Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — The Gender and Development Committee of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) is carrying out a nationwide campaign to encourage more women to run for public office, a poll official said Wednesday.
Commissioner and Committee Chief Rowena Guanzon said only 20 percent of officials elected in the recent polls are women because male outnumbered female candidates.
“Kapag kaunti lang po ang babae, hindi nakaka-participate ang babae sa development ng bansa. Eh marami naman pong contribution ang mga babae, magagaling naman. At ngayon may mga LGBT [lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders] na babae na magagaling naman. Eh sayang naman po ang kanilang kakayahan kung hindi natin sila kasali. So dapat, inclusive talaga,” said Guanzon.
[Translation: When there are only a few women (who are elected), women are unable to participate in the country’s development. Women contribute a lot, and they are good. And now, there are women among the LGBT community who also excel. Their capabilities would just be wasted if they are excluded. We should really be inclusive.]
Bataan First District Congresswoman Geraldine Roman is seen as a key advocate in this campaign. She is Asia’s first transgender lawmaker.
Roman said she will prioritize bills against discrimination and will push for a more inclusive bureaucracy.
“I was mocked. They tried to convert my gender into an issue but apparently it did not work,” she said of her political opponents.
She expressed confidence she will win the support and respect of fellow lawmakers if she appeals “to the more noble sentiments that are present in every human being, feelings of acceptance, love, and tolerance.”
Roman added she will lobby for civil union rights for same-sex couples, refusing to label it as “marriage” to distinguish it from religious matrimony.
