THE SANGGUNIAN’S Office of the President (OP) created a Commission on Gender Equality (CGE) under its Department of Student Rights, according to a memo released on June 4.
CGE co-commissioners Ronnie Moranas (5 BS MGT) and Ramon Tanjuatco (4 BS LfSci) said that the commission aims to ensure that “all members of the Loyola Schools community [including] school organizations, offices, faculty members, and staff, promote gender-sensitivity.”
Moranas also said that they would be entertaining individual consultations for students to share personal experiences, problems, or suggestions. Topics for these consultations may range from personal gender-related problems to fundamental rights violations.
The CGE was launched following the release of a sexual misconduct policy proposal by the Sanggunian on January 3. This policy proposal was created in light of the increased number of complaints on sexual harassment and indecent and disrespectful behavior towards other genders.
Plans for the upcoming year
According to Moranas, the CGE plans to focus on spreading awareness through talks about gender equality for the first semester. It also plans to collaborate with the Introduction to Ateneo Culture and Traditions program (InTACT) to conduct gender sensitivity and women’s rights talks for freshman students.
Tanjuatco also mentioned that the CGE has plans to open itself to consultations with the University’s student organizations to provide educational avenues on gender-related terms and issues within organizations.
They also said that other upcoming projects include a Talakayang Alay sa Bayan (TALAB) talk on gender sensitivity and women’s rights, as well as a project involving brochures and flyers promoting gender equality and inclusivity. These will be distributed to different offices in the Loyola Schools and posted on bulletin boards around the campus.
The CGE’s largest planned project will be an unofficially titled “Gender Equality Love Week,” which is set to take place around Valentine’s Day. It will aim to “celebrate all kinds of love” and raise awareness on issues the LGBTQIA+ community faces. It will include events such as concerts, fashion shows, talks, and film screenings. The event will end with a pride march on campus.
Partnerships with offices
Moranas and Tanjuatco said they have been consulted by Ateneo Residence Halls Assistant to the Director for Formation Arvin Basa on suggestions for more gender-sensitive application forms for university dormitories. These forms would include more options for stating one’s gender identity. Tanjuatco said that these additional options would promote “an inclusive space,” and provide safe living arrangements for dormers.
They also noted that the LSHS has agreed to allow transgender students to use their preferred restrooms during random drug testing.
Moreover, Office of Student Activities (OSA) Coordinator for Culture and Gender Development Neil Reyes said that OSA has provided the Commission with references for possible resource persons and materials for their projects and plans for the school year.
Urging a more sensitive community
The two co-commissioners noted that in order to combat the stigma surrounding gender, issues about sexuality must be talked about openly. They said that the commission wishes to use its social media resources to push for “messages of acceptance and solidarity.”
Office for Student Services (OSS) Director Cholo Mallillin said that he suggested the idea of holding a summit not just open to Ateneo students, but also to neighboring universities to show the importance of gender sensitivity to the community.
OSS Assistant to the Director Maria Paulino also brought up how the University needed “[to focus] more on educating the community on issues like consent [and] boundaries.” She said that collaborating with other departments through surveys and past research will help determine the needs of the community.
Mallillin and Paulino also discussed the need for the institutionalization of gender-fair language, which was brought up in a private Facebook message by a member of the LGBTQ+ community that was a former student in the University. This person gave feedback on how the Ateneo Integrated Student Information System (AISIS) only has “Mr.” and “Ms.” as options for titles.
Students’ views
Management sophomore Bong Gonzales said that a pressing issue of the University is catcalling around Katipunan, for it could propagate the “oppressive and misogynistic machismo culture” in the University that contributes to the objectification of women. He said that because catcalling in Katipunan can be seen as a “recurring and scarily normal thing by some,” the “numbness [to catcalling could] seep into” university culture.
He then suggested multi-sectoral gender sensitivity training as a possible initiative of the commission, as it will be able to educate people on “how to treat women in every aspect of society.”
For political science senior Lulu Espinoza, fostering a safe space for the LGBTQIA+ community is also needed in the University. She said that an initiative is more than just recognizing the struggles of Ateneo’s transgender students, but placing systems that protect their very welfare.
In order to do this, Espinoza said that Ateneo’s partners should be more sensitive to its students in its everyday operations, especially with how transgender students use the restroom of the gender they identify with.
Espinoza hopes that discriminatory instances in the future can be avoided through Ateneo ensuring that their staff and partners are respectful and sensitive towards the LGBTQIA+ community.
