Health has always been about more than drugs or treatments—it’s also about equality of access and of representation. This March, people all over the world are celebrating a subsection of the population whose health (among other things) has been compromised through a longstanding marginalization: women.
Women make up one of the few minorities that are numerical majorities. They typically outnumber men when it comes to demographics in most communities. Despite that, the oppression and marginalization of women has taken place in many a society for some time now. This March marks the best time to bring that and related issues to the forefront. In the Philippines, it is often referred to by the government as National Women’s Month and represents the time of year when women’s advancement becomes most important in the public consciousness.
The past month may have been National Heart Month, but few people realize that March has been named the National Women’s Heart Health Month too. It became so under the tenure of yet another of the country’s female presidents, under the prodding of the Philippine Heart Association.
In the Philippines, the Women’s Month Celebration has since served as a venue to highlight women’s achievements and discuss continuing and emerging women’s empowerment and gender equality issues and concerns, challenges, and commitments. The celebration focuses on concrete activities that are aligned with national and international instruments and treaties such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the Beijing Platform for Action, the Philippine Plan for Gender-Responsive Development (1995-2025), the Framework Plan for Women, and the Sustainable Development Goals. Women’s rights and chances to fulfil their full potential are crucial for achieving gender equality and addressing a wide range of global development targets.
