Meet the Only Female Undersecretary of Justice Department

From a young age, Department of Justice (DOJ) Undersecretary Margarita Gutierrez aspired to become a lawyer, a path that seemed destined given her family's legacy. Her grandfather, former vice governor Rufino Navarro Sr., was one of the finest litigators in Bataan, while her mother, two-time Secretary of Justice and former Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez, devoted most of her professional years to public service.

But it was during Usec Gutierrez's junior year in high school that she began seriously considering a career in law. This turning point came as she got more exposed to the realities of life. An outreach program at St. Scholastica's College provided the opportunity to visit the Correctional Institute for Women (CIW). During these visits, she interacted with persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) and gained a deeper understanding of their plight.

"One thing that stuck with me was that most of them are moms. We asked them, 'Bakit po kayo nandito sa correctional?' Many of them said, nagnakaw sila dahil walang makain," she recalls. "In other words, it was mainly due to poverty. I know it doesn't justify what they did. But in my head, ang naisip ko, kung hindi sila naghihirap ng gano'n, hindi sila magre-resort sa pagnanakaw."

Gutierrez was appointed Undersecretary of the DOJ on January 2024. 

From then on, it became her dream to become a government lawyer. "Alam ko kasi na mas madami akong matutulungan kapag ako ay nasa gobyerno. I want to be an instrument of justice. It sounds cliché, but it's true," she says, seriously.

After completing her Law degree at Ateneo de Manila University, Gutierrez briefly worked at the Supreme Court and the Office of the Ombudsman. She enjoyed a successful career in real estate law for over a decade before joining the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) as Undersecretary in 2022, and later the DOJ in 2024.

In her last year of college at De La Salle University (she took up Applied Economics), before pursuing law at Ateneo de Manila University, and in between her career as a lawyer, Gutierrez walked the ramp for renowned Filipino fashion designers like Inno Sotto and Cary Santiago. "That was my first job and my first love," says Gutierrez, who has been president of the Professional Models Association of the Philippines (PMAP) since 2022. She also won second place in the Body Shots competition back in 2004.

During one of their visits/medical missions to the CIW. 

Justice for All

Gutierrez is currently the only female Undersecretary of the DOJ, overseeing the Communications Cluster. Her frontline service under that cluster is the DOJ Action Center (DOJAC), which is focused on providing free legal aid. She received her appointment as Usec in charge of DOJAC in March 2024. "My mandate is to ensure that everyone has access to justice. Of course, our priority is to provide services to the indigent," she adds.

One of their priorities at DOJAC is to provide legal aid to the PDLs. "All of them have been convicted already, so it's a matter of appealing their cases so they can be released earlier under the Good Conduct and Time Allowance (GCTA) program. We help them because they might already be entitled to the GCTA or baka yung iba nago-overstay," she explains.

Being the only female among the seven undersecretaries, Gutierrez specifically requested to take charge of the CIW. "Some people think, may ambisyon yan. Gusto mag-pulitika. Pero ang totoo kasi, I promised the women in CIW when I was in high school, 'Pag ako naging abogado, tutulungan ko kayo. This is my commitment.' So I asked for this cluster precisely for that," she says.

Relief operations with Kababaihan, an NGO she established with her mother, former Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez. 

New Hope for PDLs

Spending time with the women of CIW made her aware of the numerous tasks at hand and the many people needing legal services. Gutierrez shared with me a case she encountered recently thru the Center. It involves a PDL named Julie who was incarcerated at the CIW for nearly 23 years for a murder case. During the legal proceedings, Julie revealed that she was actually raped back in 2000; she bore a child as a result of that rape. But she chose not to file a case against the alleged rapist because the guy is associated with a powerful religious sect.

Julie and her friends instead decided to take revenge on the alleged rapist, resulting in a brawl that led to the man's death. Although Julie didn't cause the death, everyone involved—including her—faced murder charges. On appeal, however, the Supreme Court ruled that Julie's offense was not murder but only less serious physical injuries. "She was only supposed to be detained for 30 days, yet she had been imprisoned for 23 years," the Usec says.

At the time of this interview, Julie was still in detention. One of their volunteer lawyers at DOJAC filed a habeas corpus petition, leading to Julie's release on Christmas Day.

There's also this story of a department store cashier from Rizal who has been detained at CIW for five years. "What happened was, the balance sheet failed to tally. There was a shortage of P2000. Because of that, she was charged with qualified theft and imprisoned. No one wanted to help her because they were afraid of losing their jobs. Her release is currently in progress."

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Gutierrez continues, "If we hadn't provided legal aid there, we wouldn't have known these cases because we never had time to interact with the PDLs. It's different reading about their case than actually talking to them, hearing, 'Ma'am, this is what happened.'"

Over the past year, since Gutierrez joined the DOJ, their team has provided legal aid thrice to PDLs at CIW in Mandaluyong and once in Davao del Norte. They have extended their services to the people of Marawi and to the detainees at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City. They have also been actively participating in President Bongbong Marcos' Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fairs since the start of the 2024. On top of all these, the department's legal services are available daily at the DOJ office.

At the launch of Project ArtE, one of DOJAC's livelihood projects for the CIW

Cover All Bases

Gutierrez realized she couldn't pursue all her advocacies and programs through the DOJ. So, she tapped Kababaihan, a non-government organization she had established with her mother, to focus on other important causes, such as the campaign to stop rape and violence against women.

"Data from the World Health Organization show that one out of five Filipinos experience sexual assault in their lifetime," she notes. "Early in 2024, there were over 9,000 rape cases filed, and in 2023, there were 24,000. The numbers are rising."

According to the Philippine National Police (PNP), nearly 9,400 rape cases were reported in 2023—an average of almost 26 incidents every single day.

This drove her to launch the "Wag Po" social media campaign in 2024. "My interpretation of the data is that rape is becoming normalized. People don't discuss it as much, perhaps due to the stigma women face. Not everyone can be strong and confrontational. In fact, many feel ashamed, fearing it diminishes their value as women. We're in the 21st century, yet issues that should have been left in the 15th or 14th centuries still persist," she says.

She recalls encountering similar cases during her stint with the DILG. "During town hall meetings with local communities, I'd ask about the cases they face and how we could help. I discovered that rape is prevalent in rural areas, often handled at the barangay level. Imagine cases where a girl is raped by her own father or uncle, then settled quietly in the barangay. We wanted to change that," she stresses.

"My mentality is to cover all bases—maximize and fully utilize all the platforms that I have to be able to advocate for certain things. Since I started in government, I learned a lot and gained a lot of experiences. So in 2024, I decided to use those experiences and turn them into programs. I'm focusing on three areas: justice, health, and economic empowerment," she says. 

With her mother, former Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez, and Justice Secretary Boying Remulla

Fight for What's Just

Gutierrez says it's not easy being a woman in her line of work. "Mas maraming tsismis," she says, her lips breaking into a smile. She was actually quite emotional during this interview because someone at work had badmouthed her. "It was personal. I guess they couldn't attack on the program, so they attacked me personally. It was harsh," she adds.

Whenever she'd feel down, like that time, she would find comfort in her mother. "I go to her and tell her these things, and she would always tell me, 'You can't give up on your mission. You shouldn't give up on your dreams just because someone says you can't do it. You can't give up just because someone said you're too ambitious. Always remember the purpose of all the things that you're doing.'"

Growing up, her mother had always instilled in her that she needs to be strong, to learn to fight for what is just. "Kasi I'm not strong, in the sense that I'm not confrontational. So I always admire my mother because she's always so strong. Pag tingin niya may injustice na nangyayari sa kanya, lalaban siya," she says.

Gutierrez recounts an experience in the 1990s when she and her mother went on a trip to Europe, courtesy of her grandfather. When they boarded the first class section of the Europass, they were denied entry by an attendant, presumably due to their Asian looks. "My mom knows how to speak Italian, so she confronted the attendant. Parang, just because we're Asians, we can't afford to sit in the first class? Ganun yung mom ko," she remembers with a laugh.

Inclusivity and Capacity Building

Gutierrez hasn't entirely stepped away from modeling. Whenever requested and when her schedule allows, she continues to grace the runway. Her most recent appearance was in a fashion show by Randy Ortiz. As the president of PMAP, she's enthusiastic about driving the organization's evolution, focusing on two things.

First is inclusivity. "In the past kasi, we were too traditional. We only got skinny models," she observed. "Now is the time for us to evolve. The trend of having a cookie-cutter mold for models is outdated—just look at how Victoria's Secret has been scrutinized for it. I said, 'I think it's time for us to change and adapt."

"Second is capacity building. I want to inspire and empower them. I want to change the mentality that modeling is all that they can do. They can be both a model and an athlete, a model and an accountant, a model and a lawyer, and so on. I encourage them to have a Plan B because modeling won't be forever. At some point, they will be replaced by someone younger, taller, more beautiful."

As an older sister to the new generation of models, she also wants to protect them from the dangers of trafficking and abuse. "We are somewhat cautious about the modeling offers abroad due to the rise in trafficking incidents. We advise them to thoroughly vet the agencies they choose to work with for their own safety," she says.

Gutierrez is also initiating conversations about trafficking and abuse so that young models feel they can trust someone to support them. "No one wants to come forward because of the stigma and fear of losing job opportunities. So what I'm doing is slowly easing them in. I tell them that I'll provide support if they ever need free legal assistance."

After mentioning all the programs she's busy with, I wonder if she actually has time for leisure activities for her personal happiness and growth. Gutierrez says her bucket list has changed drastically over the years.

"Before, my plan was to travel here and there. Now, my bucket list includes all the programs I've mentioned because I think this is what I want to do for the rest of my life. I'm happy. I've never been this happy in my life," she says, with a twinkle in her eye.