Bryan Stevenson once said that "the opposite of poverty is not wealth. In too many places, the opposite of poverty is justice." I believe that the government should take notice of social justice for it will raise individual development which will certainly lead to national development. In my view, social justice means the right management of laws that values equality of opportunity without favoring one party. With social justice, the rights are evenhandedly distributed for all, regardless of one's gender, religion, race, etc.

There are several instances that the government is able to operationalize the provision that promotes social justice. First instance is about religion. The Philippines does not have an official religion as a result of separation of Church and the State. By this, discrimination among the people with different religions is less likely to occur. Every person in any religion has freedom to confess his beliefs without any fear of racism and punishment. The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession without discrimination shall forever be allowed as explained in Article 3, Section 5 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution. Second instance is social justice in labor. The government promotes equal employment opportunities for all as stated in Section 3, Article XIII. Everyone has equal job opportunities; moreover, a worker has a right to be protected against unfair labor practices. Third is health-related issues. The government had already established special agencies for disabled persons since they are usually the ones who face a lot of discriminations. Government programs such as vocational skills trainings help them find jobs suited to their skills and interests. Fourth instance involves gender equality. According to my research, government media policies are gender fair and government programs promote gender mainstreaming. Government also increased proportion of women going into rural production activities or enterprises that have been traditionally associated with men. They help achieve gender equality and empower women through projects and programs. Fifth is the government actions for the ethnic people. The government established the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), an agency concerning the rights of the ethnic groups including indigenous intellectual property and indigenous land rights. The Government jobs also are not requiring person's origin which gives the ethnic people equal opportunities with the non-tribal people. Sixth is the maintenance of free education; the grant of scholarships, etc., to deserving students especially the underprivileged which is explained in Social Justice and Human Rights of the 1987 Constitution.

All in all, I could say that the Philippine government had made a lot of actions in maintaining social justice. What needed most is the community's cooperation and respect for all human beings and the continuos action of the government. People should help one another by means of promoting social justice for I truly believe that individual development collectively is national development.