PHM-Exch> HEAD on International Women's Day 2010

[Claudio Schuftan]

From: HEAD Philippines headphil at gmail.com


   *Health Alliance for Democracy (HEAD)*

*2/F Doña Anita Bldg, 284 E. Rodriguez Ave., Quezon City*

*Telefax: (02) 725 4760        Email: headphil at gmail.com*

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*The Faces of Women*

Statement on International Women’s Day

08 March 2010

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As the world celebrates International Women’s Day, the continuing ordeal of
the 43 illegally arrested and detained health workers highlights the plight
of Filipino women at the hands of a fascist government. It reveals the faces
of women in conflict and in struggle for the genuine liberation of this
nation.

On one hand, there are the 26 women detainees, health workers whose only
crime is to go beyond just caring enough to cure. They are the symbols of
true empowerment: unschooled but not uneducated, marginalized but at the
frontlines of healthcare, and poor but with the wealth of heart and
sacrifice.

These women, and the men who are with them in their incarcerated lives, have
the power rarely afforded today - power drawn from the respect and
recognition given by their people. That they are subjected to abuse and
humiliation in order to break them is testament not only to the integrity of
their empowerment but also to the pathetic feeble-mindedness of their
captors.

Then there are the relatives: mothers, wives, and daughters. They are the
ones who troop daily to Camp Capinpin, endure the snicker and harassments of
the military custodians, calmly listen to the stories of their detained
loved ones, and go home to prepare for the next day’s visit. Theirs is the
strength without a name.

And then there is Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the woman who represents the
prevailing social and sexual chauvinisms of a corrupt, decadent, and
moribund system. Hers is a rule dependent on force - the Armed Forces of the
Philippines and the Philippine National Police - and propped up by her
patron, United States-led imperialism.

That Mrs. Arroyo once turned a blind eye on the rape committed by US
serviceman Lance Corporal Daniel Smith, and now ignores the mental,
physical, and sexual torture perpetrated by her own security forces expose
the cultivated prejudice of her detested leadership.

Today, the Filipino nation raises its clenched fist as a salute to the women
who continue to oppose the fascist US-Arroyo regime.

Today, the continuing detention of the 43 health workers is a rallying
symbol of the historic struggle to reclaim this nation, to attain freedom
and democracy.

The cry of people and their immediate demand echoes true: free the 43 health
workers now!



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*Dr. Geneve E. Rivera*

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*Dr. Gene Alzona Nisperos*

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*Dr. Darby S. Santiago*

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