Pre-colonial Women

Long time ago and even until today the women are treated with great respect in the society. Contrary to popular belief, Philippine society was not always patriarchal. There was a time when women were treated as equally as men. The early law already recognizes their rights with the same privilege equally as men have. They played key roles both in and outside. Before the coming of the Spaniards, women were already entitled to inherit and own a family property, engage in a trade, to work according to her favorable occupation. They could also exercise their right to name her child before anyone else and could divorce her husband.

In the street while walking with their family, relatives or with a group they were always in front before men as an indication of respect. Indeed this explains that they were already recognized to be given a high respect in the society.

In the family, husbands and wives were also equal. Husbands treated their wives as companions and not as slaves or whores. The wife was also financially independent since she retained the property she owned before marriage. Both the husband and the wife had the right to file for divorce since this was practiced. The grounds for divorce were childlessness, infidelity, or failure to fulfill obligations to the family. In theory, husbands and wives had equal rights, although in practice, wives had limited causes for divorce.

Even until today it was already a practice that wives juggled between managing the home, taking care of the children, at the same time helping her husband in earning the family's livelihood. She often played a key role in the family's economic stability and in improving the family's finances by engaging in agriculture and trade with the Chinese merchants. The early Filipinas were often considered as reliable trade partners, thus, women's signatures were often required to validate contracts.

The pre-colonial Filipinas were also legally enjoy their chance to participate in politics and leadership. In the event where a chieftain (datu) happens to have an absence of a male heir, his daughter has the right to be proclaimed as the leader in the community after her father.