HOUSE PASSES DIVORCE BILL
In a historic move that defied the Catholic Church in the Philippines, the House of Representatives passed its divorce bill, which could face rough sailing in the Senate and resistance from Malacañang.
The House voted 134-57, with two abstentions, to approve House Bill No. 7303 on third and final reading on Monday night.
Only the Philippines and Vatican City have no divorce.
In the Philippines, legal separation and annulment are the only means allowed by law for a couple to break up their union.
Legal separation only allows a man and his wife to live separately but not to remarry. An annulment is granted on grounds that a marriage was void from the start, but it could not be invoked for problems that arise during marriage. It allows the couple to remarry.
Reasons for divorce
The proposed law would allow divorce in cases of irreconcilable marital differences, psychological incapacity, separation of at least five years or gender reassignment.
Divorce may also be granted on the same grounds as legal separation: violence, prostitution, imprisonment of more than six years, addiction to drugs, alcohol or gambling, homosexuality, infidelity, bearing a child with another person, or abandonment.
A joint petition for divorce should be accompanied by the couple’s plan to provide support and care for their children.
The bill requires a sixmonth cooling-off period—except in cases of violence or abandonment—to give time for a couple to reconcile.
The stiffest opposition to the bill is expected to come from the Catholic Church, whose congressional allies had blocked divorce for decades.
Bishops’ reactions
Bacolod Bishop Patricio Buzon said the passage of the bill was “shameful and a betrayal of our families and family values.”
San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza, national chaplain of the Christian Family Movement (CFM), said the CFM was steadfast on its opposition to divorce although it favored annulments under the Family Code.
“This is consistent with our Catholic faith,” Alminaza said.
When he was campaigning for the country’s top government post two years ago, President Duterte, whose marriage had been annulled, said he was opposed to divorce.
On Monday, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque repeated the President’s opposition, saying children “would become piteous” and spouses would be neglected and lose their right to file cases against each other.
Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez said it was good that the President had expressed concern for children but added that this matter “has long been discussed and resolved” during the committee deliberations.
Opponents of the bill in the House claimed that divorce would plunge wives into poverty or harm their children. They also cited the Constitution’s declaration that marriage was an “inviolable social institution.”
Senate action
There is no counterpart bill in the Senate, but there are several proposed amendments to the grounds for annulment, according to Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III.
Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III, whose marriage also had been annulled, doubted senators would approve divorce “as we know it in America.”
As a Christian, Sen. Manny Pacquiao said he was against divorce.
“What God joined together, let no one separate,” he told reporters.
Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma was disappointed in the House and hoped the Senate would reject the bill.
“We pray that they (legislators) will be enlightened,” he said. “I’m sure they won’t be happy if future generations will blame them for a legacy that does not bring about the good of the community, but rather it’s destruction.”