Mar 8, 2021 | News
Women leaders of expatriate communities from seven countries came together in Doha for an event marking International Women’s Day.
The participants represented mainly the construction, domestic work and hospitality sectors.
Hailing from African, South East Asian and South Asian countries, they shared experiences on the issue of women’s participation and leadership in building communities of expatriates.
The ‘Women (Only) Night Out’, was organised for the first time by the Women Committee of Bayanihan ng Manggagawa sa Konstruksyon ng Qatar, the association of Filipino migrant workers in the construction sector of Qatar (BMKQ); and global union federation Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI).
“Women members in our organisation continue to increase. This is a result of resolute action. Women will never be a part of the table unless we organise ourselves,” BMKQ’s Women Committee chairperson Mags Laja said.
“In most cases, as some would tell, women must create our own table. We are mainly on the side-line, not having the power to be a part of decision-making.”
Laja encouraged participants to “continue the conversations on Convention 190, and deepen understanding of this international instrument as a tool to eliminate harassment and violence in the workplace.”
“Let us continue co-operating with the government of Qatar in order to get this convention translated into concrete policies and programmes,” she said.
“We are envisioning a training programme that will result in more active participation of women in migrant community organisations, more women leaders getting elected into office and the institution of internal policies within our own organisations against gender discrimination and violence,” Laja added.
An African participant introduced herself as an “activist for women and I try to be a voice for the voiceless” while a participant from the Philippines stated “I am a solo parent to six children and I am strong as a parent and a leader of our community here in Qatar”.
Through a phone patch, BWI’s Global Campaigns director Jin Sook Lee conveyed her message of solidarity to the women leaders in attendance, sharing a few points on the work of BWI in Qatar and the initiative to galvanise the solidarity of women migrant workers in the construction and other sectors.
This article was also published on Gulf Times, written by Joey Aguilar
Feb 26, 2021 | News
BMKQ Women, a special program of Bayanihan ng Manggagawa sa Konstruksyon ng Qatar (BMKQ), held a blood-donation drive at the HMC Blood Donation Center recently. The activity was organised in cooperation with Bayanihan Qatar, Guardians League Qatar, Scouts Royale Brotherhood Qatar Alumni Association, Triskelion State of Qatar International and Alpha Phi Omega Qatar Alumni Association.
“The campaign ‘Give Blood, Save Lives’ was held in response to Hamad Medical Corporation’s call to give the gift of life through blood donation. It was participated by 70 volunteers from different community groups,” said Myla Laja, coordinator of BMKQ Women.
Bayanihan ng mga Manggagawa sa Konstruksyon ng Qatar (BMKQ) is a non-profit, welfare-oriented organisation of Filipino workers in the construction sector with more than 600 members. BMKQ Women is a special programme of BMKQ established in 2019 and driven by the desire of the female active members of the group to bring women empowerment at the fore of BMKQ’s overall vision.
Besides the blood-donation drive, BMKQ Women also took part in a tree-planting ceremony at Qur’anic Botanic Garden (QBG), a member of Qatar Foundation. The activity was held in celebration of Qatar Environment Day 2021.
“It was organised by Mohammed Hasonna of QBG and attended by some women community leaders. We planted a tree of prosopis cineraria and acacia tree as our contribution to the initiative,” said Laja.
Since its inception, BMKQ Women has engaged in various activities such as gatherings to mark International Women’s Day and International Migrants Day. The group has also organised a series of trainings and seminars mainly on Basic Gender Sensitivity, Gender-Based Violence and Basic Leadership Skills Training for Women.
This article was also published on Qatar Tribune, written by Ailyn Agonia
Jan 10, 2021 | News
Empowering women through education and raising awareness of the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) global standards aimed at ending violence and harassment in the world of work and landmark Qatar labour reforms is at the heart of the mission and vision of the BMKQ Women.
BMKQ, which stands for Bayanihan ng mga Manggagawa sa Konstruksyon ng Qatar (BMKQ), is a non-profit, welfare-oriented organisation of Filipino workers in the construction sector with more than 600 members. BMKQ Women is a special programme of BMKQ established in 2019 and driven by the desire of the female active members of the group to bring women empowerment at the fore of BMKQ’s overall vision.
At the helm of this campaign are 60 female community leaders headed by Myla Laja, BMKQ Women Coordinator.
“Our priority is to build a strong campaign on raising awareness and support to ILO Convention 190- Harassment and Violence in the World of Work. We aspire to educate and develop more women leaders through trainings as well as strengthen support to the community and workers welfare through coordination with the Philippine government and Qatar’s Ministry of Labour in understanding the implementation of the new labour reforms,” Myla told Qatar Tribune in an interview.
Talking about the motivation to establish BMKQ Women, the staunch advocate of women’s rights said, “I was inspired to form BMKQ Women following my participation to the Global Women Meeting held in Skopje, Macedonia in 2019 to represent BMKQ. The event was attended by 40 women leaders from 20 countries in Asia, Africa, Middle East, Latin America and Europe. The inspiring words of the Chair of BWI (Building and Wood Workers’ International) Women Committee on finding solutions instead of mere complaining and putting blame on the challenges and difficulties faced by women has struck me that I was motivated to go further and learn more about women’s rights.”
Myla added: “Our first membership orientation seminar was conducted in November 2019 with only 14 women from construction sector and different allied sectors. Continuous trainings and activities help us to further understand and improve our knowledge on the issue. As of now, we have 60 members from various industries including construction, manufacturing, hospitality and services sectors including medical workers, salon staff, hotel employees, cleaning staff and domestic workers.”
Since its inception, BMKQ Women has engaged its members in various activities including the group’s first International Women’s Day gathering in March and the celebration of International Migrants Day and BMKQ Women’s Graduation held recently.
Last year, BMKQ Women conducted a series of trainings and seminars mainly on Basic Gender Sensitivity, Gender-Based Violence and Basic Leadership Skills Training for Women.
“The highlights of our trainings on gender sensitivity focuses on the gender and different perception of individuals based on their physiological and biological functions as dictated and raised by the society. The seminar raises awareness and understanding of different genders and uplifts women’s roles and importance in our society. All the participants shared their insights and voiced out their remarkable experiences and learning. During our gender-based violence sessions, we tackled the root cause, effects and responses to have a decent and safe workplace free from violence and harassment. We also put emphasis on leadership skills by training our members on two major characteristic of good leadership: behaviour and skills,” said Myla.
BMKQ Women partners internationally with the global union federation BWI and locally collaborates with Community Leaders Forum of ADSLA and Bayanihan ng mga Domestic Workers.
Aside from Myla, the BMKQ Women office-bearers include: Engr. Meliza Ortiguerra (Vice President), Rhoselyn Dolloso (Secretary), Ana Hezel Aglipay (Treasurer), Suzette Oli (Auditor), Marissa Llaneta and Jenny S. Mendez (PROs), Rosario Dano and Lorena Salvador (Business Managers), Nora Concepcion, Roxan Carrascal and Adelyn Lucanas (Sergeant-at-arms), and Ludelyn Pelonio and Engr. Belinda dela Cruz (Membership Committee).
This article was published on Qatar Tribune, written by Ailyn Agonia
Dec 18, 2020 | News
Twenty-five female community leaders completed the three-day workshop on women empowerment led by the female members of the Filipino organisation Bayanihan ng Manggagawa sa Konstruksyon Qatar (BMKQ) recently.
The event was held in cooperation with Bayanihan Qatar, a federation of more than 30 community groups mainly from the grassroots sector, and the Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI), a global organisation with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland and members in more than 100 countries.
The workshop was organised by the BMKQ Women in line with BMKQ’s aim of empowering women leaders in the construction and allied sectors.
Due to the pandemic, the workshop was conducted in the new normal setting wherein trainers and guest speakers had to use teleconferencing technology while the participants are gathered in the training venue in accordance with health protocol. The training participants come from diverse sectors, including construction and hospitality, medical services and domestic service.
The first day of the training was devoted to discussion on gender sensitivity while the second day focused on the topic of gender-based violence, particularly on ILO Convention 190 Violence and Harassment in the workplace.
The last day of the workshop focused on honing the leadership skills of the participants.
Resulting from the discussions during the training activities, the participants agreed on action plans directed towards an increased number of women participating and leading in the organisation and advocacy for violence- and harassment-free workplaces.
The awarding of certificates was led by Philippine Labour Attaché to Qatar David Des Dicang. In his message on the occasion, Dicang stressed the significance of the continuing education and training programme of BMKQ and BWI for migrant workers.
The ceremony also featured the oath taking by the newly-elected officers of BMKQ and Bayanihan Qatar for the year 2020 to 2021. It also served as the group’s celebration of Qatar National Day and the International Migrants Day.
This article was also published on Qatar Tribune, written by Ailyn Agonia
Oct 9, 2020 | News
The BMKQ (Bayanihan ng Manggagawa sa Konstruksyon ng Qatar) Women in Construction and Allied Sectors in Qatar, a member of Bayanihan Qatar – the federation of Filipino grassroots organisations, recently organised their first Basic Gender Sensitivity Seminar.
Held at Holiday Inn Doha – The Business Park on Friday, the seminar was organised in collaboration with Building Woodworkers International (BWI as part of the campaign in support of International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention C190 Harassment and Violence in the World of Work.
The event is part of the series of trainings for women leaders and members of the group. Friday’s seminar was the first training module on Basic Gender Sensitivity Seminar (BGSS), which was led by BMKQ Women Coordinator Mags Laja and supported by BMKQ President Engr. Ressie S. Fos, Lorna Ferrer, who was the resource speaker, and Prerna Prasad, South Asia Programme Officer at BWI – South Asian Project.
The seminar contributes awareness and in-depth understanding to different genders specially in the workplace and uplifts the important role women play in society.
During the event, the participants actively shared their experiences, insights and learnings on the subject.
This article was also published on The Peninsula.
Sep 20, 2020 | News
Kaagapay ng Manggawang Pilipino (KMP), in cooperation with International Domestic Worker Federation (IDWF) and Bayanihan ng Manggagawa sa Konstruksyon ng Qatar (BMKQ), recently conducted its first-ever Occupational Health and Safety Awareness Training for Domestic Workers at Inspire Academy.
KMP President Bernardo Dijamco Jr with the help of the other office-bearers and executive committees of KMP helped put together the event with 30 participants, mostly Filipino domestic workers.
OSH Awareness Module 1 to 5 (House Work Safety, Manual Handling, Work at Height, Chemical Handling, and Electrical Safety) was shared with participants by trainer Eliseo Bermudo, a health, safety and environment (HSE) supervisor.
BMKQ President Ressie Fos delivered a motivational message which kick-started the afternoon session which covered Modules 7 to 12 (Kitchen Safety, Food Safety, Fire Safety, Emergency Procedures, Waste Management, Security).
A certificate of participation was issued at the end of the programme. The date and location of the planned follow up OSH training will be announced soon.
