Hontiveros to refile divorce bill

A PHILIPPINE SENATOR on Wednesday said that she will re-file a divorce bill in the 20th Congress if it remains stalled in the Senate during its resumption in June.

“If the continuation of second reading is still not granted, as my colleagues have already interpolated on the Dissolution of Marriage Bill twice, we will simply refile it in the 20th Congress,” Senator Ana Theresia Hontiveros-Baraquel said in a news briefing.

The third and last regular session of the 19th Congress will adjourn sine die on June 13. A new set of Senators are set to take office in July, when the 20th Congress officially begins.

The proposed Dissolution of Marriage Act remains pending on second hearing in the Senate. The Philippines is the only country in the world, besides Vatican City, that bars divorce, which outlawed it almost a century ago.

Ms. Hontiveros added that she will also push for the passage of the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression (SOGIE) Equality bill and the Teen Pregnancy Prevention bill once the new Congress convenes.

“I hope that the 20th Congress will finally be the Congress to pass the SOGIE equality bill into law, as well as the Teenage Pregnancy Prevention bill because it remains a national and social emergency,” she said.

Last year, the President vetoed Senate Bill 1979, the proposed Prevention of Adolescent Pregnancy Act, after lobbying from conservative groups.

The SOGIE equality bill seeks to prevent discrimination and violence based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. It likewise remains stalled in the Senate. — Adrian H. Halili