House approves Divorce bill on final reading

By Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio

THE HOUSE of Representatives on Wednesday approved on third and final reading House Bill (HB) No. 9349, a measure seeking to reinstitute divorce as another mode for terminating marriage.

In a 126-109-20 vote, congressmen agreed to reinstate absolute divorce as a resolution for dysfunctional marriages after it was outlawed almost a century ago.

“With the passage of House Bill No. 9349, Gabriela Women’s Party looks forward to a future where all Filipinos have the legal means to escape harmful marriages and rebuild their lives,” Party-list Rep. Arlene D. Brosas said in a statement.

The Philippines is the only country in the world besides the Vatican City prohibiting divorce.

“Divorce is widely recognized as a legal method to dissolve a marriage, yet the Philippines stands alone in not having a divorce law,” Ms. Brosas said in plenary, explaining her affirmative vote for the measure.

Proponents of the divorce bill said the measure would provide legal recourse for married couples in an “irreparably broken or dysfunctional marriage,” HB No. 9349’s fact sheet reads.

Grounds for absolute divorce include psychological incapacity, marital abuse, and irreconcilable differences, among others.

“It is for those who have just and valid causes to be adjudicated by the proper court. It is only an alternative remedy and will not apply to the overwhelming majority of Filipino married couples who have enduring and loving marriages,” Albay Rep. Edcel C. Lagman, Sr. said in a statement.

Those petitioning for divorce will undergo a court process to establish the grounds for absolute dissolution of marriage, determining whether the union between married couples can no longer be reconciled.

Voicing dissent, party-list Rep. Eduardo C. Villanueva said that annulment and legal separation suffice as means of declaring a marriage as invalid.

“We should have realized that annulment and legal separation exist to remedy problematic marriages without rebelling against God,” he said in a statement.

For his part, Leyte Rep. Richard Frank I. Gomez said: “Saying yes to divorce would diminish the extent and seriousness of the commitment to make a marriage decision.”