Justice Singh Urges Women to Create Change
March 12, 2024
Supreme Court Associate Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh shares her life’s journey as a woman in the Judiciary at the launch of “EmpowerHer: Advancing Women in Justice and for Justice (Philippines),” an initiative organized by the United Nations (UN) Joint Programme on Human Rights, UN Office on Drugs and Crime Programmes, the UN Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, and UN Women, with the support of the Quezon City government, on March 11, 2024 at the Quezon City Experience Hall, Quezon City Memorial Circle, Quezon City. (Courtesy of the Supreme Court Public Information Office)
“We have the opportunity to create the change we want to see in our society. We must make ourselves heard and seen, we must be brave enough to go beyond the unfair barriers that our history and culture have built around us.”
Thus said Supreme Court Associate Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh in her message at the launch of EmpowerHer: Advancing Women in Justice and for Justice (Philippines) at the Quezon City Experience Hall, Quezon City Memorial Circle, Quezon City on March 11, 2024. EmpowerHer is an initiative organized by the United Nations (UN) Joint Programme on Human Rights, UN Office on Drugs and Crime Programmes, the UN Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, and UN Women, with the support of the Quezon City government.
In sharing her life’s journey as a woman in the Judiciary, Justice Singh acknowledged the struggle for a gender-fair and inclusive society and admitted that it is an overwhelming responsibility to create changes. She, however, pointed out that she sees such as a privilege: “We must let the women around us and those who will come after us know that they will not and cannot be ignored.” She added, “[t]oday, we declare for the whole world to hear: we are here. We make a difference. We matter. So, step aside. We demand our space.”
Justice Singh shared that she had her highs and lows in her judicial career journey. Rising from the ranks was not an easy feat for her; there were times when she questioned herself, especially during the moments when she did not get appointed. She applied eight times before she got appointed to the High Court.
“But to give up would be to let down all the women and girls whose future depended on continuing the advocacy. And so, I fought,” Justice Singh candidly shared.
By telling her story, Justice Singh hopes to inspire girls and women who aspire to be in positions of leadership: “When women are represented and put forward in an empowering light, other women have clear models to follow, and say that if it is possible for other women, then it is possible for me too.”
She also added, “the presence of a system that does not discriminate and instead recognizes those that deserve to be recognized, regardless of gender, allows women to develop a trust for the justice system. It rallies them to have confidence in the law, empowers them to seek legal aid or protection, if need be, and imbues them with the belief that all are equal in the eyes of the law and its institutions.”
As one of the only two women Associate Justices in the Supreme Court, Justice Singh pointed out that “without women in the Judiciary, so many perspectives disappear, so many voices go unheard, and this should not be allowed.” She thus highlighted how the Supreme Court is fully committed to gender equality, especially under the Court’s blueprint for judicial reform, the Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations 2022-2027 or SPJI. According to her, in formulating the SPJI, the Court carefully considered that fulfilling the mandate of the Judiciary to deliver speedy and equal justice means the promotion of a system that nurtures sensitivity and inclusivity.
She cited how the Judiciary has made great leaps in addressing gender inequality through the conduct of a Gender Mainstreaming Evaluation Framework Seminar-Workshop and the completion of the Legal Feminism Report which catalogued and analyzed 15-years’ worth of Supreme Court decisions on gender and women. She also discussed the Court’s recent issuance, Memorandum Order No. 27-2024, dated March 8, 2024, issued by then Acting Chief Justice Marvic M.V.F. Leonen, declaring March 10, 2024 as “day-off” for women judges in the country in observance of International Day of Women Judges.
Justice Singh is a career jurist who served in all levels of the judicial hierarchy. She first joined the Judiciary in October 2002 as the Presiding Judge of Branch 31 of the Metropolitan Trial Court of Quezon City until her promotion to the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City as Presiding Judge of Branch 85 in June of 2007. On March 14, 2014, Justice Singh was appointed as an Associate Justice of the Court of Appeals. Justice Singh finally took her oath before Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo as the 194th Associate Justice of the Supreme Court on May 18, 2022.
The Initiative, launched in line with the celebration of Women’s Month in March, is designed to address the underrepresentation of women in law enforcement, prosecution, Judiciary, penology, and community service provision, and to develop strategies to overcome the challenges and barriers faced by women in these fields. The Initiative also featured panel discussions with women leaders from various sectors of the criminal justice system, including women leaders supporting women with legal challenges in the community.
Also present to deliver the welcome remarks and message of support, respectively, were Quezon City Mayor Josefina “Joy” Belmonte and Ambassador of the Kingdom of Netherlands to the Philippines Her Excellency Marielle Geraedts. (Courtesy of the Supreme Court Public Information Office)
Supreme Court Associate Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh participates in the Panel Discussion at the launch of “EmpowerHer: Advancing Women in Justice and for Justice (Philippines)” on March 11, 2024 at the Quezon City Experience Hall, Quezon City Memorial Circle, Quezon City. (Courtesy of the Supreme Court Public Information Office)
By telling her story, Supreme Court Associate Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh hopes to inspire girls and women who aspire to be in positions of leadership at the launch of “EmpowerHer: Advancing Women in Justice and for Justice (Philippines),” an initiative organized by the United Nations (UN) Joint Programme on Human Rights, UN Office on Drugs and Crime Programmes, the UN Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, and UN Women, with the support of the Quezon City government, on March 11, 2024, at the Quezon City Experience Hall, Quezon City Memorial Circle, Quezon City. (Courtesy of the Supreme Court Public Information Office)