I literally lost my voice on International Women’s Day. I woke up with swollen tonsils and a sore throat due to an allergy. This alarmed me because I was scheduled to speak at the National Women’s Day celebration in Silay City that morning.
Suddenly, everything that I have been meaning to say and share to the audience became secondary. What was paramount at that moment was how I was going to deliver the message? If it was not possible to have my normal voice back, at the very least, I needed to be able to manage to speak and deliver the message, no matter how hoarse my voice was.
Then a thought struck me: no matter how brilliant a woman is or how important it is that she needs to tell the world, if she does not have or is not given a platform on which she can elucidate her thoughts and make her position clear, everything will just be useless – meaningless.
One must have a voice. A woman must have a voice. Her voice must be heard!
And so when I stood in front of a crowd clad in purple and lavender tops on International Women’s Day, I did not let my rough and harsh voice stop me from unapologetically driving my message across: INFORMATION IS POWER. Equal access to information and knowledge is every woman and young girl’s right. For when a woman is deprived of this constitutional right, she is deprived of her right to be educated, discover her potential, harness her talents and skills, dream bigger dreams, express her opinions, assert a point and showcase her abilities and greatness. But most importantly, when a woman is not given full access to information, knowledge will not set in which will make it impossible for her to make the sound decisions.
I felt relieved when I started to hear every word that was coming out of my mouth less muffled, getting clearer and stronger. My experience can be likened to that of being able to verbally express your thoughts and opinions after being gagged for some time.
I urge mothers and fathers to not be the ones to tell their daughters to settle for less because they lack in material wealth. Women, differently-abled or typical, should not be the ones using their condition as an excuse to not aim for excellence, participate in politics, take part in nation building and become an influencer or an innovator. It is us, mothers, who must empower our daughters by giving them access to information, knowledge and everything that can mold and prepare them for challenges and opportunities.
Parents must be intentional in raising all the girls and young women in our families in order for them to become driven, hardworking, innovative, skillful, assertive, ambitious and conscientious women leaders of the future. Our girls must be empowered! They should not let anything or anyone keep them from speaking up against abuse, pointing out what needs to be rectified, spearheading advocacies that are meaningful and worthwhile, and demanding accountability from those in power. Let us teach them how important their voices are and why they must put it to good use.
Should society and organizations choose not to recognize our voices, let us not be discouraged. Instead, let this propel us to create platforms where we can present our causes and urge authorities and other stakeholders to take action so that we can finally put an end to gender-based violence, gender pay gap and lack of education for women.
As the Carter Center, a non-government organization that helps improve lives by resolving conflicts, advancing democracy and preventing diseases puts it, “Every citizen’s fundamental right of access to information is critical for both the government and the people it serves. It is particularly crucial for women because it gives women the voice, enables them to take an active participation in public life, access public services with ease and make the best decisions”. These decisions they will not only make for themselves but for their families and their communities as well.
But the fact remains, for many women, the power of information is still beyond their capacity to attain.
The NGO emphasizes “while women are often responsible for earning income and taking care of their families, they are less likely to demand access to information. That is why, most often, women are more likely to be poor and illiterate and less likely to use their voices, less likely to participate in governance, politics, advocacies and the like”. And when someone is deprived of learning, one becomes more susceptible to corruption, abuse and manipulation.
Atty. Andrea Lizares-Si, chair of the Provincial Council for Women emphasized that women have not won the battle yet where gender equality is concerned. Si explained that while March 8 is a day of celebration for women, every woman must not forget that the battle is yet to be won.
“But we should not forget that International Women’s Day is still a day for protest and for pushing for equality. Most low-paying work is handled by women. Why? Because we are quick to volunteer. We pick up where men will not do the work. It is also said that 1 out of 3 women are victims of violence. If you look at the composition of our legislative body, even looking at the local officials, statistics show that women do not even comprise 30% of those who have a say in government,” said Atty. Si.
She and fellow women leaders and advocates attended the solidarity program for women organized by the Gender and Development Focal Point Systems of Negros Occidental and Bacolod City in a mall in Bacolod Wednesday.
P3PWD Partylist Rep. Rowena Guanzon also graced the occasion. Guanzon is happy that the Provincial Government observes inclusivity in all of its programs that aim to empower members of different sectors like differently-abled women.
“I am glad that women with disabilities are included in the programs of the Provincial Government. I hope they will also benefit from skills training, literacy programs and livelihood projects,” said the solon.
The World Economic Forum forecasts that it will take another century before economic gender equality is achieved. But a report published by the UN Women and the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) in September 2022, stated that without investment, it will take nearly 300 years before the gender gap is fully closed.
It is still a long process and the global struggle of women continues. But looking back to the mid-19th Century, when the fight for women’s suffrage in the United States began, I can say, we have come a long way in our initiatives to empower women and give our sector a platform where our collective voice can be heard, LOUD and CLEAR.*
