House panel OKs bill vs. gender discrimination

A bill prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity has hurdled the committee level at the House of Representatives.

 

With a 10-2 vote, the House committee on women and gender equality approved the substitute bill to the proposed Anti-Discrimination Law authored by Dinagat Islands Rep. Kaka Bag-ao.

 

Among the discriminatory practices prohibited under the measure include bias against employees, refusal to admit a person in an institution, denial of access to health services and harassment by law enforcers, all due to sexual orientation and gender identity.

 

Following the Anti-Discrimination Bill’s approval at the committee level, Bag-ao clarified that it does not seek to promote gay marriage, as some of its staunchest critics claimed.

 

"This important and long overdue measure simply seeks to protect basic rights of citizens. It does not ask for special rights,” she said in a statement. “They (critics) must read and understand the bill carefully. Nothing in the bill grants recognition to same-sex marriage.

 

During the committee deliberations, some lawmakers were concerned the measure will open doors to the legalization of same-sex marriage.

 

In particular, they raised alarm about Section 4(e) of the bill, which states includes among the prohibited acts of discrimination those that "deny an application for or revoke a professional or other kind of license, clearance certification or any other document issued by the government due to the applicant's sexual orientation or gender identity.”

 

Different fight

 

Akbayan party-list Rep. Ibarra Gutierrez III, a lawyer, also said the measure does not aim to legalize same-sex marriage. 

 

“There were concerns that this provision would open doors for members of the LGBT community to a same-sex union. To clarify, the provision solely prevents government agencies from denying individuals to secure ordinary licenses such as driver's license and other certifications, based on SOGI (sexual orientation and gender identity),” he said.

 

Gutierrez said legalizing same-sex marriage is a “different fight altogether” that will go beyond the Anti-Discrimination bill and the Family Code of the Philippines.

 

The Family Code, otherwise known as Executive Code 209, defines marriage as a "special contract of permanent union between a man and a woman.”

 

For her part, Bag-ao expressed confidence that public support for the bill will grow stronger over the coming weeks, citing a recently released Social Weather Stations survey showing 85 percent of adult Filipinos believe gays and lesbians have the right to protection against discrimination. 

 

"Our adamant desire for the enactment of the Anti-Discrimination Bill comes from our resolve to heed the clamor of the Filipino people. The debate has long been over," she said.

 

The bill was first filed in the 11th Congress by then Akbayan Party-List Representative and now Commission on Human Rights Chairperson Loretta Ann Rosales. Since then, it has been refiled and shelved by the legislature until its approval at the House’s committee level in the 16th Congress. — ELR, GMA News