The Integrated Gender and Development Division (IGDD) of the city government has cancelled two major events in celebration of the Women’s Month this March.
Councilor Richlyn Justol-Baguilod, chair of the council’s committee on women, children, and family relations, confirmed the cancellation during the media briefing on Wednesday.
The City Information Office (CIO) reported that the cancellation is in compliance with the health department’s advisory on public gatherings due to the threats of coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
The two canceled events are the Women’s Summit and the Women’s Parade.
However, the IGDD will still conduct seminars discussing how to prevent rape and sexual harassment in all villages.
Lorna Mandin, head of the IGDD, said that these orientations will be conducted as part of their vision to empower and educate women on their rights against different abuses and injustices.
She said that annually, more and more reports involving women have been filed in their office, proving that “women are becoming more aware and conscious of their rights.”
Mandin said the most common cases reported are economic abuse; psychological or emotional abuse such as their husbands having an affair with another woman and abandonment; physical abuse; and sexual abuse.
She also stressed that these are not only applicable to married couples, but also for live-in partners or anyone in an intimate relationship.
Mandin said the Women’s Month celebration was “birthed from herstory,” wherein some 15,000 women in America in 1905-1910 protested in the streets against their poor working conditions including sexual harassment, discrimination, among others.
She said the “country and the city is compliant with the issuances that promote the movement of protecting women’s rights.”
Since 1911, the world celebrates March 8 as an International Women’s Day. It was officially commemorated by the United Nations in 1975 and was officially recognized by UN two years later.
“In the Philippines, we have laws recognizing women’s rights. In Davao, we also have the Women Development Code that gives recognition and respect to the rights of women. Through the legislation, it shows that the City is committed to promoting the rights of women,” she said.
IGDD is a division created through City Ordinance No. 5004, otherwise known as the Davao City Women Development Code of 1997.
