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228 Panel 5My observations are in line with Mina Roces’ (1998)argument that women power in the Philippines isdefined by the dynamics of kinship. According to her,power is not concentrated on and confined to theindividual politician, but held by her kinship group.On many occasions, the term limit set for variouspositions indirectly created more opportunities forwomen to participate in politics. For example, manywomen mayors were elected after their husbandsreached the maximum three-term limit. Thisphenomenon further illustrates “kinship politics”,where close relatives running for election are endorsedby the outgoing candidate. This could happen to eithergender as illustrated in the case of Raida BansilMaglangit, whose husband succeeded her as mayor ofKapatagan.2. The Politics of Gender Equality and the Women’sMovementIn the Philippines, many laws and acts have been put inplace to ensure gender equality. For example, theGeneral Appropriations Act of 1995 set aside 5percent of the budget for gender and developmentprojects. Republic Act 6949, on the other hand,declared March 8 as a special working holiday in honorof International Women’s Day. On top of that, Marchis also celebrated as Women’s Month.Apparently, the strong presence of the women’smovement has brought a significant number of womenactivists into decision-making positions ingovernment. For example, Remy Rikken who is theChair of the Philippine Commission of Women(PCW) was a veteran feminist, while Dinky Soliman,the Secretary of Department of Social Welfare andDevelopment, had a solid background in communityorganizing prior to her appointment in thegovernment.3. The Party List System Act and the Women’s PartyWith regard to women’s participation in politics, themost effective piece of legislature relating to it is theParty List System Act of 1995 which dictates that 20percent of the seats in the House of Representatives bereserved for party representatives from marginalizedsectors such as peasant communities, the urban poor,farmers, fishers, and women (Munez 2004). Under theParty List system, Gabriela Women’s Party, which wasan offshoot of the biggest alliance of women’sorganizations, won two seats.However, an individual political party may set its owngender quotas. For example, the Akbayan Citizen’sAction Party, a multi-sectoral party with a feministagenda, implements a gender quota within its party. Itdesignates that 30 percent of all leadership positions atevery level of the Philippine political structure bereserved for women. Prior to the success of GabrielaWomen’s Party and the Akbayan Citizen’s ActionParty, another women’s party, Albanse! Pinay(Advance! Philipinas) emerged. It was the first allwomen’sparty to win a seat in 1998. However, it laterfailed to retain any seat in the subsequent elections.Dominant Beliefs And Success Factors In PoliticsA. San-ban and the three Gs.In Japan, it is generally believed that politicians need tohave the “sanban” or three foundations. In the maledominatedpolitics of Japan, a politician needs toconsider acquiring “chiban” or family support,“kanban” or organized group support, and also“kaban” or financial support.Intriguingly, in a rather different context, somewomen politicians in Japan indeed possessed ratherscant resources when they started. However, they werehighly educated and politicized, and decided to joinpolitics after having already developed their ownpolitical influence and network in a social movementor through their professional credentials. Those whofall under the aforementioned category include thefollowing: lawyer Fukushima Mizuho, activistTsujimoto Kiyomi, feminist Mistui Mariko, housewifeYamaguchi Takai, and transwoman Kamikawa Aya.In contrast, Munez (2004) contends that women inpolitics are “not a widely held concern in thePhilippines”. Instead, it is widely believed that thethree Gs are the determinant factors for a politician towin an election. Munez (2004) expressed, “In thepopular mind, politics is for men and often,particularly come election time, is synonymous withguns, goons and gold”.It is likewise widely perceived that those with socialcapital and economic power have the means to be inpolitics.The Work of the 2010/2011 API Fellows