THE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)-Regional Office VI-Gender and Development (GAD) joined the celebration of One Billion Rising (OBR), held recently at the new Iloilo Dinagyang Grandstand in Muelle Loney, Iloilo City.
The celebration culminated in a dance strike led by the Ugsad Regional Gender Resource Center in partnership with 41 National Government Agencies (NGAs), Local Government Units (LGU), Schools, Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) and people organizations.
The activity is pursuant to Republic Act 9262 (Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act of 2004) that addresses violence committed against women and children. The law is also in keeping with the fundamental freedoms under the Constitutions and the Provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the convention on the Elimination of all forms of discrimination Against Women, Convention on Rights of the Child and other international human instruments of which the Philippines is a party.
The participants actively joined in the OBR and showed a profound support by raising their hands and followed the dance steps led by the students of Iloilo Science and Technology University (ISAT-U)
OBR is an annual global dance-strike calling to end any forms of abuse and domestic violence experienced by more than one billion women.
Every individual around the world will rise through dance to express their rage against injustices towards women and to show the power of global solidarity and collective action.
Violence Against Women(VAW) was the outcome of a decade of advocacy of victims-survivors, womens rights advocates and organizations, legislators and national government agencies. (DPWH-6/RPAIO)
