Instead of divorce, Escudero prefers annulment made affordable, accessible

Senator president Francis "Chiz" Escudero on Sunday aired his personal stance on the controversial absolute divorce bill, saying that he would rather have the existing measure on annulment of marriage be strengthened.

Interviewed on Super Radyo dzBB, the newly elected senate president said that discussions about divorce would surely be a cause of contention between the church and the state.

“Ako personally, nasabi ko na, mas nais kong gawin affordable at accessible ang kasalukuyang mga batas natin sa annulment,” Escudero said.

(Personally, I would prefer the existing laws on annulment to be made affordable and accessible.)

At present, the cost of annulment in the Philippines ranges from P180,000 to P600,000 depending on location and individual cases.

“Kesa naman sumabay tayo sa agos ika nga ng mundo, na sinasabi nila na tayo na lang ang isa sa dalawang bansang walang divorce,” he added.

(Instead of us going with the flow of the world,  thatit's been said we’re only one of the remaining two countries without divorce.)

The Philippines and Vatican City are the only countries that have no legal provision for divorce.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved on final reading the proposed measure on absolute divorce, with a total of 131 lawmakers voting in favor of it, 109 voting against it, and 20 abstaining.

The bill’s author and sponsor, Albay 1st district Rep. Edcel Lagman said that he and other advocates would “begin our campaign in the Senate so that its counterpart measure which has long been ripe for plenary deliberation shall similarly be passed.”

Escudero, for his part, said that he will balance the discussion on the matter in the Senate.

“Magandang timbangin dahil halos kalahati ang boto hindi ba, sa kamara. So malay mo, may kalahati ring mambabatas na sasabihin sa amin ‘wag nyong dinggin ‘yan, so babalansehin namin ‘yun,” he said.

(It's good to weigh the matter that because the votes are almost divided equally in the House. Maybe half of the senators will also say that we should not hear this, so we will balance that out.)

Escudero is currently married to actress-model Heart Evangelista. In 2012, he confirmed that his marriage with Christine Elizabeth Flores had been annulled.

He said that the church now recognizes annulment through the Family Code of the Philippines or Executive Order No. 209, s. 1987.

“Si dating Pangulo Corazon Aquino pa na malapit sa simbahan ang nagpasa ng Executive Order…sa pamamagitan ng Family Code, ng annulment na meron tayo ngayon,” he said.

(It was former President Corazon Aquino who was close to the church who passed the Executive Order...through the Family Code, the annulment that we have now.)

“Marahil dapat tignan at pag-aralan, palawakin ‘yun at gawing mas abot kaya ng sinumang Pilipinong nais ang magkaroon ng annulment o mapawalang bisa ang kanilang kasal,” he continued.

(Perhaps we should look and study that, expand it and make it more accessible to any Filipino who wants to have an annulment or have their marriage annulled.)

Specifically, Escudero said he wants the Public Attorney's Office (PAO) to start accepting petitions for annulment so that it would be less costly for the couples involved.

If signed into law, the “Absolute Divorce Act” would allow dysfunctional couples to file a petition through several grounds such as legal separation, annulment of marriage, psychological incapacity, among others.

The bill also provides that physical violence or grossly abusive conduct against the petitioner and homosexuality are also considered grounds for filing of divorce.

It also recognizes the dissolution of marriage by the proper matrimonial tribunal of the Roman Catholic Church or any other recognized religious sectors.—Giselle Ombay/RF, GMA Integrated News