Answer:

A. Here in Asia Society Philippines, positions are held mostly by women. This is somehow an affirmation of the 'women-friendly' societal conditions of the country. Although this is only a small portion of a large and competitive professional community, reflections of the nation's recognition of the role and importance of women are evident on aspects such as justice, education, economics, politics and health. The last is still a debatable topic, with the current issue of the Reproductive Health Bill in the Philippine Congress. Nevertheless, the country has evolved from depicting women as only subservient and modest individuals to powerful nation builders and leaders. It would be an understatement that this could all be attributed to the efforts of the government, but it could not be denied that a democratic state stamped the gateway of the formalization of women protection through the Constitution and its supporting statutes.

B. Detecting vote buying in monetary aggregates: New evidence on monetary political cycles

Toke Aidt, Zareh Asatryan, Lusine Badalyan, Friedrich Heinemann 28 November 2015

Central bank independence was supposed to end politically driven monetary policy. This column discusses new evidence showing a sizeable spike in the growth rate of cash and overnight bank deposits centred on election days. The spike is present in countries with weak political institutions, but not in OECD countries. The cycle seems to be related to the cash demand created by systemic vote buying.