CEDAW/C/SR.1405 Magna Carta of Women. She asked whether the State party planned to enact legislation to strengthen the independence of the Commission and to make its recommendations binding on those agencies responsible for punishing violations of the Magna Carta of Women. 38. She asked what steps had been taken by the State party to act upon the various recommendations contained in the report of the Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Commission. She would also welcome information on the recommendations made by the Commission on Human Rights on the case involving flight attendants who had been discriminated against on the grounds of their age and sex and on the case involving a minor who had been discriminated against on the basis of her sexual orientation, whose case had been dismissed by the lower courts. 39. Ms. Gbedemah said that, while she welcomed the raft of temporary special measures adopted by the State party to accelerate the substantive equality between men and women presented in paragraphs 5 to 5.4 of the written replies (CEDAW/C/PHL/Q/78/Add.1), the fact that many of those measures were contained in bills that were still pending before Congress was a major cause for concern. She asked when the State party expected the bills to be approved. It would also be useful to learn how it monitored the impact of the temporary special measures that had been adopted and tracked trends in the participation of women in political and public life and in the diversity of women’s representation in political and public bodies over time. She also wished to know what penalties were imposed for non-compliance with temporary special measures and whether the State party intended to adopt further temporary special measures for women with disabilities. It would also be helpful to receive additional information on the communitybased social protection scheme to support women with disabilities mentioned in the Magna Carta of Women; on the mechanisms for monitoring compliance with the executive order on the employment of persons with disabilities; and on the specific interventions carried out on behalf of indigenous and Muslim women and women with disabilities under the Women’s Empowerment, Development and Gender Equality Plan. 40. Ms. Verzosa (Philippines) said that a programme to accelerate the implementation of the Magna Carta of Women had been devised and submitted for approval. The creation of 21 new posts within the Philippine Commission on Women would allow it to open a new division responsible for, inter alia, the monitoring of expenditure under the gender and development budget. It was hoped that more posts could be created in the future. The Government ensured the judicious use of the resources available under that budget by local governments by issuing joint circulars and providing local government officials with training on budget management. Regional coordinating bodies played a role in informing government agencies of their obligations in respect of the gender and development budget and could provide technical assistance if required. The gender and development budget was subject to an annual assessment. Government agencies were required to formulate gender and development plans that were in step with the Women’s Empowerment, Development and Gender Equality Plan and could make use of guidelines and checklists to determine whether their plans were gender-sensitive. Budgetary resources were allocated on the basis of ratings given by the Philippine Commission on Women. The Commission was in the process of developing a new framework for monitoring and evaluating the gender and development plans drawn up by the different government agencies. 41. Under the new administration, an assessment would be conducted of the Women’s Empowerment, Development and Gender Equality Plan and a new plan would be formulated on that basis. A progress report of the Magna Carta of Women had revealed that the gender and development perspective had been integrated into most Government departments, including those responsible for energy and tourism. It was nevertheless essential that real changes were made in women’s lives, and the Committee’s support in improving tracking and monitoring in that regard would be welcome. Improvements on the GE.16-11608 7