that the UP student he saw is an ally and a sister. I related to him that the UP incident is the same to what happened to me in their spa center.

            I dig deeper and asked him if they have a policy against transsexual women. He said there was none, only that they have a list of 10 policies of those that they will prohibit inside the spa center and maybe we are like number 11 but there is no written rule. It stunned me when he compared me to a drunkard being allowed to the spa center and then the other clients might complain. I told him that it is improper to compare me to a drunkard because I am not one. It is also more unacceptable to compare transsexual women to a drunkard.  

            He further said that he cannot beat the lady guard but can only report the incident. I told him that I don’t wish to harm anyone. All I wanted is that for them especially the lady guard and staff to be more sensitive and aware of people like us rather than offending us or refusing us of services. I also held him and said: “transsexual women like me are here not to steal a look to other women or with a malevolent purpose, but to simply relax and pamper ourselves just like any human being does. Please trust me on this one, Elmer. We are transsexual women living like any biological women. We live, behave, think and feel like a woman. ” I felt so exasperated and annoyed that our discussion is going nowhere. I then bid goodbye, gave my calling card and thank him for his time and that I will take some actions to this one.

            I felt relieved somehow that I was able to gather my temerity and affirm my rights. I tried to be calm and unruffled because I wanted to deliver my message well. I always believe that disagreements can always be discussed by not exchanging in a heated and angrily manner. I don’t also want to berate other people just to declare my rights.  

            I have been exposed to discrimination in the past and no one will ever get used to it. Every time I encounter discrimination, harassment or prejudice it weakens my dignity and sense of self-worth.  I am glad that my dear sister was there to help me appease myself despite of the bigotry. She even intimated to me that she already saw and felt the agony and damage one has to experience when discriminated. She even passionately shared this sad episode to my nieces. My parents and family continue to accept, respect, recognize, and love me as their daughter and sister and I will not allow anybody to overthrow it all.
   
          The assailment of transsexual women in our community is an indication that discrimination is still very rampant. It is also a clear indication that in the LGBT community -- the transgender community is by far the most assaulted and challenged. Our hands are tied because of the absence of an anti-discrimination law and gender recognition law as well.

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Supporting Bemz Benedito; Supporting Equality

Distressing Wensha Spa Center (Outrage Magazine)

 

This is in support of Ms Bemz Benedito, Ang Ladlad chairperson, who had the misfortune of confronting the ugly face of transphobia due to the lack of gender awareness of Wensha Spa Center in Panay Ave. cor. Timog Ave. in Quezon City.

The Human Rights Campaign (www.hrc.org) earlier noted that transgender people are "often targeted for hate violence based on their non-conformity with gender norms and/or their perceived sexual orientation," with approximately 15 transgendered people actually losing their lives every year in the US alone due to hate-based attacks. And while the Philippines does not have the likes of HRC to keep track of hate crimes as they happen in the country, that transphobic acts like Wensha's happen in the country is proof that hatred continues to be directed at those defying heteronormative social dictates.

Before the midnight of March 16, Ms Benedito asked her sister to join her for some pampering at the Wensha Spa Center.  What transpired, instead, was nothing relaxing, but – borrowing Ms Benedito's words – "a test of fortitude."

Ms Benedito was not allowed to occupy the female area by the lady guard on duty for the evening, as well as another staff, since both identified her as a "he".

Recalling her experience later, Ms Benedito said she "capsized and distressed, but stood my ground nevertheless."  Refusing to be bowed, she added: "The transgender community has been assailed lately again but we remain vigorous."

While the people behind Wensha may not be aware of advances in gender discussions – e.g. in 2010, France removed transsexualism from its official list of mental disorders – it ought to know that (just as stated in 2008 by the American Psychological Association) "discrimination and prejudice against people based on their actual or perceived gender identity or expression detrimentally affects psychological, physical, social, and economic well-being."  With the occurrence in Wensha, it had just become a vessel of hatred that is actually detrimental to everyone, not just to Ms Benedito.  After all, wasn't it stated by Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that "injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly"?

Writing the basis for the International Bill of Gender Rights in 1990, JoAnn Roberts Ph.D. rightfully stated that "every human being has within themselves an idea of who they are and what they are capable of achieving. That identity and capability shall not be limited by a person's physical or genetic sex, nor by what any society may deem as 'masculine' or 'feminine' behavior. It is fundamental, then, that each individual has the right to assume gender roles congruent with one's self-perceived identity and capabilities, regardless of physical sex, genetic sex, or sex role. 

"Therefore, no person shall be denied their Human and/or Civil Rights on the basis that their gender role or perceived gender role is not congruent with their genetic sex, physical sex, or sex role."

And just as the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) stated, "The rights to free expression, assembly, and association, are recognized in international human rights law as universal  rights. Specific populations are not excluded  from these rights."

The people behind Wensha need to educate themselves.

And everyone pushing for equality needs to call these people's attention to ensure that they get that education – and hopefully gender awareness – that they badly need.

Reach Wensha at phone numbers (+632) 3751398 and 3725822, or fax number is (+632) 3730617.

Else, let the discontent reach the Spa Association of the Philippines at (+632) 5219904, 4689338; fax (+632) 521-9904; or email spaassn_philippines@yahoo.com.ph.

All forms of discrimination need to be confronted if the intent is the formation of a just and humane society.

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Friday

UP Babaylan Presses for LGBT Inclusive School Policies

Friday


U.P. Babaylan, the oldest LGBT students rights and support group in the Philippines, pressed the university administration of the University of the Philippines to explicitly provide for non-discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identities.

U.P. Babaylan, the oldest LGBT students rights and support group formed in August 1992 and the first organization of its kind to be accorded University recognition, pressed the university administration to explicitly provide for non-discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identities (SOGI) in the university. According to the group, the absence of non-discrimination based on SOGI in university policies result in unequal treatment and various forms of discrimination experienced by LGBT students.

This call came in the wake of the experience of Ms. Hender Gercio, a self-identifying transgender student in the university and a member of U.P. Babaylan. In one of her classes, Ms. Gercio asserted her preference to be called in the pronoun corresponding to her transgender identity which one her teachers denied. When Ms. Hercio lodged the case with the involved department, she was informed that there are no existing university rules covering transgenders.

‘We are convinced that the case of Hender brought to light the necessity to further raise awareness on the issues related to sexual orientation and gender identities. It also surfaced the fact that the University has no explicit policy on non-discrimination. The experience of Hender is not an isolated case. Other LGBT students go through the same experience but are afraid to share their stories precisely because UP has no policies on non-discrimination’ according to Michael Singson, head of UP Babaylan.

Meanwhile, Ms. Gercio said “I am just a girl who wants to study in peace. I hope that this discussion will result in non-discriminatory and gender sensitive policies in the university to protect people like me.”

To shed light on the issues related to sexual orientation and gender identities (SOGI), UP Babaylan and its alumni organization Babaylanes, Inc. initiated the “Rainbow Policies: A Discussion on Gender Sensitive Policies in U.P. Diliman” today, March 11, 2011 at the Recto Hall of the Faculty Center of the state university.

The roundtable discussion aims to raise the awareness of the UP community on issues around sexual orientations and gender identities (SOGI) specifically on transgender concepts, issues and concerns. The discussion also aims to explore the existing UP Diliman policies on non-discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identities.

The roundtable discussion brought together various experts on LGBT and human rights issues. Transgenderism was also discussed from the perspectives of psychology, history and culture, and human rights.

Speakers at the event were Dr. J. Neil Garcia, author of various books on LGBT including the pioneering work “Philippine Gay Culture: The Last Thirty Years”; Eric Julian Manalastas from the UP Department of Psychology; Ms. Naomi Fontanos, Chairwoman of the Society of Transsexual Women of the Philippines (STRAP) and STRAP’s Vice Chairperson and former Pinoy Big Brother participant Rica Paras; UP College of Law Instructor and UP Institute of Human Rights Director Atty. Ibarra Guiterrez; Dr. Sylvia Estrada Claudio of the U.P. Center for Women’s Studies, and former Akbayan representative Ms. Risa Hontiveros. (www.ilga.org)

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Tuesday

IT'S INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY! Cheers to the women!

Tuesday

Each year around the world, International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on March 8. Hundreds of events occur not just on this day but throughout March to mark the economic, political and social achievements of women.
Organisations, governments and women's groups around the world choose different themes each year that reflect global and local gender issues.
THEME: So while many people may think there is one global theme each year, this is not always correct. It is completely up to each country and group as to what appropriate theme they select.
Below are some of the global United Nation themes used for International Women's Day to date:
TO ALL WOMEN ON EARTH, SPECIALLY MOTHERS, WE SALUTE YOU AND MAY GOD GRANT YOU ALL WHAT YOU DESERVE!

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