"Women are marginalized, we don't see them as leaders but see them as victims; it's time for us to recognize na 'yung ating mga nanay, mga lola, mga ate, at iba pa nating mga kamag-anak na babae ay may mahalagang role sa pagkamit ng kapayapaan sa community."
This was an excerpt on one of the discussion points of Prof. Jovanie C. Espesor, Ph.D., posing rhetoric on how masculinity is defined in society, in his forum lecture on Fundamentals of Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) 101: The Introduction of Masculinities, held last November 14 at the Mindanao State University - General Santos City Gymnasium.
The said forum was attended by Mindanao institutions across Region 12 including Mindanao State University - Maguindanao, Notre Dame of Marbel University, University of Southern Mindanao - Kabacan, Holy Trinity College - GSC, and Notre Dame of Dadiangas University.
ON INTERNATIONAL TRACTION AND PURPOSE
Sasakawa Peace Foundation, an international organization fostering women's rights initiatives in ASEAN nations, was one of the key partners of the event.
Mr. Itsu Adachi, Executive Director of the organization, emphasized their organizational priority to connect with Southeast Asian Nations and empower the dialogue and legitimacy of Women, Peace, and Security.
"Our foundation to connect [globally] and communicate [properly] with Asian countries... we can [have] peace and security, recognize that Mindanao is helping to appeal [with] peace," Adachi added.
He also mentioned the global collaboration of masculine individuals in fostering WPS in the status quo.
"This issue is not limited to women, but also men should be together."
DEBUNKING AND RESHAPING NORM MASCULINITIES
In the discussion of Prof. Espesor, he tackled how women are marginalized in our status quo and how hegemonic masculinities often impede the narrative of peace in society.
"Women are marginalized, we don't see them as leaders but see them as victims; it's time for us to recognize na 'yung ating mga nanay, mga lola, mga ate, at iba pa nating mga kamag-anak na babae ay may mahalagang role sa pagkamit ng kapayapaan sa community," Espesor asserted.
Espesor pegged a question to the attendees on how society views and expects how a man should act.
"When we define what is meant to be a man, it actually differs from one person to another... because they are shaped by our environment, meaning these are the dominant traits that are expected of men performed and ensued - which is actually cherished by society," Espessor posited.
He highlights how our society can use peaceful masculinity to reform traditional and hegemonic masculine roles in society, which are hindering the peace in Mindanao.
"We need to engage peaceful masculinities. Why? Because in the feminist literature, what is weaponized as the cause of the violence against women and children is patriarchy or the entrenched patriarchal norms that we have."
ON VIOLENCE AND HOSTILITY
"Sensitive ito ha," he preempted a trigger warning on his next point violence of men in the community. "If you are exposed to violence at home, you are expected to do it as well."
Sasakawa Peace Foundation was also asked about their mitigation of violence and peace initiatives on dealing with Women, Peace, and Security in the past aside from their works in the Philippines.
"We have [helped] conflict areas in Thailand... escalated since 2004, and we have been partnering for more than 10 years to support the local organization so they can resort to political practices and peace processes, and not violence. And also, we are supporting the official peace processes between the Thai government."
They also featured their goals of empowering women's voices in Asian countries, as well as highlighting the necessary help needed in their advocacy.
"We involve women in capacity building and [training] so that women's voices are [formally] heard. But for the moment, the official peace process is still lacking women representatives, so we are working the best effort to increase the influence of women's voices, working for peace on the ground."
REVILING ROLE OF WOMEN IN SOCIETY Prof. Rufa Cagoco-Guiam, former faculty member of the university and project consultant of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, shared her insights on women's roles through Islamic lenses. "First of all, in the Qur'an, there's a verse," Rofa said. "Heaven sits at the foot of the mother, that is why many Muslims, can disobey their fathers but never their mothers. Because otherwise, they will not go to heaven." She also added that the imposed trait of women being emotional is a stigma and is a net asset when viewed from another angle. "That is [a] stereotypical view. Women are as decisive as men. There are men who are also indecisive, you know? In fact, many of our presidents have been indecisive." "You see, being emotional is also an asset. That's a reason why in many literature about settling fights, it's always a woman who has been successful in settling it... because they don't engage in a zero-sum game like men, but look at the middle ground - look at what's best for both parties. That's the best kind of mediation." She also asserted how women are often deprived of the credit they deserve, and are being taken by men instead. "Unfortunately, they don't get the credit for successfully mediating conflicts. It's always the man claiming credit," followed by a cheer from the crowd.
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