GMA Brandtalk
Tracking
Archives
Solons acknowledge House must start deliberations on divorce
While there’s no guarantee a divorce bill will become law in the 16th Congress, lawmakers agree that the lower chamber should start discussions on the process amid growing public support for its legalization.
House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said results of a Social Weather Stations (SWS) showing majority support for legalizing divorce isn’t an assurance its passage will be fast-tracked.
“The vast majority were also pro-RH [Reproductive Health Law] but it took several Congresses before it got approved in the 15th Congress. So the 60 percent is no indicator,” he said in a text message.
The controversial RH Law was approved in 2012 despite stiff opposition from the Catholic Church in the Philippines.
An SWS poll released earlier in the day revealed that three in five Filipino adults want divorce to be legalized in the Philippines.
No public hearings yet
But for Gabriela party-list Rep. Luz Ilagan, one of the authors of the divorce bill pending in the House, the survey results at the very least indicate time is ripe for Congress to tackle the measure.
“That many Filipinos now openly support the passage of divorce is an indicator that it has come of age,” she said. “It’s really high time to pass the divorce bill. [The results of the SWS survey is an] expression of the need of Filipinos, especially women suffering from domestic violence, to have another option to solve an unhappy marriage.”
House Bill 4408, the divorce bill authored by Ilagan and fellow party-list representative Emmi de Jesus, has been languishing in the House Committee on Population and Family Relations since it was filed in May last year.
According to De Jesus, no public hearing has been called by the committee to discuss the bill.
Even Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga, who is against the legalization of divorce, admitted it is high time for Congress to discuss the measure as more Filipinos favor it.
“I think we have to start deliberations upon the resumption of our session,” he said in a text message.
Wary of anticipated Church backlash
Akbayan party-list Rep. Ibarra Gutierrez III is hopeful the survey results will encourage more of his colleagues to talk about legalizing divorce.
“Many representatives are wary of even simply taking up the question because of the anticipated backlash from the Church and the Roman Catholic majority. But hopefully with these survey results, more of them will be more willing to get the conversation started,” he said.
For his part, Buhay party-list Rep. Lito Atienza said the popular sentiment about divorce should not be taken as a sign it should be legalized.
“Hindi komo’t popular ang isang bagay, ito na ang tama. Congress still has to do its job in passing laws that are right and good for all Filipinos,” he said in a phone interview.
Atienza, a staunch opposer of the RH law, said legalizing divorce would only weaken the Filipino family.
“Divorce in general has negative consequences for the family. I believe our existing laws are enough to address serious problems in a couple’s marriage,” he said.
The Philippines is now the only country in the world that has not yet legalized divorce. In 2011, predominantly Catholic Malta voted to legalize it.
Malacañang said it was up to the public to tell Congress what to do about the issue.
Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. tossed the task of discussing the issue to the public and its representatives in Congress.
