By Hader Glang
ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines
As Pope Francis waved goodbye to the Philippines on Monday, a group of senior stateswomen involved in a landmark peace process with the regions' one-time largest rebel group were extolling his call for women to have greater participation and representation in society.
Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Teresita Quintos Deles and the government's Chief Negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer both said that they "love the Pope" - especially for championing the rights of women.
"It is so heartening that in his attention to the periphery he did not miss the women," Deles said in a statement. "It's so important that he notes that men are a factor in the problem."
During a speech at a meeting with Filipino youth at the University of Santo Tomas on Sunday, the pope -- who has been on a five-day trip to the country -- noted the lack of women representation.
“Women have much to tell us in today's society. Sometimes, we are too machistas [chauvinistic] and we don't allow enough space for women,” the pontiff told a huge crowd of mostly students.
“Women can see things from a different angle [from] us with a different eye. Women are able to pose questions we men are unable to understand,” he added, responding to 12-year old Glyzelle Palomar, a street kid who related how her life has been exposed to the ills of drugs and prostitution.
Coronel-Ferrer noted Pope Francis' compassion. “He is with us in our struggle for peace and justice—in Mindanao, in our everyday life, among the poor and dispossessed in our society.”
“Women and girls are affected by poverty, drugs, and prostitution, as well as by war, in distinct ways,” she highlighted. “Pope Francis thus poignantly noted the different perspectives that women and girls can offer.”
“The young girl’s question was heartbreaking,” she said. “But the question is really addressed to us: Why do we let these things happen?”
She underlined that women tend to ask many of the "why" questions about life upfront.
"Amazing how a young girl said it best. Even more amazing was how the pope built on the moment to make a pitch for more women’s participation in both societal and spiritual affairs," she said.
"The pope knows that justice and peace for women and girls have to be spelled out in ways that will be equally meaningful to the other half of humankind.”
Both Deles and Ferrer have played a crucial role in a peace deal signed between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front that aims to end a decades-long armed insurrection that has claimed tens of thousands of lives.
