Against broken homes

If we consider the latest survey of the Social Weather Stations (SWS), the initiative at the 17th Congress to legalize divorce in the Philippines might finally see the light of day. That is, if the survey indeed reflects the modern-day sentiments of the greater number of Filipinos.

To the survey question, “How important would you say is religion in your life?” Of the total respondents, 75 percent answered very important; nine percent said somewhat important; three percent answered not very important; and, 13 percent said not at all important.

The latest survey result was, however, seven points below the 82 percent recorded in December 2016. It was during this period when the controversial divorce bill was filed during the first regular sessions of Congress.

The SWS opinion polls were done from December 8 to 16 last year, using face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults, 18 years old and above, nationwide.

According to the results of these SWS opinion polls, those who say religion is very important was highest among Muslims at 94 percent; Catholics (75 percent); “Other Christians,” (70 percent); and, members of Iglesia Ni Cristo 70 percent (INC). SWS defined “Other Christians” as those other than Catholics and INC.

For a country with a population of more than 105 million as of 2017, official approximation places 80 percent of Filipinos are Catholics. Of this total, 11 percent are Muslims and about 8 percent are “other Christians.”

A separate opinion survey conducted by Catholic Church-run Radio Veritas found out more Filipinos now favor legalization of divorce. The Radio Veritas survey indicated 39 percent of the 1,200 respondents strongly agree with the proposed measure in Congress, while only 35 percent strongly disagreed. Thirteen percent of those surveyed answered they somewhat agree while another 13 percent replied they somewhat disagree.

The survey, dubbed “Veritas Truth Survey (VTS),” was conducted from December 2017 until last January. The VTS showed more women support the divorce bill in Congress than men. Of the female respondents, 43 percent said they strongly agree with the legalization versus 35 percent who said they strongly disagree.

On the other hand, 34 percent of the male respondents, strongly agreed while 35 percent strongly disagreed with the proposed divorce law. The survey also revealed younger people support the divorce bill, with 43 percent of those who voted for “strongly agree” were aged 20 years or lower, while only 19 percent were elderly or those aged at least 61 years.

In terms of income classification, the VTS survey showed 46 percent from the higher economic bracket (Class A) favor the divorce bill. This is higher when compared to the 31 percent who come from the lower income bracket (Class E).

Thus, these latest surveys could be a reliable barometer to guide our lawmakers on the prevailing thoughts and opinions of present-day Filipinos on legalizing divorce in our country.

Before both chambers of Congress adjourned for their recess that started since the Lenten week, the House of Representatives approved on third and final reading House Bill (HB) 7303, or “An Act Instituting Absolute Divorce and Dissolution of Marriage in the Philippines.” In a vote of 134-57, the lower chamber practically ignored protestations by the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and other pro-marriage groups.

No less than the seat of Catholicism – Spain, which propagated the faith in the Philippines and Italy, where the Vatican is located – have their own divorce laws that “do not make them any less Catholic,” one of the main authors of the divorce bill argued.

Voting 202-3, the Lower House has also approved on third and final reading a bill that recognizes, and enforces as well, a foreign decree granting divorce to a foreigner – eventually allowing a Filipino spouse to remarry. House Bill 7185, which seeks to amend the Family Code of the Philippines under Executive Order (EO) 209, proposed to recognize the foreign decree of termination of marriage and allows its subsequent registration with the Philippine Civil Registry.

Like any other bill, legislative procedures require these House-approved “divorce” measures to go through the Senate for approval.

The Senate, however, have a less controversial version of the “divorce” bill, one of which merely seeks to amend certain provisions of the Family Code on annulment of marriage. In particular, the Senators wanted to remove the Office of the Solicitor General as a third party in annulment cases as presently required under the Family Code.

Senate majority leader Vicente Sotto III who does not exactly favor divorce noted an amendment of this Family Code provision could be a compromise version. Sotto cited in particular this provision that requires the SolGen to intervene in annulment cases has been unnecessarily giving burden of caseloads to this agency of government that should attend to more pressing public cases than failed marriages which are private matters between husbands and wives.

During the conference of bishops held last month, they issued a pastoral statement signed by CBCP president Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles which warned that the divorce bill – if passed into law by the 17th Congress – would destroy Filipino families as it would provide a convenient avenue to end marriages, including those that might not be beyond saving.

This is why, the CBCP cited, they have provisions for both canonical and civil annulments, which are not exactly the equivalent of divorce.

If both chambers of Congress approve the same version of the divorce bill, President Rodrigo Duterte, however, might veto it. During the March 2016 presidential debates, the former Davao City Mayor vowed to oppose any divorce law “for the sake of the children.” The first marriage of the 73-year-old President to Elizabeth Zimmerman, with whom he has three children, has been annulled.

President Duterte makes no bones in citing himself as example for men not to have more than one family, or suffer the consequences of broken home.