Women <strong>at</strong> the Forefront:Championing peaceagainst all oddsBy POLLY CUNANANIT WAS ANOTHER HEATED DEBATE.In the hallowed halls of the Sen<strong>at</strong>e, a lawmaker who had immedi<strong>at</strong>ely withdrawn his sponsorship of a proposedlaw th<strong>at</strong> could resolve the 40-year armed conflict in Mindanao took to the plenary floor.In front of reporters and TV cameras, he asked the Presidential peace adviser, Secretary Teresita Quintos Deles,in his typical bluster:“Wh<strong>at</strong> side are you representing sa peace panel? Kayo ni Chair Ferrer, and ni Gen. Galvez? Are yourepresenting the Government of the Republic of the Philippines or are you representing the MILF?”In a mixture of frustr<strong>at</strong>ion and conviction, Secretary Deles, replied:“Of course, your Honor, I am representing the Republic of the Philippines on every occasion... yourHonor.”Another war?More than a month after the tragic incident inMamasapano, Maguindanao, which claimed 67 lives, itseems th<strong>at</strong> another war has ensued. This one, a war ofwords, a decim<strong>at</strong>ion of reput<strong>at</strong>ions, and the Bangsamoropeace process is the l<strong>at</strong>est casualty.With politicos grandstanding in both chambers of Congress;media spouting sens<strong>at</strong>ionalized “news”; and uninformednetizens calling for all-out war from the comforts of theirhomes, noises and cries for blood abound in the publicsphere.In the midst of all these are four women – two Christiansand two Muslims – who, going against popular opinion,have appealed for sobriety and reason. In the process, theyhave been cursed and vilified, but they persist – all in thename of ending an internecine war and finally bringingpeace to Mindanao.Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Teresita“Ging” Deles, Government of the Philippines chiefnegoti<strong>at</strong>or Miriam “Iye” Coronel-Ferrer, and Muslimlawmakers, Maguindanao first district and Cotab<strong>at</strong>o CityRepresent<strong>at</strong>ive Bai Sandra Sema, and Anak Mindanao partylist Represent<strong>at</strong>ive Sitti Djalia Turabin H<strong>at</strong>aman standtall among the few men and women who have openlysupported the call for the passage of the Bangsamoro BasicLaw th<strong>at</strong> is designed to bring peace and development toMuslim Mindanao, the poorest region in the country.Secretary Deles and Chairperson Ferrer seem to possessnerves of steel while Bai Sandra Sema and Sitti DjaliaH<strong>at</strong>aman have shown hearts of gold as they face gre<strong>at</strong> oddsin their fight for peace in Bangsamoro, in Mindanao, andthe entire country.“It’s okay. You don’t need to think of how to defend me,”the soft-spoken Ferrer tells her staff. “It is all part of thejob.”6 KABABAIHAN<strong>at</strong>KAPAYAPAAN March 2015
Deles, Ferrer, Sema and H<strong>at</strong>aman: Standing up for the peace process“It has always been my job to give hope where there isnone,” Deles says. “When I was in Maguindanao recently,a stranger just came up to me and told me th<strong>at</strong> sheappreci<strong>at</strong>es wh<strong>at</strong> I am doing. It is really for them th<strong>at</strong> I dowh<strong>at</strong> I do.”Women championing peaceOne marvels <strong>at</strong> the quiet dignity, grace, and stamina Delesand Ferrer have shown in the hearings conducted by bothchambers of Congress, and the media frenzy as they gothrough interview after interview in an effort to get peopleto understand the high stakes in the government’s peaceprocess with the Bangsamoro.One wonders if other people, men for example, were intheir position, would they exhibit the same level of passionand commitment th<strong>at</strong> these women have shown? Orperhaps the better question is, if they were men, wouldthey have received the same kind of bullying these womenhave been unfairly tre<strong>at</strong>ed to?“Definitely in judging, maligning, demonizing the peaceprocess… We have to admit there is a gender bias there. Ido not think we would have had th<strong>at</strong> kind of viciousnessif it were men in our place,” the peace adviser laments.“Women are always tested harder than men but, I hope, wehave passed so far.”Indeed, if they could successfully end more than 17 years ofpainstaking negoti<strong>at</strong>ions with an armed group, definitelythese women peace champions can steer the peace processto rise above its present quagmire.Ferrer, in fact, foretold this in an early st<strong>at</strong>ement when shesaid, “We know there will be typhoons or flooding along theway. But if we don’t give up, and we stay together, maaabotdin n<strong>at</strong>in ang inaasam na <strong>kapayapaan</strong> (we will definitely reachthe peace we have long desired),” she said.The peace imper<strong>at</strong>ives nowThe Mamasapano tragedy is considered a major test for thepeace process. But wh<strong>at</strong> does it take to move it forward <strong>at</strong>this juncture?Both Deles and Ferrer agree th<strong>at</strong> exacting truth, justice andaccountability for those who have fallen in Mamasapanoare important, and it must be for the sake of all partiesinvolved in the incident. But the quest for elusive peacemust continue.“Let the blood shed <strong>at</strong> Mamasapano clear, and not blind,our vision in the quest for truth and justice,” SecretaryDeles said <strong>at</strong> a recent forum. “Let the sturm und drang ofthese days be as a refiner’s fire to purify words of theirdross.”She appealed: “We must make sense of Mamasapano bylearning the lessons of history; and by keeping our earsclose to the ground. War’s alarms ring in the halls ofCongress and in social media but not in the blood-drenchedfields of Maguindanao where people, and children most ofall, pay the price of the conflict.”Chair Ferrer notes th<strong>at</strong> the only way forward is “to showth<strong>at</strong> this p<strong>at</strong>h to peace is viable and th<strong>at</strong> it can accomplishthings th<strong>at</strong> war has not accomplished… Th<strong>at</strong> is why wehave not wavered in our determin<strong>at</strong>ion to see throughthe peace process because the other altern<strong>at</strong>ive is simplyunthinkable. Th<strong>at</strong> altern<strong>at</strong>ive will bring chaos.”She reminded the Filipino people of the aspir<strong>at</strong>ions th<strong>at</strong> are<strong>at</strong> the core of the Bangsamoro peace process: “Stop the warMarch 2015KABABAIHAN<strong>at</strong>KAPAYAPAAN7
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