Global Courant 2023-05-31 10:55:00
‘dysfunctional marriages’
The most powerful opponent of divorce in the Philippines is the Catholic Church, which also opposes abortion and contraceptives.
According to official census data, about 78 percent of the country’s 110 million people are Catholics, and many politicians are hesitant to contradict the church on sensitive social issues.
But Congress has won significant victories in recent years.
In 2012, a controversial birth control law was passed, despite strong opposition from the Church.
And in 2018, majority and opposition parties in the House of Representatives passed a divorce bill that later stalled in the Senate. It was the first time such a proposal had come this far.
Surveys conducted by polling agency Social Weather Stations show a shift in Philippine attitudes toward divorce.
In 2005, 43 percent of Filipinos supported legalizing divorce “for irreconcilably divorced couples,” while 45 percent disagreed.
The same survey in 2017 found that 53 percent were in favor, while only 32 percent disagreed.
A group of lawmakers is now leading a new push to legalize divorce, with several bills introduced in the House and Senate.
“We’re not destroying any marriages,” said Edcel Lagman, a congressman and author of one of the bills.
He said divorce was for “irreparably dysfunctional marriages” and that legalizing it would allow women and their children to escape “intolerant and abusive husbands.”
Before being elected, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the country should consider divorce, but insisted it wouldn’t be easy.
Cancellation scam
The cumbersome process of getting a court order to end a marriage has led to online scams that allow for a quick ruling without time-consuming litigation.
AFP fact-checkers found numerous Facebook posts spreading false information about the legal process for nullification to attract customers, underlining a growing global trend of fraudsters taking advantage of disinformation.
A victim told AFP she was charged the equivalent of US$2,400 for an annulment that turned out to be fake.
She is now considering converting to Islam in hopes of getting a divorce under Islamic law.
“I’m really trying every possible option to be single again,” she told AFP on condition of anonymity.
“Annulment takes so long, it’s so expensive and it’s not guaranteed, so I’m looking for an easier way.”
Family law specialist Katrina Legarda said the number of people who fell for bogus services showed there was a “high need” for new legislation.
But Father Jerome Secillano, of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, said the nation should be “proud” to be the only country outside the Vatican to “stick to the traditional concept of marriage.”
“There will always be imperfections in a relationship,” he said.
Father Secillano said divorcing an abusive partner would “perpetuate the violence” because the perpetrator would abuse his next partner.
“You don’t really cure the disease itself,” he said.
