Biography
Amina Rasul-Bernardo is the Lead Convenor of the Philippine Council for Islam and Democracy. The PCID is currently assisting the ulama of the Philippines to organize a national network. PCID is also one of the prime movers of the South East Asian Forum for Islam and Democracy, a network of Muslim advocates for democracy and peace. She is a founding member of the Women in International Security-Philippines and the Muslim Women Peace Advocates-Sulu.
A columnist, she initiated and was editor of The Moro Times, a monthly supplement of The Manila Times. This was the first publication of a major newspaper that provides regular and comprehensive coverage of Muslim issues. Her other publications include: “The Road to Peace and Reconciliation: Muslim Perspectives on the Mindanao Conflict”, published by the Asian Institute of Management in 2002; “Broken Peace? An Assessment of the 1996 GRP-MNLF Final Peace Agreement”, published by the Magbassa Kita Foundation Inc. She has edited several books including “Islamic Peace Education Manual”.
In recognition of her work, she was awarded “Muslim Democrat of the Year 2007” by the Center for Study of Islam and Democracy (CSID) on April 27 in Washington, D. C.
Ms. Rasul-Bernardo is a Fellow of the Strategic Studies Group of the National Defense College of the Philippines, a Senior Research Fellow with the Asian Institute of Management Policy Center and Managing Trustee of the Magbassa Kita Foundation Inc.
She was a Senior Fellow of the United States Institute for Peace in Washington DC (2001-2002). She was a Visiting Professor at the Pontifical University of Santo Tomas, Manila. She has served as a resource person for CNN, Al-jazeera, C-Span, Philippine media and has lectured at many international conferences.
She was a member of the Philippine Cabinet under former President Fidel V. Ramos, as Presidential Advisor on Youth Affairs, appointed concurrently as the first Chair of the National Youth Commission. She was a Commissioner of the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women representing Muslims from 1990 to 1998. She was a member of the Board of Directors of the Philippine National Oil Corporation, the Development Bank of the Philippines, and a Founding Director of the Local Government Guarantee Corporation.
She earned a master's degree in business management from the Asian Institute of Management in the Philippines and a Master of Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She is a Mason Fellow.
(04.2009)