THE COMMISSION on Human Rights lauded the Department of Education for implementing a Gender-Responsive Basic Education Policy following reports of discrimination against some students.

“The reiteration of the Gender-Responsive Basic Education Policy comes timely after several gender-based violence incidents were noted in schools, including transgender girls being asked to cut their hair and being mandated to wear a uniform for male students,” the CHR said.

With the policy, the DepEd aims to undertake gender-mainstreaming in education to address enduring and emerging gender and sexuality-related issues in basic education and promote the protection of children from all forms of gender-related violence, abuse, exploitation, discrimination and bullying.

It also seeks to promote gender equality and non-discrimination in the workplace and within the DepEd.

The CHR expects the policy directive to minimize, if not eliminate, gender-based violence and discrimination in schools.

“We remind educators and education institutions that gender issues have an impact on the realization of the right to education. Critical in understanding this dynamic is the intersectionality of issues, i.e. on how sex and gender issues are tightly connected with other social factors, such as age, class, disability, ethnicity, race, religion, and other status,” it said.

The commission said it looks forward to the “meaningful implementation” of the gender-responsive policy to promote the rights and dignity of children and learners.