Gabriela Women's Party Southern Mindanao

29/05/2026

Hinggil sa red-tagging ng PNP Cateel laban sa mga lider-kababaihan sa SMR:

Mariing kinokondena ng Gabriela Women’s Party ang red-tagging na isinagawa ng Philippine National Police (PNP) Cateel Municipal Police Station sa pamamagitan ng kanilang inilabas na “Wanted Person Advisories” na hayagang tumutukoy sa mga progresibong organisasyon at lider sa Southern Mindanao Region (SMR), kabilang ang mga kasapi ng GABRIELA-SMR.

Kabilang sa mga ipinaskil ay sina Dra. Jean Lindo, Deputy Secretary General for Mindanao ng Gabriela Women’s Party, gayundin sina Corazon Espinosa at Rose Hayahay ng GABRIELA-SMR. Kasama rin sa listahan ang mga lider at miyembro ng iba pang progresibong organisasyon.

Ang iresponsable at mapanirang hakbang na ito ay naglalagay sa panganib sa buhay, seguridad, at demokratikong karapatan ng mga aktibista, organisador, at tagapagtanggol ng karapatang pantao.

Matagal nang nagsisilbi ang GABRIELA-SMR at iba pang progresibong organisasyon sa kababaihan, manggagawa, magsasaka, kabataan, at iba pang marhinalisadong sektor. Hindi dapat ginagawang krimen ang pagsusulong ng karapatang pantao at kapakanan ng mamamayan.

Dapat may pananagutan ang PNP Cateel Municipal Police Station sa mapanganib na red-tagging na ito. Lalong pinapalala ng ganitong mga hakbang ang umiiral na klima ng takot, harassment, at karahasan laban sa mga kababaihan at mamamayan, lalo na sa Mindanao.

Kasalukuyang pinag-aaralan ng Gabriela Women’s Party at GABRIELA-SMR ang mga kaukulang ligal na hakbang at iba pang paraan upang papanagutin ang mga responsable sa pagpapakalat ng mapanira at mapanganib na materyales na ito.

Kasabay nito, sisiyasatin din namin ito sa mga darating na deliberasyon sa badyet. Hindi dapat ginagamit ang pondo ng bayan para sa red-tagging at harassment laban sa mga lehitimong organisasyon at tagapagtanggol ng karapatang pantao. # #

28/05/2026

Hands off women's rights defenders! Activism is not a crime!

On the malicious "active wanted persons" social media posts of PNP Cateel Davao Oriental against progressive leaders, activists, and human rights defenders in Davao region

It has come to our attention that the Philippine National Police (PNP) Cateel Municipal Police Station published two posts on its official page yesterday (May 27, 2026) publicly tagging known progressive leaders, grassroots activists and human rights defenders in Davao as "active wanted persons." Among those named include GABRIELA-Southern Mindanao chairperson Dr. Jean Lindo, along with the organization's vice chairperson and secretary general and leaders of Gabriela Youth-Davao. As of this writing, the posts have been taken down — but the damage, and the intent behind them, cannot be undone.

This is not an isolated incident. This is part of a systematic and deliberate campaign to vilify, criminalize, and silence the voices of the people — particularly those who dare to speak truth to power and stand with the marginalized. We sound the alarm. We have every reason to believe that these social media posts were a calculated act of intimidation designed to suppress legitimate people's organizing in the Davao region. By publicly branding activists as criminals, the PNP does not protect the public — it endangers our lives, exposes us to harm, and chips away at the democratic space that our people have long fought and bled for.

We strongly condemn this brazen act. It is a direct assault on our fundamental rights to free expression, peaceful assembly, and mass organizing. It is an attack not only on the named individuals, but on every woman, worker, farmer, and youth we served.

Ultimately, we hold the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) and the Marcos Jr. administration fully accountable for enabling, institutionalizing, and intensifying political repression and red-tagging across Mindanao and the entire country — in line with the US counter-insurgency strategy of suppressing dissent and democratic and national liberation movements worldwide. Under the current regime, human rights defenders and activists are continually being branded as terrorists and criminals. State forces are emboldened to harass and threaten those who fight for the people's welfare.

We call on the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) to promptly conduct a thorough and impartial investigation, and to hold PNP Cateel Davao Oriental responsible for this intentional and dangerous act. We likewise call on all human rights organizations, progressive forces, the media, and freedom-loving Filipinos to take notice and stand in solidarity with those being targeted.

For more than 40 years, GABRIELA has stood at the forefront of advancing the rights of women and children in the region — in the communities, in the streets, and in the halls of power. We will not be silenced. We will not be intimidated. We will not back down.

Activism is not a crime. Struggling for social justice and national democracy is not terrorism.

Statement
May 28, 2026

27/05/2026

Tanong-sagot hinggil sa impeachment

21/05/2026

✨GOOD NEWS MGA GWaPa! ✨

Pasado na sa THIRD and FINAL reading ang ating sinusulong na panukalang batas na Expanded Anti-VAWC (E-VAWC) Bill 🔥 Sa ilalim nito:

📌 Mas mahigpit na parusa para sa mga lumalabag, kabilang ang multang hanggang ₱500,000 at pagkakakulong
📌 Kinikilala bilang isang krimen ang hindi awtorisadong pagpapakalat ng maseselang larawan at paggawa ng pekeng account
📌 Kinikilala ang online harassment, stalking, at hacking bilang mga anyo ng karahasan
📌 Nagbibigay ng hanggang 20 araw na paid leave sa mga biktima para sa medikal, legal, at iba pang pangangailangan

✊ Ating panawagan sa Senado: PASS E-VAWC BILL NOW!

20/05/2026

R**e is not a joke.

Mariing kinokondena ng Gabriela Women’s Party ang ginawa ng K5 News FM Bacolod 101.5 anchor na si Jean Paul Generoso kung saan paulit-ulit niyang tinatanong ang isang babaeng mamamahayag kung maaari niya itong “i-r**e” habang sila ay nag-uulat hinggil sa kaso ng pang-aabuso sa kababaihan at kabataan.

Walang anumang konteksto ang maaaring magpagaan sa bigat ng salitang “r**e.” Hindi ito biro o punchline. Ang panggagahasa ay isang marahas na krimen at seryosong paglabag sa karapatan ng kababaihan.

Mas lalong nakakagalit na nangyari ito habang tinatalakay ang isang sensitibong usapin ng pang-aabuso. Sa halip na magpakita ng paggalang at sensibilidad sa mga biktima, ginawa pa itong pagkakataon para gawing katatawanan na lalo lamang nagnonormalisa ng r**e.

Malinaw ring makikita sa video ang pagkailang ng kanyang kasamahan. Ang paulit-ulit na sekswal na komento ay isang anyo ng gender-based sexual harassment na ipinagbabawal sa ilalim ng Republic Act No. 11313 o Bawal Bastos Law.

Ang ganitong klase ng asal, lalo na mula sa mga nasa media, ay may seryosong epekto sa kung paano tinitingnan ng lipunan ang karahasan laban sa kababaihan. Kapag ginagawang katatawanan ang r**e, lalo nitong pinatatahimik at tinatakot ang mga biktimang magsalita at maghain ng reklamo.

Sa panahon ng tumitinding kaso ng karahasan laban sa kababaihan at kabataan, dapat maging malinaw ang paninindigan ng lahat: hindi biro ang r**e. Hindi ito dapat gawing katatawanan, content, o pakulo para sa atensyon.

Nanawagan ang Gabriela Women’s Party ng pananagutan at agarang aksyon upang matiyak na hindi kinukunsinti ang ganitong uri ng asal at pananalita sa media at sa anumang espasyo. # #

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PAHAYAG NG GABRIELA WOMEN’S PARTY
May 20, 2026

20/05/2026

House Assistant Minority Leader and Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Sarah Elago slammed the government’s continued reliance on privatized and market-driven housing programs after a new regional study ranked the Philippines among the least affordable housing markets in the Asia-Pacific region.

Citing the 2025 Urban Land Institute Asia Pacific Home Attainability Index, Elago said an ordinary family in Metro Manila would have to save almost 20 years’ worth of its total income just to afford an average-priced condo unit. The study also showed that average condo rent in Metro Manila is already 41% higher than what a typical family earns in a month.

“Habang tumataas ang presyo ng pabahay at upa, nananatiling mababa ang sahod at walang kasiguruhan sa trabaho. Kaya para sa milyon-milyong Pilipino, ang magkaroon ng disenteng tahanan ay nagiging imposibleng pangarap,” Elago said.

Elago said the findings expose the failure of the government’s privatized and market-driven approach to housing, where private developers continue to dictate prices while ordinary Filipinos are priced out of decent homes.

“The administration boasts about housing targets, but in reality, developers continue to dictate prices while the government merely facilitates private profit through incentives, loans, and public-private partnerships,” she said.

“We need a national public mass housing program that is genuinely people-centered — not debt-driven and not dependent on the private market. It should be anchored on state subsidy, living wages, secure jobs, and accessible social services. Kung kayang bigyan ng gobyerno ng insentibo ang malalaking developer, lalong dapat nitong tiyakin ang abot-kaya, pampubliko, at pang-masang pabahay para sa lahat,” Elago concluded. # # #

18/05/2026

16/05/2026

12/05/2026

✨GOOD NEWS MGA GWaPa! ✨

Pasado na sa 2nd reading ang ating sinusulong na panukalang batas na Expanded Anti-VAWC (E-VAWC) Bill 🔥 Sa ilalim nito:

📌 Mas mahigpit na parusa para sa mga lumalabag, kabilang ang multang hanggang ₱500,000 at pagkakakulong
📌 Kinikilala bilang isang krimen ang hindi awtorisadong pagpapakalat ng maseselang larawan at paggawa ng pekeng account
📌 Kinikilala ang online harassment, stalking, at hacking bilang mga anyo ng karahasan
📌 Nagbibigay ng hanggang 20 araw na paid leave sa mga biktima para sa medikal, legal, at iba pang pangangailangan

✊ Walang puwang ang karahasan sa ating lipunan—online man o offline!

12/05/2026

House Assistant Minority Leader and Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Sarah Elago strongly condemned the recent cases involving police officers accused of abusing women and children. This comes after a police officer in Malolos City went viral for brutally assaulting his live-in partner.

The lawmaker also cited another recent case last January involving a police corporal assigned in Misamis Occidental who was arrested for alleged violations of Republic Act No. 9262 or the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act after reportedly abusing his wife and child.

“Nakakagalit at nakakaalarma na mismong mga taong inaasahang magpatupad ng batas ang sangkot sa krimen ng pang-aabuso laban sa kababaihan at mga bata. Ang mga pulis na gumagamit ng kanilang kapangyarihan upang manakit ay walang lugar sa serbisyo publiko,” Elago said.

Elago stressed that violence committed by men in uniform creates an atmosphere of fear among survivors seeking justice, especially when perpetrators belong to institutions tasked with ensuring public safety.

“Kapag ang abuser ay may uniporme at armas, mas tumitindi ang takot at hirap ng mga biktima na lumaban para sa hustisya. Hindi dapat manaig ang culture of impunity sa loob ng institusyon,” she said.

“Hindi sapat ang restrictive custody o administrative sanctions lamang. Kasong kriminal ang pananakit at pang-aabuso sa asawa sa ilalim ng Anti-VAWC law, kaya kailangang makasuhan ang perpetrator at mabigyan ng karampatang suporta ang mga biktima,” Elago emphasized.

Gabriela Women’s Party urged the public to continue speaking out against violence and to support survivors in pursuing justice despite intimidation and institutional barriers. # # #

12/05/2026