08/03/2026
Each day, misogyny continues to manifest in different forms. Sometimes in small, casual remarks that are brushed off as jokes, and other times in large, systemic injustices that shape our laws, workplaces, and institutions. From unequal pay and limited opportunities to violence and harassment. These lived realities remind us that gender inequality is not an abstract nor hidden issue. It is something women experience in their daily lives.
Today, as we celebrate International Working Womenโs Day, we refuse to reduce the struggle for womenโs liberation to flowers, greetings, or empty slogans. The fight for womenโs rights is far from over, and this day must serve as a reminder and call to action to fight against a system that entrenches patriarchal order.
But beyond daily threats, the violence experienced by women often takes deeply political forms. Political repression has significant implications for Filipino women by constraining their opportunities to express dissent, organize collectively, and influence political decision-making. Laws such as the Anti-Terror Law, Memorandum Order 32, and Executive Order 70 have been used to silence dissent and intimidate those who challenge the status quo. Activists, journalists, and community leaders who do nothing but advocate for genuine land reform, better social services, and the defense of human rights have become targets of state intimidation, harassment, and legal persecution aimed at discrediting their work and deterring their activism.
The state similarly exerts control over womenโs bodies through restrictions on reproductive health. Abortion remains criminalized under the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines, punishing women who undergo the procedure and those who assist them. This criminalization denies them control over their own reproductive choices and forces many to resort to unsafe and clandestine proceduresโconsequences that fall hardest on poor women.
Honoring women today demands confronting these realities directly. Every right women hold has been won through struggle, sacrifice, and collective resistance. None of these rights were freely given. Celebrating womenโs achievements requires that we continue to demand reproductive autonomy. To demand accountability from leaders who fail to uphold womenโs rights. To fight for justice for the women unjustly detained by the fascist state. To demand protection from gender-based violence, fair wages, recognition of the labor that sustains households and economies, and all the rights that should have been guaranteed right from the beginning.
When women resist, the people advance.
