03 May 2016 – As the overseas voting period nears its conclusion on May 09, the Philippine Embassy in Doha breached its 10,000th voter mark on April 29, while it commemorated the Women’s Suffrage Day on April 30 with the first female voter of the day.
The Embassy’s 10,000th voter was 48 year-old Zenaida Ramos Canoy; while Ms. Jenelyn S. Mondejar, a supervisor at Grand Qatar Palace Hotel originally from Manila, was the first female voter to cast her vote on Women’s Suffrage Day.
Filipino women were finally given the right to suffrage in a national plebiscite on April 30, 1937. In 1984, Proclamation No. 2346 was issued declaring April 30 of every year as Women’s Suffrage Day to commemorate this historic event, and for women of the Philippines to renew their advocacy and support for clean, honest and free elections.
As of 01 May 2016, 11,708 votes have been cast in Qatar which represents 26.12% of the total number of registered voters in the country.
“It is a wonderful coincidence that our 10,000th voter is female, [and that she cast her vote] on our commemoration of Women’s Suffrage Day. Just goes to show the empowerment that Filipinas enjoy in our society as they are given an equal role as men in choosing the next leaders of our country. I am therefore encouraging all the other Filipino [women who are] registered voters in Qatar to cast their votes at the Embassy until May 09,” Philippine Ambassador to Qatar Wilfredo C. Santos said. END