our story

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our story our struggle
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• Martial Law was a time of living dangerously
• but the people broke out in revolt.

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• Martial Law steered the participation
• of women to broader and higher
• levels and brought to the fore
• specific issues of women

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• Women workers joined the men in breaking the
  dictatorship.

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• peasant women cry against land
• evictions and militarization

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• female students were joining
• protests against tuition fee hikes
• and campus repression

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• indigenous women with bodies
• naked were chasing military
• troops out of their ancestral land

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• religious women were coming out of their
  convents to join
• protest actions.

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In October 28, 1983 ten thousand women made their
voices heard against the Marcos regimes intense
political repression and the blatant violation
of human rights
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In March 13, 1984 GABRIELA National Coalition of
Womens Organizations in the Philippines was born
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Named after a Philippine heroine who rose up
in arms against Spanish colonizers in the 1700,
GABRIELA stands for General Assembly Binding
Women for Reform, Integrity, Equality, Leadership
and Action.
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Among GABRIELAs founding members were
organizations of women representing the
marginalized sectors of the Philippine society.
But there was also a big number of women from the
middle class and even women from the factions of
the ruling class who were out of power.
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• As GABRIELA chalked up years, so was the rush for
  womens education, felt not only from the women
  but also from the men. Patriarchal structures
  were questioned.

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• Contradictions between men and
• women were viewed in the context
• of the inequity of social structures.
• Imperialism, feudalism and
• bureaucrat capitalism shore up
• patriarchy.

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• Women were mostly the slaves in export processing
  zones.

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The governments family planning program targeted
women as guinea pigs for reproductive
technologies dumped on our laps.
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• The export of women was outstripping the export
  of men.
• And sex trafficking became a bigger industry as
  sex tours and trade for mail-order brides
  increased.

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• While GABRIELA draws into its fold all types of
  women, it insists and ensures that the majority
  of its members come from women of the lower
  classes.

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a base that comes from the mass of
women from the working class, the
peasantry, and the lower petty bourgeoisie -- the
masa, or the masses -- that daily give face to
the life of GABRIELA, that give meat and form to
our issues, that are most desirous and resolute
for change.
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• Women who fight to survive, but also survive to
  fight.

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• SAMAKANA blossomed among women in urban poor
  communities.

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• Poor peasant women increased the membership of
  Amihan several fold.

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• KMK set up womens committees in trade unions
  and organized women workers in the absence of
  unions.

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• Thus GABRIELA treats womens issues as peoples
  issues, and peoples issues as womens issues

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• Having the working women on the side of GABRIELA
  compels it to demand from the state agencies and
  its policies to protect them from low wages,
  layoffs and unemployment, cut back in benefits,
  discrimination in employment and promotions.

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• The cry of women peasants
• for land reform has become
• a fundamental concern
• of GABRIELA, as well as national
  industrialization to ensure jobs for all,
  especially for women.

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• Housing, education, health care, human rights,
  justice and peace are as much a concern of
  GABRIELA as are the concern of other peoples
  organizations.

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• GABRIELA exposes and articulates the impact of
  these issues on women.

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GABRIELA made its mark in issues concerning
violence against womenand children
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Campaign against prostitution
Campaign against the military bases agreement
women political prisoners
Campaign against sexual harassmentt
Campaign against disappearance
The fight against violence in women continue to
be specially highlighted in GABRIELAs campaigns
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• Bases campaign highlighting social cost to women
  and children

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• The impact of
• continuing
• government policies
• like LEP coupled with
• the worsening poverty
• in the country drives
• many women to go
• abroad.

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Some of GABRIELAs campaign addressing VAW.
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• Campaigns have a way of
• raising the capability of
• GABRIELA members to do
• its tasks, widen alliances,
• and to add members to its
• roster.

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We highlight issues through discussion series,
theater plays, education sessions, consultations
and forum
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signature campaigns, dialogues, pickets, rallies
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We move around in communities and market places
to do leafleteering and public discussions, and
go from house to houseto gather womens opinion
and hear their voices.
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• We ask the media for help in publishing our own
  literature, optimize the use of emails and the
  internet, and request our networks outside of the
  country for alert action or support.

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• One thing has never failed GABRIELA its
  militance coupled with high doses of creativity
  has become a trademark in its protests.

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• We link up with as many groups
• as possible to find common
• objectives and forms of action,
• and foster cooperation

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through forming alliances with the various
sectors on various issues
Women Working for World Peace
Women Say No To U.S. Troops
Women Watch for Clean Elections
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Our campaign is complimented by direct services
that have throughout the years assisted women and
children victims of violence
shelter
counselling
organizing
Group Therapy
Legal and Medical referrals
Health Training
Medical/service mission
Clinic
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GABRIELA also organized the victims and survivors
of violence against women into support system
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The education and training component of our
services ensures that the women, and men are made
aware of the context of gender oppression and
violence
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• GABRIELA has also inspired support groups and
  networks in many parts of the globe, bringing its
  issues to the international arena and forging
  solidarity ties.

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GABRIELA organizes Women's International
Solidarity Affair in the Philippines (WISAP)
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GABRIELA brings issues of Filipino women in
international fora and conferences
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 GABRIELAs wealth of experience in upholding the
interest and welfare of women, children and the
society is even made richer through its journey
to a new form of strugglethe parliamentary
struggle.
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Victorius children after the 2004 national
elections
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• Gabriela Womens Partylist is the sole womens
  partylist representative in the 13th Congress

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• A national structure
• with local counterparts
• at various levels.

Local Chapters, Desks and Programs form part of
the GABRIELA Local Chapter
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• As of 2003 Congress, GABRIELA has
• 200 member
• organizations in
• 12 regions

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With the strength of our member organizations and
various chapters nationwide and the GABRIELA
solidarity networks worldwide
GABRIELA Solidarity Network-USA
Philippine Women Center- Canada
WEMOVE GABRIELA-Korea
Pinay sa Holland
Pinay sa Canada
Spread in Fourteen (14) regions in the Philippines
Pinay sa Roma
GABRIELA-Australia
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GABRIELA will continue to fight for as long as
exploitation and oppression of women, children
and majority of the Filipino people existfor
twenty years more and over.