Republic Act

9710:
An Act Providing for
the Magna Carta of
Women
THE “BILL OF RIGHTS” OF FILIPINO WOMEN
approved 14 August 2009
.
 R.A. 9710
seeks to eliminate
discrimination against women
by
recognizing, protecting, fulfilling
and promoting the rights of
Filipino women.
These rights include all rights in the
Philippine Constitution and those
rights recognized under the
international instruments signed
and ratified by the Philippine
6 Chapters and 47
Sections
I. General Provisions (Secs. 1-3)
II. Definition of Terms (Sec. 4)
III. Duties Related to the Human
Rights of Women (Sec. 5)
IV. Rights and Empowerment
(Secs. 8-19)
V. Rights and Empowerment of
Marginalized Sectors (Secs. 20-
35)
VI. Institutional Mechanisms
 Among these
rights are:
Non-discrimination in employment in
the field of military, police, and other
similar services
Non-Discriminatory and non-
derogatory portrayal of women
in media and film
Comprehensive health services
and health information and
education
Leave benefits
Equal rights in all matters related to
 Among these
rights are:
* Protection from all forms of violence,
including those committed by the
State
* Protection and security in times of
disaster, calamities and other
crisis situations
* Participation and representation
* Equal treatment before the law
* Equal access and elimination of
discrimination against women in
education, scholarships and training
*
• MCW also guarantees the civil, political and
economic rights of women in the
marginalized sectors
• The law also renames the NCRFW to PCW with
stronger and wider authority and coverage.

• mandates the DOLE, DSWD, CHR, to help

strengthen Philippine foreign posts'
programs for the delivery of services to
women migrant workers.
Challenges:
3. Stakeholders’ responsiveness
4. Translating into action and results – MCW
provisions
5. Providing guidance and inspiration for
other women
– model
“Women hold half the
sky. We have our
just
rightful
and gender-fair
place in a
society.
We should not cease
to struggle for our
rights and freedom.”

Thank
Republic Act
9710:
An Act Providing for
the Magna Carta
of Women
6 Chapters and 47
Sections
I. General Provisions (Secs. 1-3)
II. Definition of Terms (Sec. 4)
III. Duties Related to the Human
Rights of Women (Sec. 5)
IV. Rights and Empowerment
(Secs. 8-19)
V. Rights and Empowerment of
Marginalized Sectors (Secs. 20-
35)
VI. Institutional Mechanisms
 Chapter I: General
Provisions
Declaration of Policy
◦ Affirms the role of women in nation building
◦ Ensures the substantive equality of women
and men;
◦ Condemns discrimination against women, in
keeping with CEDAW and other International
Instruments, consistent with Philippine Law;
◦ Affirms women’s rights as human rights;
◦ Provides for the intensification of efforts to fulfill
its duties under international and domestic law
to recognize, respect, protect, fulfill and
promote women’s rights and freedom,
especially marginalized women, in all fields
◦ Reaffirms the right of women to
participate in policy formulation,
planning, organization, implementation,
management monitoring, and evaluation of
all policies, programs and services that
Chapter I: General
Provisions
Principles of Human Rights of Women
◦ Universal and Inalienable: all human
beings are free and equal in dignity and
rights;
◦ Indivisible: inherent to the dignity of
every human being whether in civil,
cultural, economic, political or social
issues;
◦ Interdependent and interrelated: the
fulfillment of one right often depends,
wholly or in part upon the fulfillment of
others;
◦ All individuals are equal as human
beings by virtue of the inherent dignity
 Chapter II: Definition of

Terms
Defines Discrimination Against Women in accordance with
the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women (CEDAW):
◦ any gender-based distinction, exclusion, or restriction
which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the
recognition, enjoyment, or exercise by women, irrespective
of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and
women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the
◦ political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other
field;
any act or omission, including by law, policy, administrative
measure, or practice, that directly or indirectly excludes or
restricts women in the recognition and promotion of their
rights and their access to and enjoyment of opportunities,
benefits, or privileges;
◦ a measure or practice of general application that fails to
provide for mechanisms to offset or address sex or
gender-based disadvantages or limitations of women
…; and
◦ discrimination compounded by or intersecting with other
grounds, status, or condition, such as ethnicity, age, poverty,
or religion.
Chapter III: Duties Related to the
Human Rights of Women

 Provides that the State, private sector,

society in general, and all individuals
shall contribute to the recognition,
respect and promotion of the rights of
women defined and guaranteed under
the Act.

 TheChapter also includes the following

sections:
◦ The State as the Primary Duty-Bearer
◦ Duties of the State Agencies and
Instrumentalities
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
Human Rights of Women include
all rights in the Constitution and
those rights recognized under
international instruments duly
signed and ratified by the
Philippines, in consonance with
Philippine law, which
shall be enjoyed without
discrimination
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
Right to Protection from
Violence, including those
committed by the State
◦ Incremental increase in the
recruitment and training of women in
fields that provide services for women
victims of gender-related offenses
(50-50 in police force..)
◦ Protection and security in situations
of armed conflict and militarization
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
`(cont...) Right to Protection from Violence,
including those committed by the State
◦ Mandatory human rights and gender-
sensitivity training for all government
personnel involved in the protection and
defense of women against gender-based
violence
◦ Establishment of VAW Desk in every
barangay

 Right to protection and security in times of

disasters, calamities, and other crisis
situations especially in all phases of relief,
recovery, rehabilitation and construction
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
 Right to participation and representation:
includes undertaking temporary special
measures and affirmative actions to
accelerate and ensure women’s equitable
participation and representation in third level
civil service (50-50) , development councils
and planning bodies, international bodies,
political parties, private sector, and other
policy and decision-making bodies.

 Right to equal treatment before the law –

requires review and, if necessary, amendment
or repeal of laws that are discriminatory to
women within three (3) years from the
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
• Right to equal access and elimination of
discrimination in education, scholarships,
and training:

◦ Use of gender-sensitive language and revision of

gender stereotypes and images in educational
materials and curricula
◦ Encouraging enrollment of women in non-
traditional skills training in vocational and
tertiary levels
◦ Outlawing the expulsion and non-
readmission of women faculty due to
pregnancy outside of marriage
◦ Prohibiting schools from turning out or refusing
admission to a female student solely on the
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
• Right to equal participation in sports
– measures to ensure that gender-based
discrimination in competitive and non-competitive
sports is removed so that women and girls can
benefit from sports development
• Non-discriminatory and non-derogatory
portrayal of women in media and film
– to raise the consciousness of the general public in
recognizing the dignity of women and the role and
contribution of women in family, community, and
the society through the strategic use of mass media
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
Right to non-discrimination in
employment in the field of
military, police and other similar
services:
◦ according the same promotional privileges
and opportunities as their men
counterpart, including pay increases,
additional benefits, and awards, based on
competency and quality of performance;
◦ the dignity of women in the military, police
and other similar services shall always be
respected;
◦ they shall be accorded with the same
capacity as men to act in and enter into
contracts, including marriage; they shall be
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
Right to Health
◦ A. Comprehensive Health Services
ensures access to the following
services:
 Maternal care to include pre and post
natal services to address pregnancy and
infant health and nutrition
 Promotion of breastfeeding
 Responsible, ethical, legal, safe and
effective methods of family planning
 Family and State collaboration in
youth sexuality education and health
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
Right to Health
◦ A. Comprehensive Health Services
ensures access to the following
services:
 Prevention and management of RTI,
STD and HIV/AIDS
 Prevention and management of
reproductive tract cancers and other
gynecological conditions and disorders
 Prevention of abortion and
management of pregnancy-
related complications
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
Right to Health
◦ A. Comprehensive Health Services
ensures access to the following
services:
 Services for survivors of VAW
 Prevention and management of infertility
and sexual dysfunction pursuant to
ethical norms and standards
 Care of the elderly women beyond
their child- bearing years
 Management, treatment and intervention
of mental health problems or women
and girls
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
Right to Health
◦ B. Comprehensive health information
and education on all aspects of
women’s health referred to in para. A,
for women in all sectors, with due
regard to:
 Natural and primary right and duty of
parents in rearing the youth
 Formation of a person’s sexuality that
affirms human dignity
 Ethical, legal, safe and effective
family planning methods including
fertility awareness
Chapter IV: Rights and
Empowerment
Right to Special leave benefits
◦ two (2) months with full pay based on
gross monthly compensation, for
women employees who undergo
surgery caused by gynecological
disorders, provided that they have
rendered continuous aggregate
employment service of at least six (6)
months for the last twelve (12)
months;
Chapter IV: Rights and
 Equal rights in all matters relating to
Empowerment
marriage and family relations - the State
shall ensure the same rights of women and
men to:
◦ enter into and leave marriages;
◦ freely choose a spouse and to enter
into marriage only with their free and full
consent;
◦ decide on the number and spacing
of their children;
◦ enjoy personal rights including the choice
of profession, own, acquire, and
administer their property; and
◦ acquire, change or retain their nationality
Chapter V: Rights and
Empowerment of Marginalized
Sectors
Right to Food Security and
Productive Resources, including
equal right in the titling of the land
and issuance of stewardship
contracts and patents;

Rightto localized, accessible,

secure and affordable housing;
Chapter V: Rights and
Empowerment of Marginalized
Sectors
 Right to Decent Work, which include the right
to:
◦ Support services and gears to protect women from
occupational and health hazards taking into
account their maternal functions;
◦ Support services that will enable work and family
life balance;
◦ Union membership;
◦ Respect for the observance of indigenous
cultural practices even in the workplace

The law also mandates to State to:

◦ Ensure decent work standards for women that involve
the creation of jobs of acceptable quality in
conditions of freedom, equity, security, and human
dignity;
◦ Exert efforts to create local employment and other
Chapter V: Rights and
Empowerment of Marginalized
Sectors
Right to Livelihood, Credit,
Capital, and Technology
◦ Equal access to formal sources of
credit and capital;
◦ Equal share to the produce of farms
and aquatic resources;
◦ Skills and entrepreneurship
development of
returning women migrant workers

Right to skills training and

scholarships, especially in research
and development aimed towards
Chapter V: Rights and
Empowerment of Marginalized
Sectors
 Right to representation and participation
in policy- making or decision-making
bodies in the regional, national, and
international levels, including ensuring the
participation of grassroots women leaders in
decision and policy making bodies in their
respective sectors like:
◦ Presidential Agrarian Reform Council and its local
counterparts;
◦ National Fisheries and Aquatic Resources
Management Council;
◦ Community-based resource management bodies or
mechanisms on forest management and stewardship;
◦ National Commission on Indigenous Peoples;
◦ Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor;
◦ National Anti-Poverty Commission; and
Chapter V: Rights and
Empowerment of Marginalized
Sectors
 Right to access to information regarding
policies on women, including programs,
projects and funding outlays that affect them
 Right to Social Protection
◦ SSS and Philhealth support to indigenous and
community-based social protection schemes;
◦ Institutionalization of policies and programs that seek
to reduce the poverty and vulnerability to risks and
enhance the social status and right of the
marginalized women;
 Endeavor to reduce and eventually eliminate transfer
◦ The State
costs of isremittances
also mandated
and to:
provide access to
investment opportunities for remittances in line
 with national development efforts
Establish health insurance program for senior

citizens and indigents
Chapter V: Rights and
Empowerment of Marginalized
Sectors
 Recognition and Preservation of Cultural
Identity and Integrity
 Peace and Development
◦ Participation in discussions and decision-making
in the peace process
◦ Inclusion of women’s concerns in the peace agenda
◦ Consideration for the specific needs of women
and girls in the protection of civilians in conflict-
affected communities
◦ Inclusion of peace perspective in education
curriculum
◦ Recognition and support for women’s role in
conflict- preventions, management and
resolution and peacemaking, and in indigenous
systems of conflict resolution
Chapter V: Rights and
Empowerment of Marginalized
Sectors
 Services
and Interventions for women in
especially difficult circumstances
(WEDC)

 Protection of Girl-Children – measures to

eliminate all forms of discrimination against
girl-children in education, health and
nutrition and skills development

 Protection
of women Senior Citizens from
neglect, abandonment, domestic violence,
abuse, exploitation and discrimination
The Magna Carta of Women also
provides for the:

Recognition and protection of

women’s rights defined under the
Act, including their right to non-
discrimination;
Prohibition of discrimination against
women
Chapter VI: Institutional
Mechanisms
Gender Mainstreaming as a
strategy to implement the Magna
Carta of Women
◦ Assessment and if necessary, modification of
the gender mainstreaming program to
ensure that it will be an effective strategy
for implementing the MCW
◦ GAD planning, budgeting, monitoring and
evaluation
◦ COA’s conduct of annual audit on the use of
the GAD budget
◦ Creation/strengthening of GAD Focal Points
Gender Focal Point Officer in
Philippine Embassies and
Chapter VI: Institutional
Mechanisms
Strengthens the National Commission on
the Role of Filipino women (NCRFW) as
the government's policy making and
coordinating body on women's
empowerment and gender equality
concerns, and renames it to
Philippine Commission on Women
(PCW)
Designates the Commission on
Human Rights as Gender and
Development (GAD) Ombud, to act
on investigations and complaints of
discrimination and violations of women's
 Chapter VI: Institutional
Mechanisms
Penal provisions
◦ If the violation is committed by a government agency or any
government office, including government-owned and
controlled corporations and local government units, the
person directly responsible for the violation, as well as the
head of the agency or local chief executive shall be
held liable under the Magna Carta of Women. The sanctions
under administrative law, civil service or other
appropriate laws shall be recommended by the
Commission on Human Rights to the Civil Service
Commission and the Department of the Interior and
Local Government. Further, in cases where violence has
been proven to be perpetrated by agents of the State, such
shall be considered aggravating offenses with
corresponding penalties depending on the severity of the
offenses.

◦ If the violation is committed by a private entity or

individual, the person directly responsible for the violation
shall be liable to pay damages.
Chapter VI: Institutional
Mechanisms
Establishment
of incentives and
awards systems

Funding: 5% GAD budget to be utilized

for programs and activities to
implement the MCW. The Magna Carta
of Women also mandates the State to
prioritize allocation of all available
resources to effectively fulfill its
obligations under the said law.
Chapter VI: Institutional
Mechanisms
Implementing rules and
regulations shall be formulated
within 180 days after effectivity
Separability clause
Repealing clause
Effectivity clause – the Act shall take
effect fifteen days (15) after its
publication in at least two (2)
newspapers of general
Republic Act No. circulation
9710 was published in the 31
August 2009 issue of the Philippine Daily
Inquirer and Malaya newspapers