APL-Women march for human rights, repeat call on Gloria's ouster

APL-Women carry their battlecry as they march against gender oppression and social injustice during women's march against poverty and globalization last Dec. 8

Women workers today staged a march from the Delta area in Quezon City to Plaza Miranda in celebration of international human rights day with a continued call for the ouster of President GMA from office.

"The reappearance of Garcillano has not answered the key questions that underlie the political crisis hounding GMA," said Asuncion Binos-Blance, APL-Women. "In fact Garci's lies at the House hearings on the wiretap controversy has only convinced us further that they are indeed conspirators, this time towards deceiving the people into thinking her alleged rigging of the 2004 elections is no big deal," she added.

"But the truth is, the issue is much much bigger than just her legitimacy," said Fatima Cabanag, Chairperson of KAMAO (Kapisanan ng mga Maralitang Obrero), an urban poor organization affiliated with APL. "It is the continued violation of women's rights under her leadership, which is not only undermined by her illegitimate claim to the Presidency, but by her blind adherence to neo-liberal economic policies that continue to keep millions of women workers in dire poverty," Cabanag added.

"We worry for our families as we see the value of our money shrink with the continued rise in the prices of basic commodities because of the E-VAT, while we continue to pay for higher electricity rates because GMA bungled the energy sector reforms," Cabanag explained.

"She continues to play footsie with American interests at the expense of victims of abuse, such as the Filipina in the Subic rape case," asserted Blance. "Her continued apathy is an insult that while she has time to bask in the glory of our athletes' victory in the SEA games of which she had no part in, she couldn't even spend some time to console with the rape victim."

"Worse she has done nothing to alleviate the situation of poor women workers everywhere. She thumbed down a legislated wage hike while imposing more taxes and has done nothing to protect ordinary workers from abusive employers, paying no attention to legislative proposals protecting workers' rights. Today as we commemorate National Human Rights Week, we take to the streets to expose the country's single biggest threat to the enjoyment of our rights as workers and as women," explained Blance. "GMA is not the only one propelling the country towards disrepute and total ruin, but her continued stay in office is driving us there faster. She must get out and get out quick."