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CREATING THE SUB-COMMITTEES OF THE COMMITTEE ON GENDER RESPONSIVENESS IN THE JUDICIARY.

WHEREAS, on 9 December 2003, the Supreme Court En Banc approved the Strategic Gender and Development (GAD) Mainstreaming Plan for the Philippine Judicial System (With Annual GAD Plan and Budget for 2004) prepared by the Committee on Gender Responsiveness in the Judiciary (CGRJ);

WHEREAS, based on the Strategic GAD Mainstreaming Plan, the judiciary envisions "[a] judicial system that is sensitive and responsive to gender equality and empowerment in all its policies, programs and activities, thereby providing effective, efficient, and accessible justice to all" and declares as its mission the enhancement of "speedy and fair administration and dispensation of justice to all, regardless of age, gender, class, ethnicity, or religious or political beliefs, through an effective and efficient judicial system that works with dignity, integrity, accountability and transparency";

WHEREAS, to achieve these vision and mission, the CGRJ adopted core strategies that would: (1) Transform paradigm and enhance the commitment of the judicial system to gender equality through training and capability-building; (2) Review or conduct gender audit of policies, programs, and practices to make these more gender-responsive; (3) Establish a gender-responsive database on the judicial system; (4) Promote the use of gender-fair language, core gender messages and rituals for higher gender awareness; (5) Enhance partnership and networking with other GAD advocates; (6) Organize regular family courts throughout the country; and (7) Create a Committee on Decorum and Investigation (CODI) in each court station and train CODI members; and

WHEREAS, to facilitate the implementation of the Strategic GAD Mainstreaming Plan, particularly the core strategies adopted by the CGRJ, there is a need to create subcommittees for each core strategy and for resource mobilization.

NOW, THEREFORE, the following sub-committees are hereby created with members of the CGRJ indicated below as Chairpersons:

The sub-committee on Training and capacity Building shall, among other things, consider the development of a unified module for training.

The sub-committee on Promotion of the Use of Gender-Fair Language shall also develop core gender messages and rituals for higher gender awareness.

Prior to the next meeting of the CGRJ for July 2004, each Subcommittee Chairperson shall organize a group of three to five members to constitute the subcommittee and work towards the implementation of the core strategy assigned to such sub-committee. Each Subcommittee shall also prepare with specific action plans in pursuit of and conformity with the Strategic GAD Mainstreaming Plan.

This Memorandum Order shall take effect immediately.

Issued this 23^rd day of June 2004.