Liberal Women

Stories at the Village Spark Change

Many women and children, especially the disadvantaged, in urban and rural villages in the Philippines, are usually unaware of their rights under a democracy.  Thus, in April 2025, with financial support from FNF Philippines, Liberal Women, an organization of women bounded by their belief in democracy, freedom, justice, and collaboration started a program called “Kwentuhan sa Barangay” (KSB) or Story-telling at the Village. 

Storytelling, being a favorite form of communication among Filipinos, became the main format that KSB utilized. It was a face-to-face storytelling and discussion with groups of students from grades 9 to 12 or groups of women who live in a community. The 3-hour program focused on Democracy, Responsible Citizenship, Rights of Women, and Rights of Children. To help enliven and instill lessons learned, the program included two games--a drawing contest and a simplified version of Family Feud. Winners were awarded prizes. Photos taken during KSBs were posted as blogs and reels on allied pages and reposted on various social media group chats.

The verbal feedback from participants were very heartening. Before KSB, women and youth participants claimed that they did not fully understand their freedoms under the Constitution. They said that they did not realize that for their freedoms to work, they had to be responsible citizens. Most women and youth had never heard of their specific rights guaranteed under the law nor the village-based services that were available to them for their own protection, such as the Village Violence Against Women and Children’s (VAWC) Desk. During the discussion, women shared their experiences with abuse while some pointed to the need to have a source of income or a job to be able to get away from an abusive spouse or partner. It was this kind of discussion that changed the life of an abused participant in Rizal.

“Two weeks after the KSB, the KSB leader received news that soon after the KSB, a participant looked for a job, then, went to the Village VAWC Desk and filed a complaint against her abusive husband.”  

With the youth, they said that they enjoyed the games as they helped them better understand the concepts of democracy and responsible citizenship.

As of August 2025, 66 KSBs have been conducted in Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Cebu, Iloilo, Rizal, and Hong Kong for overseas Filipino workers. It has reached 482 women and 443 youths. The program’s impact extended beyond its initial locations, with residents from other towns and provinces requesting similar activities after seeing KSB on social media.

As to the future, the leaders of Liberal Women said that they plan to continue KSB and expand to other cities and provinces by seeking external financial support and by raising their own funds.

Some of the photos of KSB sessions: