'Magna Carta of Women' bill gets nod

Manila: The House of Representatives has approved a bill aimed at eliminating discrimination against women, especially from the poor and marginalised sectors of Philippine society.

In line with its commitment to uplift the welfare of women and protect them from all forms of discrimination and abuse, the House of Representatives has approved the third and final reading of the House Bill 4273, otherwise known as the "Magna Carta of Women."

Discrimination

According to proponents, the Magna Carta of Women is the first concrete legislation that clearly targets discrimination against women, especially from the poor and marginalised sectors.

These sectors include the urban poor, workers in formal and informal economies, migrants, single parents and the separated.

Basic rights

The 'Magna Carta of Women' emphasises the point that women are not mere reactive beneficiaries of whatever rights the proposed law bestows on them .. but that basic, fundamental rights are rightfully due to them," Representative Nanette Castelo-Daza of the 4th Congressional District of Quezon City, said.

Castello-Daza, Chairperson of the Committee on Women and Gender Equality expressed elation over the approval of the measure which she described as the "local counterpart law of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)."