Speech
of
His Excellency Fidel V. Ramos
President of the Philippines
At the Thirty-sixth Biennial Convention of the National Federation of Women’s Clubs

Delivered in Malacañang, Manila, May 27, 1994]

Women’s clubs and
‘Philippines 2000’

LAST FEBRUARY 8, your president, Mrs. Leonarda Camacho, wrote me a letter, which I want to read into the records of your convention. It says:

Dear Mr. President:

[The] majority of our 300,000 members in Mindanao, [the] Visayas and Luzon have never seen any President of the country in their entire lives. They have never seen Malacañang, nor have they been to Manila.

[C]ould you please give an opportunity to at least 800 of them to see and hear you at our 36th biennial convention on May 27, 1994, at Malacañang?

The women will get the thrill of their lives . . . .

In my nearly two years in the Presidency, I cannot remember having received a more graceful and irresistible invitation.

A women’s world

Actually, I did not need much persuasion to accept an invitation to address your convention, because all my life I have been related to and surrounded by women who have been involved in the work of the National Federation of Women’s Clubs in the Philippines.

My mother, Angela Valdez-Ramos, as some of you will probably remember, served as a member of your board of directors immediately after World War II. As a young man, I often heard her talk to my father about the “Federation.” I remember how she would solicit cash and goods from her friends abroad. And she cherished the many awards that she received from the Federation.

Nor was she the first to be involved in the work of the Federation. Her elder sister—my grandaunt, Mrs. Maria Valdez-Ventura, a well-known educator—served as vice-president of the Federation in the late 1920s.

Similarly, the women on Mrs. Ramos’s side of the family have been active in your Federation. My mother-in-law, Mrs. Josefa Jara-Martinez, served as an active member for many years, and in 1948 her own mother, Emilia G. Jara, was selected by the Federation as “Outstanding Mother.”

Today her daughter Ming—our beloved First Lady—is now your honorary president.

Hard-won rights

But with or without this personal connection, I have the deepest admiration for the Federation and its work since it was organized in 1912. No women’s organization has contributed more to the struggle for equality of Filipino womanhood—none has had more impact on the country’s history.

Whenever I think of the Federation, I am always reminded that no right, no prerogative of women in this country has ever come as a gift. It was won, hard won, by women for women.

It is proud history that calls to mind the 20 courageous young women of Malolos, who in 1888 petitioned the Spanish governor-general for permission to open a “night school.” On the objections of the Spanish parish priest, the petition was turned down. But the young women defied the friar and the authorities, and continued to agitate for the opening of school—until finally permission was granted.

The incident caused a great stir in the Philippines and in Spain. And it was then that José Rizal wrote his famous letter to them on February 22, 1889. It read in part:

Now that you have set an example to those who, like you, long to have their eyes opened and be delivered from servitude, now hopes are awakened in us and we now even dare to face adversity because we have you for our allies and are confident of victory. No longer does the Filipina stand with her head bowed nor does she spend her time on her knees, because she is quickened by hope in the future; no longer will the mother contribute to keeping her daughter in darkness and bring her up in contempt and moral annihilation.

And no longer will the science of all sciences consist in blind submission to any unjust order, or in extreme complacency, nor will a courteous smile be deemed the only weapon against insult, or humble tears the ineffable panacea for all tribulations . . . .

God will restore the pristine condition of the Filipina . . . because good qualities she has enough of and to spare. This is our dream, this is the desire we cherish in our hearts . . . .

Upon this great inheritance we build our national future. So I have come here today not to flatter you, but to seek your support. Let us help each other bring ”Philippines 2000″ to living reality.

Half of our heart

Let me be candid with you. I profoundly believe that unless we bring our women into the mainstream of this effort—totally engaged and committed—we will not get anywhere.

Again and again, in the rise of nations, this truth is unerringly demonstrated. For as Rizal also said, “Women are half of our heart, our companion in the joys and tribulations of life.”

In the many programs and reforms that make up Philippines 2000, there are important tasks wherein our women can hold up “half of our heart”—from planning to management to implementation.

In our campaign to make our country competitive in the world, we need the talents of our women, whose love of education and whose diligence are legendary.

Without belittling what Filipino domestics and entertainers abroad have achieved for themselves and contributed to the economy—and these are significant—I must say now that I plan and look toward a time when our women need not to go abroad to earn a good living, when they can stay at home to work and raise robust families, and when we need never worry for their safety and welfare. I look to a time when we will leave it up to our men to brave the hazards of work abroad.

We are also engaged in environmental programs that are meant to bring back our rain forests, our marine life and abundant seas, and to reduce air, water and land pollution. The First Lady is now vigorously helping in the cleaning up of the Pasig River and the collection of recyclable garbage in Metro Manila. I hope that as your honorary president, the First Lady can count on the support of your 300,000 members.

We have programs in health that need your support in every barangay throughout the country. I now ask the Department of Health to get in touch with the Federation so you can be fully informed about those programs your members may be able to help.

What we can do for our country

I am told that you are organizing cooperatives in your areas. Please remember that you have the Land Bank of the Philippines, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Department of Trade and Industry and the Development Bank of the Philippines at your service. They have loan programs you can avail yourselves of.

Finally, let me say something here about the programs of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. I am deeply concerned about our environment, so much so that when I am invited to plant a ceremonial tree, I tell my hosts that I would be happy to plant ten trees.

We can liken the Federation to a tree planted in 1912. After 82 years, look at how it has grown, at the foliage of its leaves and its fruits.

It has grown because of the passion and dedication of the women who have nurtured it. And it will continue to grow because of the passion and the dedication of those who will carry on the work.

The ardent words of William Penn are as apt as ever for the work that we must all do for our country:

“I expect to pass through this world but once. Any good therefore that I can do, or any kindness or abilities that I can show to any fellow creature, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.”