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To the Filipino Youth: Don’t throw away your chance at an Education

To the Filipino youth: Please do not throw away your chance at an education. The Declaration of the Rights of the Child adopted by the United Nations guarantees the right to an education. And yet across the world, million of young people will never leave a life of poverty due to the lack of  education. [...]

IPU Conference on Gender and Politics: At the Houses of Parliament in London

Across the world, women continue their struggle to be heard. The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU)’s Annual Report  on Women in Politics 2012 states that the world average percentage for women in national parliaments is 19.7%, with the Nordic countries having the highest average at 42% and the lowest being in the Arab States.   As the [...]

Ten facts about the RH Bill

Last year, I sponsored Senate Bill No.2865, otherwise known as the Reproductive Health Bill. It went through the process – we had hearings, then we made our committee report , which embodies SB 2865. Since then, there have been many questions raised by the public and rightly so, given that intelligent debate and discourse are [...]

Every child deserves a 5th Birthday: Child Survival Call to Action

On June 14 and 15, 2012 delegates from all over the world met in Washington DC to renew their commitment to ending preventable child deaths as part of the Millennium Development Goals.   I was one of those delegates from the Philippines, along with Dr Eric Tayag , Assistant Secretary of the Department of Health. Child [...]

Senate's Launch of our Film Showing on the State of Maternal and Child Health

8 March 2011 Senate of the Philippines Film Showing on the State of Maternal and Child Health Last March, in  celebration  of Women’s month, my office and the Senate, in cooperation with Mu Sigma Phi Fraternity of UP Manila College of Medicine, hosted a  film showing on women’s lives. The films which include a documentary and short [...]

Good Morning Cebu City Lights

On July 5, 2009, I woke up to the beautiful Cebu City lights. It was 4:15 am. That was my wake-up call to get me to the Milo 21k starting line around 5 am. But I jump ahead of my story. This is my usually whirlwind 24 hour trip out of Manila. There were two [...]

My Mom, the wind beneath my wings

      My mom grew up on a farm in Michigan. She met my dad when they were both studying in the University of Michigan. A few years later, she left the only country she knew and migrated to the Philippines, a country with a different culture, lacking in modern facilities that she was accustomed [...]

Parliamentarians Meeting (Part 2 of my Ethiopia trip)

I never thought I would find myself in Ethiopia. But then again I never imagined I would be a senator. So, here I am a senator representing the Philippines and presiding over the meetings of women parliamentarians of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). I was elected President last year in South Africa and as such, travel [...]

Pinay in Action All Women's Run 2009

Every year I am asked why do a run to celebrate women’s month? My answer is because running is empowering. We gain strength and confidence in the company of other women. We feel good when we run. We may be tired, but when we finish our run, we feel accomplished, proud and happy! A lot of [...]

Women: The Unpaid Worker

All over the world, women perform unpaid work as homemakers and care-givers. Imagine this: Ms. A is a mother and takes care of her three kids and her elderly parents. She cannot work outside the home. Compare this to another woman, Ms. B who works outside her home. Ms. B cares for the children of [...]