Women of Power

It just so happened that two papers--Kleine Zeitung of Austria and Manila Bulletin of the Philippines-- had women as subjects in their front pages last Saturday, 06 November.

The Kleine Zeitung featured six women with political power in their respective countries:  Angela Merkel of Germany; Mari Kiviniemi of Finland, Julia Gillard of Australia, recently widowed Cristina Kirchner of Argentina, president-elect Dilma Rousseff of Brazil, and Laura Chinchilla of Costa Rica.

"More and more women come to power, do they govern differently from men?," the paper asked political scientist Birgit Sauer.

According to her, the increasing influence and power of women in government in Latin America and in some Asian countries can be traced back to family origins.  "Women from political dynasties have power," she said, citing Cristina Kirchner of Argentina, although "there are also many young democracies in Latin America, where political will to change" is the underlying factor. 

Do women differ from men in policy making? Sauer says yes, but adds that "gender is not a political issue. I know there are no scientific studies on the political behavior of women, but one finds women parliamentarians and ministers no different from men. Politicians are primarily committed to their party.  Women are no different ...I do not expect that men and women are fundamentally different.   For me, behaviors and gender roles are very much determined by context.  The behavior of politicians is shaped by the competitive power-related policy area." 

A woman wants to compete in a game that is dominated by men, do you think that she must follow the rules of men?  Sauer said, "Exactly.   Anyone who embarks on this territory must also adjust to the environment."  

She does not believe that the world would be better off with more women at the helm.  

We checked if there are other women holding the levers of power today; and here they are-- a mix of royalties and those who were elected by popular or parliamentary vote:

"State and Head of Governments Today"

On the other hand, eleven women of power in their careers or fields of expertise were featured in the Manila Bulletin. These were the Philippines' TOWNS (The Outstanding Women in the Nation's Service) 2010' who were honored in Malacanang by the President Benigno Aquino III himself. 

The president called them "inspirasyon kayo ng bawat Pilipino [an inspiration to every Filipino]" and expressed  hope that they will not get tired in giving strength to women affected by poverty and violence.

We are most familiar with Kara David because we do not fail to watch her documentaries in I-Witness of GMA7.  One of them, "Ambulancia de Paa" won the George Foster Peabody Award early this year.  We know that she fully deserves her award for excellence in broadcast journalism.

We met Kara a few years ago when she filmed the release of young turtles to the China Sea and featured it in her documentary on turtle protection and preservation.  Timpuyog Zambales, our NGO, maintains a turtle conservation hatchery in the coastal barangay of La Paz in San Narciso, Zambales.  

The other TOWNS 2010 awardees were:

·  Therese Tianco "Gang" Badoy, founder of Rocking Society through Alternative Education or Rock Ed who  "by nurturing volunteerism, reached out to the youth to empower them and move them to participate in empowering others to uphold their rights to better society."

·  Arlene Javellana Bag-ao, Akbayan party-list representative, and lead counsel in the Sumilao farmers' case, who "by choosing to work at the grassroots level, has helped in the promotion of policy reforms to benefit marginalized groups and thus has given hope to the less educated, less sophisticated, and less protected people of the Philippines."

·  Laura Tenmatay David, the first female oceanographer in the country and a faculty member in the UP Marine Science Institute, who by "using a multidisciplinary approach, has studied how ocean physical characteristics affect productivity and diversity."

·  Jo Enrica Catalla Enriquez, executive director of the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women - Asia Pacific, was cited for "her work [that] has led to the passage of the anti-trafficking law that has provided much needed support for curbing human trafficking and assisting victims."

·  Therese Clarence Arellano Chua Fernandez, president of Rags2Riches, Inc., was cited for creativity in transforming waste materials into high-end designer lifestyle products: "In the process of providing a clear economic and environmental contribution to the country's development, she has been able to put to good use about 700 tons of scrap. This creativity has promoted a positive image of the Filipino's ingenuity in the international scene."

·  Regina Hechanova-Alampay, an organizational psychologist who has worked on the psychology of the Filipino worker, was awarded for "her research [that] provides the scientific bases for provisions and practices in the industrial and corporate settings that are culturally relevant and globally competitive."

·  Carmela Mortillero Lapitan, the first female urologic surgeon admitted as diplomate of the Philippine Board of Urology, a professor at the UP College of Medicine, among others, was recognized for "her work [that] offers treatment to millions of Filipino sufferers of urinary incontinence with quality care."

·  Stella Luz Alabastro-Quimbo, an economics professor at UP Diliman whose research contributed to the creation of the PhilHealth program, was recognized for "her research and publications [that] have provided empirical support for the policy pronouncements of President Noynoy Aquino on the need to achieve universal PhilHealth coverage as soon as possible."

·  Marissa Villafuerte Romero, a senior science research specialist and fellow at the Philippine Rice Research Institute of the Department of Agriculture, was awarded for "her work [that] has led to the improvement of rice quality and better processing of fruits and vegetables that will provide better nutrition for consumers."

·  Myla Cristina Crespo Villanueva, the chief executive officer of Novare Technologies and a pioneer in the Philippine information and communications technology industry, and president of the Global Telcom Women's Network.  The TOWNS award is for "her work [that] entails mentorship of young women telecom executives and developing professional linkages between women CEOs in a male-dominated industry." 

It's amusing to note that PNoy in this pose with the eleven awardees, he has not found an outstanding woman to serve as the nation's First Lady. 

As an end piece, we decided not to clip out the Manila Bulletin's item on Fil-Am judge Tani Cantil-Sakauye who was elected Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court during the US midterm elections on 02 November.  

Women of power indeed! 

Sources: 

1.   Immer öfter: Frauen an den Hebeln der Macht [Tr.: More and more often: Women on the Levers of Power]. (2010, November 05). Kleine Zeitung Online. Retrieved from http://www.kleinezeitung.at/nachrichten/politik/2545176/werden-immer-mehr.story  

2.   Sisante, Jam. (2010, November 05). Kara David, 10 others cited as outstanding women. GMANews.TV. Retrieved from http://www.gmanews.tv/story/205255/kara-david-10-others-cited-as-outstanding-women