Juliet Cuenco

Juliet Cuenco was a Philippine-born activist. She was a prominent civic leader based in Canada's capital Ottawa. She worked in the federal multiculturalism secretariat and was a former executive director of the United Council of Filipino Associations in Canada. She was killed by her depressed husband in 1995. Her name was enshrined in the Ottawa Women's Monument.

Biography

Born in Manila, she studied at the University of the Philippines, where she earned her master's degree in urban planning. Then she immigrated to Canada with her family fleeing from Marcos dictatorship.^[1] She attended the University of Toronto receiving her MA in education.^[2]

In Canada, she worked in the federal multiculturalism secretariat, promoting multiculturalism, race relations and conflict resolution. In 1985, she served as executive director of the United Council of Filipino Associations in Canada (UCFAC), the national body of Filipino groups. She became the secretary of the Canadian Ethnocultural Council in 1988.

As a women's rights advocate, she became part of movement for the rights of care workers. In 1987, she helped Filipino domestic workers in establishing a local support network, the Ottawa Multicultural Homemakers Association. She was involved in various initiatives such as fundraising activities, workshops and lobbying. In 1989, her UCFAC work also helped organize a national dialogue on domestic workers' issues.^[3]

As well, she wrote for several publications. She was the Ottawa correspondent of Toronto-based The Philippine Reporter.

Death

On 13 April 1995, Juliet Cuenco was found dead in her Ottawa suburb of Orleans, Ontario. Local police found her battered body in her house following a distress call. Preliminary investigations showed she was hit several times on the head with a blunt object. Her husband Arturo ("Art") Eugenio Cuenco Sr. was also found at the scene. He was arrested immediately after being treated of his self-inflicted wounds and released from the hospital.

Following her death, Cuenco Sr. was charged with second-degree murder and was tried on court more than a year later. The jury found him “not criminally responsible” citing section 16 of the Criminal Code. The tragic assault exposed his undiagnosed clinical depression. He was given conditional discharge, permitting him to avoid jail term and allowing him to live in a supervised group home.^[4]

Honours

Cuenco was an active in the Filipino-Canadian community and has been recognized for her contributions to both Canada and in the Philippines. In 1991, Juliet Cuenco was the recipient of the LINKAPIL or Lingkod sa Kapwa Pilipino (Service to Fellow Filipinos) presidential award from former Philippines president Corazon Aquino. LINKAPIL Award is conferred on overseas Filipinos for their exceptional or significant contribution to reconstruction, progress and development in the Philippines.^[5] She was also profiled in the Directory of Canadian Women specializing in global issues and was officially given honours at the book launching at the House of Commons.

Local advocacy groups working to end violence against women held vigils in her memory. Some activists believed Juliet Cuenco's name should be enshrined in the Ottawa Women's Monument on Elgin Street. However, family and few friends at the time said she was not an abused woman and posed questions whether the manner of her death merits her inclusion in the memorial site.^[6]^[7]

Selected publications

Mental health needs of immigrant women with Alma Estable, "Partneships in Health," conference proceedings of the Multicultural Health Coalition
Domestic Workers in Canada: The Struggle, the Recognition in "The Womanist" 2,1 (1989): 40.[1]

References

^ Henein, Amal; Morisette, Françoise (2007). Made in Canada Leadership: Wisdom from the Nation's Best and Brightest on the Art and Practice of Leadership. John Wiley & Sons Canada, Ltd. p. 48. ISBN 9780470839430.
^ Crisostomo, Isabelo T. (1996). Filipino achievers in the USA & Canada: Profiles in Excellence. Bookhaus Publishers. p. 249. ISBN 978-0-931613-11-1.
^ Making a world of difference: A directory of women in Canada specializing in global issues. Canadian Council for International Cooperation. 1990. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-919072-96-1.
^ Pauline Tam (August 30, 1996). "Wife-killer cleared of murder". The Ottawa Citizen. p. A1.
^ "Awards for Filipinos and Private Organizations Overseas" (PDF). Commission on Filipinos Overseas. December 1991.
^ Magahay, Wendy (September 21, 1996). "Women's monument only serves to divide without moving us closer to a solution [Letter to the Editor]". The Ottawa Citizen. p. B7.
^ Arthur Cuenco and Patrick Cuenco (October 3, 1996). "Monument debate misses the crucial issue in Cuenco tragedy [Letter to the Editor]". The Ottawa Citizen. p. A10.

[1] Henein, Amal; Morisette, Françoise (2007). Made in Canada Leadership: Wisdom from the Nation's Best and Brightest on the Art and Practice of Leadership. John Wiley & Sons Canada, Ltd. p. 48. ISBN 9780470839430.

[2] Crisostomo, Isabelo T. (1996). Filipino achievers in the USA & Canada: Profiles in Excellence. Bookhaus Publishers. p. 249. ISBN 978-0-931613-11-1.

[3] Making a world of difference: A directory of women in Canada specializing in global issues. Canadian Council for International Cooperation. 1990. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-919072-96-1.

[4] Pauline Tam (August 30, 1996). "Wife-killer cleared of murder". The Ottawa Citizen. p. A1.

[5] "Awards for Filipinos and Private Organizations Overseas" (PDF). Commission on Filipinos Overseas. December 1991.

[6] Magahay, Wendy (September 21, 1996). "Women's monument only serves to divide without moving us closer to a solution [Letter to the Editor]". The Ottawa Citizen. p. B7.

[7] Arthur Cuenco and Patrick Cuenco (October 3, 1996). "Monument debate misses the crucial issue in Cuenco tragedy [Letter to the Editor]". The Ottawa Citizen. p. A10.

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