“You are a demanding movement and there is no turning back.” UN Undersecretary General Noeleen Heyzer said this in her keynote speech delivered during the opening program of the Asia Pacific NGO Forum on Beijing+15 to the applause of more than 500 participants. (October 22 to 24 at the Miriam College, Manila.) “Women have learned to blend challenge with joy and commitment towards freedom from want, fear and discrimination,” added Heyzer. She is also the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Executive Secretary.

Irene M. Santiago, Leticia Ramos Shahani, Noeleen Heyzer, Patricia Licuanan at the opening of the Asia Pacific NGO Forum on Beijing+15

Flanking Heyzer in this photo are three Filipino feminists who held top positions in UN conferences and NGO fora for women: Irene M. Santiago (MCW CEO and Chair) as executive director of the NGO Forum on Women in Beijing 1995; Leticia Ramos Shahani, the secretary general of the 1985 World Conference on Women in Nairobi, Kenya; and (more…)

NGO women from all over the Asia Pacific will meet on October 22-24 in Manila to take stock, celebrate gains and reflect on the how far they have come to meet the objectives, vision and spirit of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action 15 years after the United Nations conference on women.

“Women will share their successes and failures in advancing gender equality and human rights,” said Irene M. Santiago, chair and chief executive officer of the Mindanao Commission on Women.  “They will also look at the new challenges facing women such as the global financial crisis, peace and security, and climate change.” (more…)

Mothers for Peace  General Santos City held a conference  on pro-women laws and bills on July 11-12, 2009.  Led by City Councilor Lourdes Casabuena and Bebe-i Gonzales, members of the MCW Area Core Group, the activity helped strengthen their peace work through knowledge of  existing legislation on women.

Read more in » Sunstar.

As MCW continues to decentralize decision-making through the formation of Area Core Groups (ACGs) all over Mindanao, Davao-based MCW staff have gone to the field to discuss plans and see how systems are working.  There are now 18 ACGs, all composed of women leaders from various sectors and organizations. At least one ACG member is a young woman. Irene M. Santiago, MCW Chair and CEO, describes this as developing an “agile” organization, one that is able to address local concerns as well as Mindanao-wide and national issues.