Hontiveros calls out 'outbreak of sexism, misogyny' under Duterte

MANILA, Philippines — Filipino women are facing a "new and unparalleled" spate of sexism under the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, Sen. Risa Hontiveros said.

"We are witnessing an outbreak of sexism and misogyny under this two-year old administration. In all three branches of the government, we are seeing an epidemic of sexism that is state-sponsored, brazen and relentless," Hontiveros said in a statement issued Monday, three days before the celebration of International Women’s Day.

She also noted that Duterte—whom she said seems to deliver an average of one sexist comment a month—has a "profound disdain" for women in government who stand up against his rule.

Hontiveros cited the instances where the chief executive threatened to show Sen. Leila de Lima's alleged sex video — a video that the president, the Justice secretary, and House leaders claim to have watched — remarked on Vice President Leni Robredo’s legs and "sarcastically" ordered soldiers to shoot female New People's Army rebels in the vagina.

READ: HRW: Duterte's 'shoot them in the vagina' remark encourages sexual violence

The chair of the Senate committee on women said that Duterte's remarks have incited attacks against women, particularly on those perceived to be critics of the administration.

"The vice president became the victim of a nasty pregnancy rumor, Sen. De Lima was slut-shamed in Congress and unjustly incarcerated, the Supreme Court chief justice and [the] ombudsman are both threatened with impeachment, students from St. Scholastica’s College who joined rallies were harassed online, and I, myself, am being legally harassed by the secretary of Justice," Hontiveros said.

Duterte's officials and supporters usually dismiss such comments as instances of "sarcasm" or as part of the president's supposed Bisaya humor.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque, who joined in asking about intimate details of De Lima's relationship with her former driver during a House hearing in 2016, has denied that Duterte encourages attacks against women. He has also said feminists sometimes overreact to the president's statements and "should just laugh."

"The president's spin doctors would like the public to believe that his statements are harmless banter by a leader who simply loves to joke. They said that we should judge his actions and not his words. But language is a powerful medium where sexism, gender discrimination and even violence against women are committed and replicated,” the senator said.

She added: "This sexism outbreak must be contained and stopped. All women need to say 'no' and push back."