OPINION | ‘BABAE KA! Hindi Babae Lang’

IN THE BEGINNING…

A group of 20 young women in Malolos, Bulacan, petitioned for permission to start a “night school” at Rufina Reyes’ house on December 12, 1888, during the visit of Governor-General Valeriano Wyler. They dubbed Seor Teodoro Sandino, a professor of Latin at the time, as the most qualified person to teach them the “beautiful Spanish language.”

To Marcelo del Pilar, Graceano Lopez Jeana, and Jose Rizal, Filipino women were breaking off the chains of colonialism, but the Augustinians parish priest saw it as an act of rebellion. In 1869, the 20 women launched the school in Rufina Reyes’ house. Rizal was ecstatic to find women in the Philippines who resembled them. In February 1889, he sent them a letter written in Tagalog.

Jose Rizal left a legacy for Filipino women in his essay “To the Young Women of Malolos,” in which he speaks to all diverse types of women, encompassing young children, maidens, wives, and mothers. Rizal emphasizes in his article what he wants Filipino women to remember. This piece was composed while he was in London.

The following are the key issues in this letter:

First, the dismissal of the friars’ spiritual control; not all the priests in the country at that period exemplified the authentic spirit of Christ and his Church. The majority of them were enticed by worldly aspirations and employed earthly means to impose change and discipline on the general public.

While the primary focus of his paper is on the attributes that Filipino women should have, as seen by this passage of his letter, Rizal is concerned about the wellbeing of Filipino children and the environments in which they are raised.

Additionally, the obligations and responsibilities of Filipino wives toward their husbands are emphasized — expectations and responsibilities of mothers to their children. In this section of his letter, Rizal describes how Filipino women should comport themselves as wives in order to maintain the culture’s distinctive identity. Filipino women are renowned for being obedient, fragile, and caring. And lastly, he advised young Filipinas to be discreet in selecting a lifelong relationship.

Jose Rizal was profoundly moved by the tenacity the young women of Malolos had exhibited. He encapsulates the fight they fought in his letter with a great deal of enthusiasm and satisfaction.

It is evident from the letter’s overall context that Rizal’s sole goal was to have women granted the same educational privileges as men. Schools refused to send young females back then due to the common perception that they would soon only be taken as wives and spent in their homes with their children. But Rizal contends that everyone should have the opportunity to receive an education and the freedom to think and decide for themselves.

Rizal shares his respect and sentiments toward Filipino women, primarily mothers. In this section of his letter to the young women of Malolos, he emphasizes the duties Filipino mothers have to their children and makes several significant remarks. But the main point is that whatever a mother teaches her children, that is also what their offspring will eventually become. If the mother is constantly kissing the hands of the friars in servitude, her children will grow up to be pawns and mindless fools who do nothing but follow orders, even when the duties at hand would be in violation of their rights as people.

According to Rizal and that time, a mother should be a noble wife who raises her children in the service of the nation’s interests — here Rizal relates to the women of Sparta who exemplify this trait. And she must set norms of conduct for the men around her.

Furthermore, Rizal imparts counsel to both single men and single women. He urges maidens to avoid being easily fooled by appearances and physical attractiveness because both things may be deceptive. Instead, they ought to pay attention to men’s strong moral principles and elevated ideals. Rizal goes on to say that a young woman should search for three qualities in a man before she chooses him to be her husband: a noble and honorable image, a manly heart, and a vigorous personality incapable of contentment with bearing slaves.

In Rizal’s letter, he acknowledged the importance and impact of women in society, as they are the mother of races — there would be no man without a woman giving birth. He applauds the twenty women of Malolos for their courage. Because back in their time, women are oppressed by opportunities and rights. Rizal was mesmerized because perhaps it is rare for a girl to speak up and fought against the authoritarian rule of the Spanish invaders. Girls are expected to be modest and submissive — nothing more, nothing less, a common characteristic possessed by a classic, “Maria Clara.” But I don’t think Maria Clara is weak, she is just a victim; these colonialists corrupted our way of thinking. They set a norm where women are the weak ones. And when they became vocal and decide for themselves, they are tagged as either rebellious or insane.

When in fact, modesty and being submissive are not customary traits of a Filipina. Our authentic Filipina foremothers were courageous leaders who waged war. Like the ancient Warrior Princess Urduja, the legendary Gabriela Silang to Miriam Defensor Santiago, and the current representatives of different organizations working for women’s and children’s rights. These are just a few of the countless names of heroic Filipina women who have lived from pre-colonial times to contemporary days.

But Rizal’s emphasis on parenting in this letter quite resonates with me. I am tuned into his principles, gratitude, and counsel for women. But at some point, it simply lacks an appropriate address for women who are not into marriage or being a mother. The core of being a woman does not include being a mother. She has the freedom to select her own route in life and the freewill to do so.

We cannot, however, ignore the fact that, as a result of machismo and the patriarchal society, discrimination still exists. But women today are empowered, not afraid to be vocal, and are encouraged to be involved — the world today is different than before.

As the saying goes, “ABANTE BABAE, PALABAN MILITANTE!”