MANILA, Philippines – Arlene Brosas, House assistant minority leader and representative of Gabriela Women’s Party, is setting her eyes on a Senate seat.

“This decision is driven by the urgent need to defend women’s rights against the ongoing onslaught of patriarchal and women’s policies,” Brosas said.

She is the second from the Makabayan bloc to announce her senatorial bid, following ACT Teachers Representative France Castro. The two have been serving in the House of Representatives since the 17th Congress in 2016 and will finish their terms at the 19th Congress in 2025.

Brosas is a long-time advocate for women’s and children’s rights, and has been vocal against government-sanctioned red-tagging.

She is among the principal authors of the Safe Spaces Act (RA 11313), which penalizes catcalling, wolf-whistling, misogynistic and homophobic slurs, unwanted sexual advances, and other forms of sexual harassment in public spaces – even online.

Brosas is also the principal author of laws that further protect the welfare of parents, such as the Expanded Maternity Leave Law (RA 11210) and the Expanded Solo Parents welfare Act (RA 11861), and helped create measures that protect against sexual abuse, such as the Act Providing for Stronger Protection Against Rape and Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, Increasing the Age for Determining the Commission of Statutory Rape (RA 11648).

According to a profile provided by her staff, Brosas is currently the vice president for Partylist of the Association of Women Legislators Foundation Incorporated, vice chairperson for Luzon of the Philippine Legislators’ Committee on Population and Development Foundation Incorporated, and is a board member at the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights.

Before she became congresswoman, Brosas led the creation of the Anti-Child Pornography Alliance, and served as spokesman and convenor for the Save Nena Campaign – another group that advocated for the end of child sexual abuse and prostitution. She was also executive director of nationwide daycare volunteers, Akap sa mga Bata ng mga Guro Kalinga.

Makabayan said last week that they will be fielding a full Senate slate in the upcoming 2025 polls from all sectors they represent. While only two candidates have so far been announced, the bloc said they plan on presenting candidates who have proven track records and have been working in their respective sectors for a while now.

In the last midterm elections in 2019, opposition figures failed to secure a seat in the Senate’s “Magic 12” after suffering a barrage of attacks – from red-tagging to online disinformation – from the administration of the popular Rodrigo Duterte.

At the moment, the only opposition senator at the upper chamber is Akbayan’s Risa Hontiveros, whose term ends in 2028. She is part of the Senate minority along with Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, a former party-mate of Duterte in PDP-Laban. – Rappler.com