UP On Shahani: Hardly Any Mention. Yet, What A Lady!
As a UP alumnus, I am greatly embarrassed. As is, this photo
is from the Facebook account of the University of the Philippines, which shares
what the University Library Diliman has to say about her:
The University Library
Diliman mourns the passing of Leticia Ramos-Shahani (1929-2017), former Senator
of the Philippines and UP alumni. ¶ Sen Shahani finished her elementary and
secondary levels at the University of the Philippines. As the Chair of
the Senate Committee on Education in 1992-1995, she was a member of the UP
Board of Regents. An advocate of women's rights, Sen. Shahani was the Chair
(1986-87) and a commissioner of the National Commission on the Role of Filipino
Women (1974-76). ¶ The Leticia Ramos-Shahani Papers can be found at the Special
Collections Section of the UP Main Library. This generous donation was given to
the Library before her retirement from public service, and is a legacy to
Filipinos and researchers for generations to come.
As is the image, that mention of the passing of Ms Leticia
is hazy, literally in passing.
It has been 20 days since she died. I searched the UP System
website (up.edu.ph) for "Shahani" and it gave me these:
"Managing the West Philippine Sea" by Carlos L
Agustin, Lauro Baja Jr, Leticia Ramos-Shahani, Aileen SP Baviera et al, 26
August 2013, UP Forum – about a white paper. ¶ "The UP Forum Roundtable Discussion On The Sabah Claim"
¶ "Joey Reyes, Rick Rocamora,
Carlos Celdran headline TED Talks in UP Diliman" where Shahani is
mentioned as confirmed speaker.
Nothing more.
Is that how UP treats
a lady of substance? The UP System on Twitter merely points to the praiseworthy
article "A Lady Of Substance" by Melito Salazar Jr.
Why has not any part of the UP System but especially UP
Diliman prepared a lengthy sort of eulogy on this distinguished lady? With that
observation, I am reminded of Jose Rizal's essay, "The Indolence Of The Filipinos."
It is not true that the Filipinos are
indolent, Rizal says, but what about the UP System in this case? My
interpretation is that the UP System is intelligent but self-absorbed, even
narcissistic.
According to Wikipedia, the lady finished her elementary and
secondary level education at the University of the Philippines; that would be
UP Manila. In that University, she was a member of the faculty from 1954 to
1957.
Melandrew T Velasco corrects those Wikipedia entries saying
that she took her elementary education in a public school in Lingayen,
Pangasinan, began her secondary education at UP Diliman and later finished it
in Washington DC (businessmirror.com.ph).
She was born in Lingayen.
Before she died, she donated her papers to the Library of
the University of the Philippines. How can the UP System be so ungrateful as to
utter not a single word of "Farewell!"?
She was educated in
this sort of 1970s feminist tradition that you give your all to your work and
she didn't have so much time with her kids when we were growing up. But as the
years went by, she gradually realized that in addition to work, there was
family.
With the UP System, more than 100 years have gone by. What's
the matter with UP – it has not gradually realized that family has value aside
from work?
Oh and by the way, the UP System is now under a new President,
Danilo Concepcion – does that mean that Mr Concepcion does not consider Ms
Leticia as worthy of a lengthy eulogy or something?
Wasn't the UP System against the renewal of US military
bases in the 1990s? Ms Leticia was one of the 12 senators who voted against
such a renewal.
She authored the "Shahani Law" that seeks to
address gender discrimination in the workplace, the Anti-Rape Law of 1997, the
Rape Victim Assistance & Protection Act of 1998, and a law providing for 5%
gender and development budget allocation in all government agencies. What's the
matter with UP – not interested in women at all?
She was Commissioner and Chair of the National Commission on
the Role of Filipino Women. What's the matter with UP, not interested in
Filipino women playing roles in national development?
She was appointed Secretary General of the World Conference
on the United Nations Decade of Women in Nairobi, Kenya in 1985. Of that, Arvonne
Fraser reports ("UN Decade For Women: The Power Of Words And
Organizations," wasi.alexanderstreet.com):
The Forward Looking
Strategies document adopted at Nairobi in 1985 had the most extensive list of
new topics not only because of increasing NGO activism, but also because by the
end of the Decade governments were beginning to understand that their female
constituents were demanding attention and that foreign aid donors had become
more serious about integrating women in the development process. Grouped under
the major themes of equality, development and peace – and in that order – the
emphasis was on strategies for implementation or gaining attention to new
issues. Under equality the emphasis was on constitutional and legal issues and
equality in social and political participation. The section on development
ranged from the sub-themes of education, employment, and health to food, water
and agriculture, science and technology, communications, housing, energy, the
environment and social services. The peace section contained the most
contentious paragraphs, namely, women and children under apartheid, and
Palestinian women and children.
What's the matter with the UP System, not interested in
gender constitutional and legal issues and equality in social and political
participation? UP not interested in education, employment, health, food, water
and agriculture, science and technology, communications, housing, energy,
environment and social services for development?
Ms Arvonne also says:
For the UN conference,
Leticia Shahani of the Philippines was selected as Secretary-General. Dame Nita
Barrow of Barbados was selected as organizer and director of the NGO Forum with
Eddah Gachukia of Kenya as leader of the Kenya organizing committee. Shahani,
widowed mother of three, had worked her way up through the UN system, becoming
an international diplomat by alternately representing her own country and
serving within the UN organization. As a representative of the Philippines at
CSW, Shahani's actions also illustrated the "free spaces" idea.
Another astute international politician, while at CSW as it drafted CEDAW, she
had successfully proposed that free discussion – essentially off the record – be
allowed. This meant that delegates, as representatives of their countries,
could freely contribute ideas and suggest wording of the convention even if
they were required by their governments to vote against the provision in a
final, recorded vote. This was a crucial, strategic move that might well be
criticized today when transparency in public meetings has become the new
mantra. Shahani's suggestion allowed for the free flow of ideas, open
discussion and compromise, and decreased partisanship.
"Free spaces." In that 1985 UN conference on women
in Nairobi, "Shahani's suggestion allowed for the free flow of ideas, open
discussion and compromise, and decreased partisanship."
"This was a crucial, strategic move that might well be
criticized today when transparency in public meetings has become the new
mantra." Ms Arvonne, transparency is less important than what you describe
as the free flow of ideas, open discussion and compromise, and decreased
partisanship. Ms Leticia was initially inspired, and I'm sure all the ladies
afterwards. It takes a brilliant lady to suggest a brilliant idea.
Leticia
Ramos-Shahani of the Philippines: What UP does not recognize, I say, what a lady! @
09 April 2017.
Total word count, excluding this line: 1244
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