liza largoza maza a leader

Liza Largoza Maza
(Leader)
Gabriela Women’s Party

Profile:

Liza Largoza Maza is a Filipino politician, activist, and development worker. She is the GABRIELA Women’s Party president and its nominee to the House of Representatives in the 13th and 14th Congress.

Maza was born on 8 September 1957. She was one of 10 children of a couple who owned a grocery store. She grew up in San Pablo, Laguna, finishing elementary school at San Pablo Elementary School in 1970 and high school at Canossa College, also in San Pablo, in 1974. She graduated from the University of the Philippines in 1978 with a degree in Bachelor of Science in Business Economics.
Maza has been an activist since her student days at the University of the Philippines, Diliman where her first struggle was with a dorm matron and curfew regulations.
She worked as a researcher and lecturer at St. Scholastica College after acquiring her degree.
She then started working with GABRIELA Philippines, where she was elected Secretary General and served in the position for fourteen years. She became part of the editors collective for LAYA magazine, and was a founding member of the Asia section of Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom and a member of the executive committee of the Women’s International Democratic Federation.
She worked as a financial analyst for the research project “Multinational Corporations in the Philippines” for the Philippine Center for Advanced Studies. She was also the director for the Third World Studies Resource Program and a teacher at the High School Department of St. Scholastica's College.
During martial law, she was an executive officer for the Nationalist Economic Protectionism Association, and later a researcher for the President's Center for Strategic Studies in the Office of the President.

Contribution:
Women’s welfare and protection Maza proposed wage increase, abolishment of contractualization and of discriminatory pre-employment practices, i.e. pregnancy tests, for female skilled workers. She also aimed to encourage incentives for Filipino business owners and offer development assistance for female entrepreneurs.
Reproductive health bill Maza is a co-author of the Reproductive Health bill. She vowed that once she is in the Senate, she will “resurrect” the controversial bill that has been killed with the adjournment of the 14th Congress.
Urban poor Maza also considered awarding the urban poor a free housing project, in view of the situation of the re-settlers in Vitas Housing Community near the old Smokey Mountain site in Tondo, Manila.
Other Contributions:
Liza believes that her work as an activist legislator in Congress is complimentary to the mass campaigns for workers’ and peasants’ rights and welfare.
In support of women workers, she initiated investigations into the rampant practice of contractualization and its impact on women workers. She has likewise sought investigations into the rampant cases of sexual harassment especially in the workplace.
A witness to the adverse impact of globalization on the country’s agricultural sector, Liza is a staunch oppositor of the Philippine government’s continues adherence to the GATT-WTO. She joins peasant women in their struggle against globalization and for food security. Moreover as a response to the onslaught of militarization in peasant communities, Liza delivered her maiden privilege speech on the plight of indigenous Mangyan women in the highly militarized province of Mindoro Oriental.
Liza is also an advocate of the youth’s basic right to education and teachers’ welfare. She conceived the 20-20 formula, urging legislators to allocate 20% of their Priority Development Assistance Fund for the construction of classrooms. She also opposed the arbitrary imposition of tuition fee hikes and called for increased government subsidy for State Colleges and Universities.
Having spoken in several international conferences on the plight and struggles of Filipino women, Liza is a prominent figure even in international communities. Liza is among the prime movers of GABRIELA’s Purple Rose Campaign, a global campaign to end sex trafficking in Filipino women and children.
Liza’s advocacies and militant stance in fighting for the rights and welfare of marginalized women and children remains unwavering despite the persecution and harassment against her and progressive partylist organizations, including Gabriela Women’s Party. At the height of Philippine President Gloria Arroyo’s proclamation of a state of emergency in 2006, Liza became the only woman representative in what came to be known as the ‘Batasan 6’. Liza along with 5 other partylist representatives, constantly faced illegal arrest, having been charged with cases of rebellion. The fabricated charges were eventually dismissed by the Supreme Court. To date, fabricated cases of murder and kidnapping remain pending in the province of Nueva Ecija.
Liza mixes creative ideas in various campaigns pursuing new politics and reforms. She was a prime mover of the GABRIELA Fashion Show that highlighted the women’s opposition to ousted President Estrada. She has twice participated in V-Day programs against violence. Her position against US military intervention and war was displayed in a Filipiniana outfit and a handpainted panuelo as US President Bush addressed the Philippine Congress last year.
Liza believes the progress and success of campaigns against violence and for genuine reforms in the society lie in the active participation of women from the grassroots.
This feminist is an endearing mother to two boys. Liza ensures that both Niko and AG grow learning to respect and recognize every woman’s worth.
Reason why I pick Liza Maza:
I choose Liza Maza because her platform includes equal representation and participation of women in national and local governance; progressive way of living; protection from violence, abuse, and discrimination; equal social treatment of women; protection and promotion of rights of women and children; development and empowerment of women’s potential; enactment of pro-women agendas; economic policies expedient to indigent women; and national sovereignty over policies and patrimony.
In short Liza Maza wants an equal recognition and equal treatment of man and women in the society and she also wants to inform the society and specially the government what women can do. She also advocate for the protection of women and children in violence, abuse and discrimination. She also advocate environmental activities and activities for helping poor family.