82
Rights and Empowerment
lands, territories, and means of subsistence, or relocate
them in special centers for military purposes under any
discriminatory condition.90
The “Philippine Act on Crimes Against
International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other
Crimes Against Humanity” (RA 9851) also declares as
a State policy full respect for the rights of indigenous
cultural communities and other vulnerable groups,
such as women and children.91 It penalizes92 war
crimes, particularly “ordering the displacements
of the civilian population for reasons related to
the conflict,” as well as the “transferring, directly
or indirectly, by the occupying power of parts of its
own civilian population into the territory it occupies,
or the deportation or transfer of all or parts of the
population of the occupied territory within or outside
this territory.”93
Rights to Protection and Security in times of
disasters, calamities and other critical situations
(sec. 10);
and climate change measures are gender responsive,
sensitive to indigenous knowledge systems, and
respectful of human rights.”95 It provides for the
creation of the Local Disaster Risk Reduction
Management Office (LDRRMO) tasked to, among
others, respond to and manage the adverse effects of
emergencies. The LDRRMO must also ensure that
there is an efficient mechanism for immediate delivery
of food, shelter and medical supplies for women and
children and endeavor to create a special place where
internally-displaced mothers can find help with
breastfeeding, feed and care for their babies and give
support to each other.96
Failure of concerned government officials to
comply with the above provisions of RA 10121
constitute dereliction of duty. If their negligence causes
destruction and loss of lives, they can be prosecuted
and meted with a penalty of imprisonment for a
period not less than six (6) months and one (1) day to
twelve (12) years, and/or fined.97
Women have the right to protection and security
in times of disasters, calamities, and other crisis
situations especially in all phases of relief, recovery,
rehabilitation, and construction efforts. The State
shall provide for immediate humanitarian assistance,
allocation of resources, and early resettlement, if
necessary. It shall also address the particular needs of
women from a gender perspective to ensure their full
protection from sexual exploitation and other sexual
and gender-based violence committed against them.
Responses to disaster situations shall include the
provision of services, such as psychosocial support,
livelihood support, education, psychological health,
and comprehensive health services, including
protection during pregnancy.94
The Climate Change Act of 2009 (RA 9729, as
amended by RA 10174), recognizes the vulnerability of
the Philippine archipelago and its local communities,
particularly the poor, women, and children, to potential
dangerous consequences of climate change. Section 13
thereof provides for the formulation of the National
Climate Change Action Plan which shall include as a
component the identification of differential impacts
of climate change on men, women and children.
As amended by RA 10174, the law now requires
gender mainstreaming as one of the components of
the National Strategic Framework and Program on
Climate Change. The laws also identified the different
criteria in the prioritization in the use of the People’s
Survival Fund, one of which is “responsiveness to
gender-differentiated vulnerabilities.98”
The “Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and
Management Act of 2010” (RA 10121) provides that
the State should “ensure that disaster risk reduction
Rights to participation and representation (sec.
11/25)
Section 14 of the MCW requires the state to
90Sec. 9(b), Magna Carta of Women. Emphasis supplied.
91 Sec. 2, RA 9851.
95 Sec. 2(j), RA 10121.
92Sec. 7, id.
93 Sec. 4(c)(16)-(17), id.
96 Sec. 12(c)(16), id.
94Sec. 10, Magna Carta of Women.
98Sec. 24, RA 10174
97 Secs. 19-20, id.
CHR Gender Ombud Guidelines