CEDAW/C/SR.32 English Page 8 ~ .,·. {Ms. Mukayiranga) enrolled in such courses and the number of scholarships which had been awarded, would be desirable. It would also be useful to know how many women currently held key positions under the Merit Promotion Plan designed to implement article 7. Another action programme had been designed with a view to "encouraging parents to permit girls to continue studies beyond primary levels"i she asked what form such encouragement took. Finally, the representative of the Philippines had noted that his country was composed of many islands; she therefore wished to know whether the remotest islands were equipped with infrastructures that would enable women to enjoy the benefits of progress. 43. Ms. GUAN MINGIAN said that the background information just given by the representative of the Philippines provided new insight into his Government's achievements in implementing the Convention. She was particularly impressed by the representation of women in the Philippine foreign service. While she shared the view that the format utilized in the preparation of the initial report of the Philippines was difficult to follow, she felt the report showed that the Philippine Government had taken a serious approach to the implementation of the Convention and would, it was to be hoped, improve its record with time. 44. She was somewhat puzzled as to how the National Five Year Development Plan for 1983-1987 had managed to classify women workers together with disabled workers and workers who were minors, and wanted to know what measures had been taken to remedy such discriminatory treatment. The National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women appeared to be a very important body, and more information about it would be useful. She specifically wished to know how it differed from other Government bodies and what relationship it bore to other women's organizations in the Philippines. 45. At the Asian regional preparatory meeting for the World Conference to Review and Appraise the Achievements of the United Nations Decade for Women currently being held at Tokyo, prostitution had been cited as a serious problem in the Asian region, particularly in the Philippines. She therefore wished to know the attitude of the Philippine Government towards that problem and what measures it planned to take to solve it. 46. Ms. BIRYUKOVA said that, while many research studies were mentioned in the report, little information was provided about what was really being done to ensure equality for Philippine women. It appeared from the report that many laws perpetuated women's traditional inequality vis vis men. The report also failed to state whether the principle of equality was enshrined in the Constitution of the Philippines or in any other national legislation and to outline any specific measures to implement articles 2, 3 and 4 of the Convention; at best, draft legislation was being considered rather than enacted. Despite some progress, the number of women holding various posts in the Government remained insignificant. She wished to know whether women's political rights were the same as men's. a 47. In the social sphere, it appeared that greater efforts were required to raise the educational level of Philippine women and to provide them with vocational / ...