The Don Monfort Medical Center, in partnership with Iloilo State University of Fisheries Science and Technology (ISUFST), launched the 18-Day Campaign to End Violence Against Women and Children (VAWC) on November 29, 2024.
Held at ISUFST’s Main Campus, the event focused on Positive Masculinity, highlighting men's role in promoting gender equality and ending violence. Assoc. Prof. Dominique J. Maquiran, a gender equality advocate and UP High School Iloilo faculty member, delivered a keynote talk titled Transformative Masculinities: A Counter-Resistance Against Hegemonic Patriarchal Masculinity.
Addressing 300 tertiary students, Maquiran challenged traditional views of masculinity that perpetuate control and violence, urging the participants to defend human rights and equality. Interactive sessions, including an open forum, encouraged participants to reflect on their roles in reshaping societal norms.
The campaign concluded with a collective pledge to uphold the dignity and rights of women and children, advancing the national movement to eliminate violence through education and advocacy. (With sources from Prof. Dominique Maquiran)