By Gabriela Baron
Campus gender equality group Enough is Enough (EIE) renewed calls on establishing safe spaces on International Women’s Day, March 8.
In a statement, EIE called on the Senate to scrap the bill that intends to make the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program mandatory for all tertiary-level students.
EIE also claimed that the bill “will fuel misogyny and sexism and will push back a decade worth of efforts to make learning institutions safe spaces.”
“Not unless, all of a sudden the culture within our armed forces alters and denounces fascism, militarism and patriarchy, the culture of sexism and fear which we are struggling to combat and defeat in our campuses will perpetually be embedded,” Kate Leonor of EIE said.
“Even if our senators claim that the [mandatory] ROTC bill is guaranteed abuse-proof and has safeguard provisions, the militaristic and misogynistic tradition and mindset of the officers and rank and file of the armed forces will pollute institutions that should champion academic excellence and academic freedom,” Leonor added.
EIE also called on the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to focus on the education crisis.
“DepEd and CHED, should focus on actively purging our campuses of predators and enablers,” Leonor said.
“The recent uptick in cases of abuse and harassment dwarf their efforts and highlights their lack of political will to truly address the issue,” she added.
EIE has been calling for sweeping reforms in the education sector to stamp out campus predators and their enablers.
Among these include the filing of criminal and administrative cases against violators; their teaching licenses revoked and perpetually banned from employment that involves vulnerable sectors; and an establishment of a national registry of offenders and that academic institutions provide legal, psychosocial and financial support to student victims. -ag