Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Batasan Hills, Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. ________ 
Introduced by Honorable Representatives 
ARLENE D. BROSAS (Gabriela Women’s Party), 
FRANCE L. CASTRO (ACT Teachers Partylist),  
and RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL (Kabataan Partylist) 
AN ACT CREATING THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF FILIPINO WOMEN AND 
APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Filipino women have played leading and supportive roles in the Filipino’s historic 
struggle for liberation, justice, peace, and prosperity.  
Gabriela Silang, Tandang Sora, Teresa Magbanua, and Trinidad Tecson fought 
against colonialism and foreign invasion. There, too, were women who started 
organizing at the turn of the century: the Logia de Adopcion, a masonic lodge of Filipino 
women in 1893; the Associacion de Damas de la Cruz Roja (Women’s Red Cross 
Association) and the Association of Ilonga Feminista led by Pura Villanueva Kala, 
which started the nationwide campaign for women’s suffrage in 1912.  
The suffragettes’ campaigns took the form of lobbying with government officials and 
holding rallies and conferences. Their effort resulted in the passage of the suffrage bill 
in the Philippines Legislature in 1933, the implementation of the Administrative Code 
which allowed women to vote in 1935, and the ratification of women’s suffrage rights 
in a national plebiscite in 1937.  
In the Martial Law years, activists like Liliosa Hilao, Jessica Sales, Lorena Barros, and 
Puri Pedro sacrificed their lives for nationalism and democracy.  
Yet, no national institution is dedicated to the heritage, heroism, and martyrdom of 
Filipino women. Women’s historic contributions to people’s struggles for freedom, 
October 11, 2022
11:08 am
5520


women’s rights, gender equality, and nation-building should not go unvalued and 
unnoted leaving a gap in our country’s historical record.  
Furthermore, knowledge of Filipino women’s heritage and heroism is crucial in 
developing people’s appreciation and respect for women and girls that should 
eventually help eliminate discrimination, oppression, and violence against females of 
all ages.  
A National Museum of Filipino Women is needed to commemorate Filipino women’s 
heroism and martyrdom and profile the specific achievement that women – individually 
and collectively – have made in all aspects of Philippine society.  
Gabriela Women's Party filed this proposed measure since the 13th Congress and was 
eventually passed by the House of Representatives on Third Reading during the 18th 
Congress. 
In view of the foregoing, the immediate passage of this bill is earnestly sought. 
ARLENE D. BROSAS 
Gabriela Women’s Party 
FRANCE L. CASTRO 
RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL 
Act Teachers Partylist 
Kabataan Partylist 


Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Batasan Hills, Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. ________ 
Introduced by Honorable Representatives 
ARLENE D. BROSAS (Gabriela Women’s Party), 
FRANCE L. CASTRO (ACT Teachers Partylist),  
and RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL (Kabataan Partylist) 
AN ACT CREATING THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF FILIPINO WOMEN AND 
APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "National Museum of 
Filipino Women Act".  
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is hereby declared the policy of the State to: 
a) Acknowledge the remarkable contributions of women to economic
progress and nation building and the preservation and promotion of the
Filipino way of life;
b) Celebrate women whose various individual and collective actions
significantly advanced the national effort to conquer inequality,
discrimination, and deprivation;
c) Raise awareness and build an appreciation of history and the role that
women have played in its making;
d) Honor the heroism of women who played a significant role in the national
struggle against colonialism and foreign invasion;
5520


e) Commemorate modern-day heroines and women martyrs who struggled 
against injustice, oppression, and exploitation, especially during the 
Martial Law era in the Philippines;  
f) Acknowledge the suffering borne by women who were coerced into 
sexual slavery during World War II and support their call for reparation 
and justice; and 
g) Honor individual women, including women and girls with disabilities, 
whose specific achievements have caused a positive impact and 
enriched all aspects of Filipino life. 
 
SEC. 3. Creation. - To carry out the above policy, the National Museum of 
Filipino Women is hereby created and established under the administration and 
supervision of the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW).  
 
SEC. 4. Organization, Operation and Administration. - The Philippine 
Commission on Women shall, in coordination with the Department of Budget 
and Management, 
determine the 
organizational 
structure 
and 
operational 
requirements of the National Museum of Filipino Women, and ensure that consultative 
mechanisms shall be integrated in its institutional planning and development. 
 
SEC.  5.  Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within ninety (90) days after 
the approval of this Act, the PCW shall, in consultation with the National Commission 
for Culture and the Arts, National Museum of the Philippines, National Historical 
Commission of the Philippines, Commission on Human Rights, Commission on Higher 
Education, Department of Education and at least three (3) women’s and civil society 
organizations, formulate rules and regulations as may be necessary for its proper 
implementation.  


 
SEC. 6. Appropriations. – The amount necessary for the immediate 
implementation of this Act shall be included in the annual General Appropriations Act. 
 
SEC.  7.  Separability Clause. - If for any reason, a provision or section of this 
Act is declared invalid or unconstitutional, other sections or provisions not affected 
thereby shall remain in full force and effect. 
SEC. 8. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders, proclamations, 
rules and regulations and other issuance or parts thereof, inconsistent with the 
provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. 
 
SEC.  9.  Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation. 
 
Approved,