The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) strongly condemns the recent insulting and sexist remarks of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte making “virgins” as a “come-on” to promote tourism in the Philippines. It is utterly degrading for Filipino women to be spoken of in such manner, even as a joke, by the highest official of the land. More so, the fact that it is done in a foreign context makes it even more appalling because it objectifies Filipino women in the larger international arena.

These kinds of repeated sexist remarks strip Filipino women of their dignity and human rights. It diminishes women’s ownership of their bodies and reduces them to mere sexual objects. This is despite the global recognition for our Filipinas’ capacity for hard work, who make honorable sacrifices to provide for their families and, at times, give due recognition to our country for their excellent achievements in diverse fields.

On the local front, the discrimination faced by women are expanding to online platforms—this usually stems from discussions on political and social issues that descend into misogynistic attacks and escalate into psychological violence such as online bashing, slut-shaming, and/or threats of rape and other physical violence.

Recently, Palace communications assistant secretary Mocha Uson and journalist Pia Ranada have been subjected to online violence focusing on their gender and not on the issues at hand. Prior to this, women and girls protesting the Marcos burial were harassed and attacked online. In the past 2 years, various women officials have also been shamed and harassed through personal attacks.

The CHR, as the country’s National Human Rights Institution and Gender Ombud, undertakes to protect and promote the rights of women regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender identity and other persons with diverse sexual orientation and gender identity and expression.

We earnestly ask the government, with the leadership of the President as the highest duty-bearer, to uphold laws that protect women from violence and discrimination, including: the Women in Development and Nation Building Act (RA 7192), which seeks to promote the integration of women as full and equal partners with men in development and nation building; the Magna Carta of Women (RA 9710), which prohibit all forms of discrimination; and the Anti-Sexual Harassment Law (RA 7877), which prohibit sexual harassment in the context of education, training, and employment environment, to name a few.

We also call on the public to stand up for women’s rights and to refuse to accept violence and discrimination of all forms, including those directed to persons with diverse sexual orientation and gender identity and expression.

The challenge of the present times is to elevate the discussions to principled, constructive debates. We need exchanges that enrich the discourse on human rights promotion and protection—not degrade them. The vision should be to rise as a nation together and not at the expense of other fellow Filipinos and Filipinas.