GABRIELA WOMEN’S PARTYLIST HISTORY

For the most of the Time The GABRIELA WOMEN The General
Assembly Binding Women for Reforms, Integrity, Equality, Leadership,
and Action (GABRIELA) is a leftist Filipino organization that advocates for
women’s issues.
It is a nationwide network of grassroots organizations, institutions, and
programs that address issues such as human rights, poverty, globalization,
militarism, violence, rape culture, health, sex trafficking, censorship and
other issues affecting women, There are regional chapters in Metro Manila,
Cordillera Administrative Region, and Mindanao; sub – regional cahpyers
in Negros, Panay and Samar, and provincial chapters in Bicol and Cebu.
GABRIELA is one of many coalitions with in the Philippines and their
priority incudes many women from different sectors and focuses on the
education and team building of the women in order to advocate for the
many issues they are facing.
GABRIELA was founded in April 1984 after 10,000 women marched in
Manila, defying a Marcos decree against demonstrations amidst a backdrop
of widespread social inequality and unrest, GABRIELA aimed to synthesize
issues of national liberation, poverty and womens emancipation. The
organization’s founders pushed for comprehensive social transformation,
rather than focusing on individual forms of oppression. This came to be
known as Third World feminism. The NGO was named in honor of
Gabriela Silang, a revolutionary Filipina, who led a revol against Spain in
the second half of the eighteenth century. The death of her husband was
the reason she took over his role as the anti – colonialist lead. GABRIELA
has been a monumental party for Filipino women because they challenge a
lot of the patriarchal views placed on them , alongside resisting foreign
influence and neocolonialism. In 2003, the party- list ‘ Gabriela Women’s
Party’ was launched by GABRIELA. In the 2004 elections for the house of
Representatives the party – list got 464,586 votes (3.6518% of the
nationwide ote and one seat; Liza Maza) In the 14 May 2007 election, the
party won 2 seats in the nationwide party – list vote. The Gabriela Women’s
Party was the only women’s paty that was able to obatain a second term in
Congress. In the 2007 elections, the GWP (Gabriela Women’s Party) made
a lot of achievements when it came to representation in the election. It is
important to note that many of the women who have been elected from
the Gabriela Women's Party, are women who have survived abuse in their
life. In the Philippines, GABRIELA is actively involved in awareness
campaigns to prevent the trafficking of women and girls from the
Philippines. Its strategies consist of seminars and information
dissemination to NGOs and government agencies and awareness
campaigns at the community level. GABRIELA Philippines reports that a
Filipina woman sells for between $3000 and $5000 in the international sex
trade.The Gabriela Women's Party launched a campaign against the sex
trafficking issue of Filipino women and children which they called the
Purple Rose Campaign. Not only do they have campaigns such as the
Purple Rose Campaign, but GABRIELA is actively involved in Vow to
Fight (VAW) which is the Vow to Fight Against Violence on Women and
Free Our Sisters/Free Ourselves campaign.