Making a Difference

By Michelle Sabitsana

The LocGov Barangay Project was one fulfilling exercise. In fact, it proved some of my expectations wrong. It restored the value and power of an information campaign before my eyes. It made me realize that the reason for such a campaign is to inform, educate and empower people, particularly women. Contrary to what I expected, the exercise was rather productive and meaningful.

We had our barangay project last February 20 at the Muntinlupa City Hall. Our participants were from 3 barangays. Most of them were reflexologists from the OK Muntinlupa program, while some others were from SAGIP and the PNP Women’s Desk. They were women of different ages and of different experiences. Most of all, they were genuinely interested in knowing their rights under Republic Act 9262 (the Law).

At the outset, I thought that our audience was already informed of their basic rights as women, human beings and citizens under the said Law. I was wrong. Many of the women in our audience encountered for the first time the Law and the protection it afforded them.

As we discussed their rights under the Law, I can see from their faces the impression of enlightenment and empowerment. From their active participation and raw questions, I can see proactivity and eagerness to live the empowerment. I never expected such impact to be so soon and effective.

I may have overestimated the progress the local governments are making in the field of women empowerment. I may also have underestimated the power of the initiative of concerned citizens to achieve the same. It escaped my foresight that plain citizens or law students like us can make a difference.

Indeed, it was an exhilarating experience to have desired and effected change in just one day. In a way, my initial perception of the barangay project changed. It shifted from being a mere information campaign to a catalyst for change.

At the end of the day, I realized that the barangay project’s multiplier effect is not so much about the quantity of the audience, but the quality of their participation. Just because the audience did not reach the hundreds does not necessarily mean that our impact to society is less. What I would rather like to point out is that number is not the determining factor of success. It is the depth of the impact and the breadth of its application in the lives of each of our audience. Knowing that they have gained something which would help them in their daily lives out of the activity is enough a taste of success.