Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Constitution Hills, Quezon City 
NINETEENTHCONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
House Bill No._____ 
________________________________________________________________ 
Introduced by: REPRESENTATIVE EDWIN L. OLIVAREZ 
AN ACT MANDATING ALL BROADCASTING COMPANIES, INCLUDING CABLE 
TELEVISION SYSTEMS, TO CONDUCT GENDER-AND DISABILITY-AWARENESS 
AND SENSITIVITY TRAININGS AND SEMINARS FOR ALL ITS EMPLOYEES 
INVOLVED IN CONTENT CREATION 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The media is arguably the greatest purveyor of ideology. It plays a very 
significant and influential role in shaping the collective belief, behavior, and culture 
of the population that consumes the information and stories it provides. It is 
therefore important to ensure that the media knows how to relay appropriate and 
non-discriminatory messages, story morale, and core values in every program they 
create which will eventually be heard, seen, and followed the public. 
For instance, the way the media depicts the role of men and women in our 
society can have a significant impact on the real lives of the members of an ordinary 
Filipino household. Put up a program that knowingly or unknowingly justifies or 
normalizes rape culture and victim blaming, domestic abuse, and toxic masculinity, 
among other discriminatory practices, and the undiscerning public, especially the 
children, will think that it is the right way of life when, in fact, men and women are 
supposed to be treated as equals albeit with differentiated needs in every aspect of 
life. 
The same goes for radio and television programs that endlessly make fun of or 
degrade persons with disabilities. Particularly, we have witnessed people with mental 
disabilities as subject of ridicule and comedic relief over and over again in various 
Filipino movies or television series. By doing this, the media sways the public to think 
and believe that it is okay to laugh at persons with disabilities, instead of imparting 
to them the precious lesson that persons with disabilities deserve the same degree of 
respect and dignity as any other people without any impairment. 
Laying this as the foundation it is important for members of the media, 
particularly of radio and television, to be gender and disability sensitive. From the 
birth of a concept for a possible script up to the airing of the program they have had 
in mind, it is important that the people working behind the content of the said 
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program are equipped with the proper knowledge and advocacy regarding gender 
equality and respect for persons with disabilities. Thus, this bill seeks to mandate all 
broadcasting companies operating in the Philippines to provide or conduct gender 
sensitivity and disability awareness and sensitivity trainings for all its employees 
regardless of their employment status, whether regular, project-based, or contractor, 
who are involved in the content creation of its regular programs including, but not 
limited to research, script or narrative writing, proof-reading, reporting, story 
covering, direction, acting, hosting, performing, and other roles that require 
appearance or being on-air on regular television and radio programs, respectively. 
 
To be sure, the conduct of these trainings will not in any way limit the creative 
freedom or license of the people that constitute the media. After all, this Bill does not 
seek to police scripts or stop television and radio personalities from expressing 
themselves. This Bill hopes, however, that the gender and disability sensitivity 
trainings will help raise awareness and will substantially educate the persons 
working in radio and television on the issues and concerns of the marginalized 
sectors with much faith that whatever lesson they will imbibe from such trainings 
will change mindsets, open up discussions, improve research and script writing, and 
teach or influence hosts, anchors, reporters, and actors on how to properly deliver 
their messages and creative outputs without being discriminatory against any 
member of the vulnerable and marginalized sectors. 
 
In view of the foregoing, the passage of this Bill is earnestly sought. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
EDWIN L. OLIVAREZ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Constitution Hills, Quezon City 
NINETEENTHCONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
House Bill No._____ 
________________________________________________________________ 
Introduced by: REPRESENTATIVE EDWIN L. OLIVAREZ 
AN ACT MANDATING ALL BROADCASTING COMPANIES, INCLUDING CABLE 
TELEVISION SYSTEMS, TO CONDUCT GENDER-AND DISABILITY-AWARENESS 
AND SENSITIVITY TRAININGS AND SEMINARS FOR ALL ITS EMPLOYEES 
INVOLVED IN CONTENT CREATION 
Be it enacted in the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Republic of the 
Philippines in Congress assembled: 
Section 1. Statement of Policy - it is hereby declared as policy of the State 
to promote, protect, and uphold the rights of the marginalized sectors such as women 
and children, members of the LGBT, and persons with disabilities, among other 
vulnerable groups. 
Section 2. Definition of Terms. For purposes of this Act, the following terms 
shall be defined as follows: 
Gender and Development (GAD) - the development perspective and process 
that   is participatory and empowering, equitable, sustainable, free from violence, 
respectful of human rights, supportive of self-determination and actualization of 
human potentials. It seeks to achieve gender equality as a fundamental value that 
should be reflected in development choices and contends that women are active 
agents of development not just passive recipients of development. 
Gender Sensitivity Training – A learning activity usually done through lectures 
and interactive participation that aims to show how gender shapes the roles of 
women and men in society including their role in development and how it affects 
relations between them. It is given to trainees to heighten their awareness of fender 
issues and concerns and be willing and able to respond to them with ultimate aim of 
making them appreciate the principles of Gender Development and eventually 
become its advocate. The Training shall also describe basic gender-related concepts 
and identity how social institutions contribute to the perpetuation of gender issues 
and/or biases. The session also aims to differentiate sexual orientation, gender 
identities, and gender expressions, and appreciate the importance of SOGIESC 
(Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression, and Sex Characteristics) in the 
GAD work and advocacy, GAD training and seminars mush always include lectures 
on existing, as well as recently enacted, laws, issuances, and international 
commitments regarding women and children. 
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Disability Awareness and Sensitivity Training – A learning activity usually done 
through lectures and interactive participation that aims to promote awareness, 
sensitivity, and advocacy to protect and uphold the rights and dignity of persons with 
disabilities. Disability awareness training aims to challenge attitudes and pre-
conceived notion towards persons with disabilities among both those with and 
without a disability, and to increase understanding of disability issues. These 
trainings and seminars must always include lectures on existing as well as recently 
enacted laws, issuances, and international commitments regarding persons with 
disabilities. 
 
Content Employees – For purpose of this Act, the term employees shall include 
all persons working for the media company such as, but not limited to, its regular 
employees, project-based workers, and contractors that contribute or take a role in 
the creation of content for regular programs that will be aired or televised for the 
consumption of the public. This shall include all person that contribute in the 
research, script or narrative writing, proof–reading, reporting, story covering, 
direction, acting, hosting, performing, and other roles that require appearance or 
being on-air on regular television and radio programs, respectively. 
 
 
Section 3. Coverage. This law shall apply to all broadcasting companies 
operating in the Philippines by virtue of a franchise granted by the Congress of the 
Philippines. 
 
 
Section. 4. Conduct of Gender- and Disability- Sensitivity Trainings and 
Seminars. All broadcasting companies operating in the Philippines shall or conduct 
gender sensitivity and disability awareness and sensitivity trainings for all its 
employees regardless of their employment status, whether regular, project-based, or 
contractor, who are involved whether in a major or minor role in the content-creation 
of its regular programs including, but not limited to, research, script or narrative 
writing, proof-reading, reporting, story covering, direction, acting, hosting, 
performing, and other roles the require appearance or being on-air on regular 
television and radio programs, respectively. It shall be the duty of the broadcast 
company to ensure that all persons involved in the abovementioned task shall 
undergo the abovementioned training before the commencement of a particular 
regular programs under such broadcast company. 
 
 
 
Section 5. Method of Training or Seminar. The methods and techniques 
chosen must create an environment that facilities learning and fosters openness and 
trust, especially in sessions where there is sharing of personal experiences and 
dialogue. These must also empower the participants to develop gender sensitivity and 
disability awareness in their thinking, behavior, and action and effectively apply and 
integrate the same in the performance of their roles in the creation of content for a 
particular program in radio or television. 
 
 
Training techniques can be through (1) open techniques which primary 
stimulate creativity or (2) closed techniques which is used to update knowledge and 
transfer new skills, consisting mainly of lectures, summary and synthesis, and 
demonstration. 
 
 
Section 6. Failure to Conduct Training as Ground for Revocation of 
Permits and Licenses, and Franchise. Failure to conduct gender and disability 
sensitivity trainings and seminars as mandated by this Act shall be ground for 
suspension of the permit and ground for the revocation or non-renewal of the 
broadcasting company’s franchise by the Congress. 


 
Section 7. Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). The National 
Telecommunications Commission, as the body that primary exercises jurisdiction 
over the supervision, adjudication, and control over all broadcasting companies in 
coordination and consultation with the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) as 
the authority in women’s concerns, expert on Gender and Development (GAD) and 
lead advocate of Disability Affairs (NCDA) as the Authority and expert on issues 
relating to persons with disabilities and the lead agency tasked to steer the course of 
program development for persons with disabilities, shall within ninety (90) days, from 
the effectivity of this Act, promulgate the rules and regulations for the effective 
implementation of this Act. 
 
 
Section 8. Separability Clause. In the event that any provision of this Act 
shall be declared invalid or unconstitutional, other provisions unaffected thereby 
shall remain valid and subsisting. 
 
 
 
Section 9. Repealing Clause. All laws, decrees, executive orders, 
proclamations, rules and regulations, and other issuances, or parts thereof, which 
are inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed, amended, or modified accordingly. 
 
 
Section 10. Effectivity Clause. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days 
after its complete publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general 
circulation. 
 
APPROVED.