“You don’t need to be a doctorate or degree holder to learn how to have gender equality, to learn that men and women are equal, to learn that a woman can be as empowered as a man. That if they can, so can we!”
That was among the points underscored by Ms. Mary Jane C. Ortega, former City Mayor of San Fernando City, La Union during a special edition on Women Empowerment of Kapihan sa DMMMSU aired March 31, 2023.
Ortega, who was elected City Mayor of San Fernando La Union 25 years ago, is currently the Special adviser and former Secretary General of CITYNET, an association of cities in Asia Pacific. During the interview, she also emphasized that being empowered entails much more than thinking that women are now “macho” as are men.
Explaining ‘women empowerment,’ Ortega pointed out that “Women empowerment means becoming active, being informed, and being involved. It’s being assertive in a positive way. It’s never keeping bitterness in your heart.”
Recalling how her mother, despite not being able to finish high school, she said that she has shaped and influenced her campaign and advocacy for Women Empowerment and Equality early on. She reminisced that right after being wed to her husband, former Congressman Victor Ortega, she reminded him to not even “lift a finger” against her.
“That was 60 years ago, yet then, there is no (law addressing) Violence against Women. It is only today that violet (or purple) is used for (raising awareness about) Violence against women. But my mother had already been saying it: “No to violence against women. No to violence against your wife,” Ortega added.
When asked how her mother has gained such a progressive view even during those times when there was no law that ensures protection for women, she explained that her mother kept herself well-read and well-informed. She was reading the works of the pioneers and leaders of women equality in the Philippines such as the first female senator from Pangasinan, Sen. Geronima Pecson, who was one of her role models.
“Learn to speak with men. I don’t want to you to be like other women who when talking with men react with giggles. Never. Look at them straight in the eye. Talk to them like equals and don’t give malice to their visits,” she shared. (By Ronald Sison)