The Legalization of Divorce in the Philippines
INTRODUCTION OF PRO-DIVORCE LAW
DIVORCE:
What is…..
Divorce (or the dissolution of marriage) is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties.
FACTS….
The term Divorce is understandably termed same as separation, slip-up, and break-up after having conflict on things between couples. The two main persons involved here are the husband and the wife who took the vows of marriage, the end-product to take more of the consequences is the off springs.
Almost 100% of countries all over around the globe recognize divorce leaving the Philippines and the Vatican City which are the only countries that do not recognize it. It’s sheer stupidity. There is divorce in Italy where the Vatican is. It’s the last stronghold of the Catholic Church to control people's lives.
The Philippines should change the law to allow divorce, the fact that there is already de facto divorce in the country. There are actually two ways that “divorce” is already going on in the Philippines. Firstly, and the most common, is that couples simply separate, and each person goes on to live with other partners. Secondly, annulment is widely used, although it is very difficult, expensive and time consuming to obtain. Now, mind you, I am not talking about an annulment through the Church, I am talking about an annulment through the court system of the Philippine Government.
According to the Social Weather Station (SWS), which is the major polling company in the Philippines (similar to Gallup in the USA), the Philippine public is moving in the direction of supporting divorce in the country. In 2005, SWS did polling to determine the feelings of Filipinos on the issue of divorce. At that time, 44% of those questions were anti-divorce. 43% were in favor of divorce, with the balance undecided on the issue. In recent polling by the SWS, conducted last March 4-7, 2011, 50% of adult Filipinos agree and 33% disagree, a majority of Filipinos in all regions of the country are now in favor of enacting divorce laws. One interesting point is that the upper classes of Filipino Society are still anti-divorce. Why do you think that would be? Well, it is obviously because annulments are expensive, but the upper classes can afford annulments, and thus are already happy with the option in place.
Our country allows the process of Annulment by which a couple will have to pay much for their separation. Whatever it takes, Annulment and Divorce are just the same – it targets separation.
Life is a matter of good and bad instances – sometimes we win, sometimes we lose. Life is just like a game, same as to marriage. It’s just like a game. If we know how to play fair and just, then whatever it takes, we will accept the consequences by all means. No matter how Filipinos consider marriage a sacred one, still some lose and give up that end up in separation. Knowing then that many couples end this way and cannot afford to pay much in annulment fees, there’s really a need to legalize Divorce which is really a great urge by many. It’s only the government that claims that Filipino family relations are strong, but why is it many families are broken?
There are possible cases that miserable marriage could lead to:
1. Concubinage (a husband lives with his mistress)
2. Bigamy (the act of entering into a marriage with one person while still legally married to another)
3. Adultery (voluntary sexual intercourse between a married man and someone other than his wife or between a married woman and someone other than her husband)
4. Sexual assault
5. It may lead also to worst cases like, murder and the likes.
With these, I stand that Divorce must be legalized in our country. Yet the consequence must be faced up strongly by both the man and the woman.
CONCLUSION…
Divorce can possibly be legalized once our president gives the go signal for a hearing; but it is highly recommended to put a limitation which means it can only be used once or twice; thus it cannot be applied the third time that a partner or the couple would wish for it. Anyway, let's just wait for the right time that it will be tackled by the senate; because what we understand as of the moment about divorce is limited; we are only basing on others' failed marriages that urge for the need. For sure, relevant facts and surveys will then come out that will strengthen our ground in promoting it. We all know that keeping the sanctity of marriage is our moral obligation; but we should also bear in mind that our moral obligation on all aspects (not just in marriage)is sometimes being challenged by some inevitable impediments; thus, laws of man would interfere that can be used by humanity without doubt on legality. Remember, we can be moral on a lot of things; and at the same time we tend to be immoral on some other things. But what God wants from us is to keep the faith in HIM even though we are sinners; we follow His commandments yes; but we should not feel guilty if we are pro-Divorce; what about the mistakes/sins that we keep on doing?
Why would you still commit to your vows when you can't take it anymore??? Move on....legalization will help you step your feet.. For starters it’s difficult but finding yourself butchered means you have to do something... for martyrdom is a psychological disorder...
So, for this panel, we believe that divorce should be legalized in the Philippines. Couples are separating already, or getting annulments when possible. The fact is that the annulment process has become de facto divorce anyway, but it is very difficult for the poor to obtain annulments due to the high price of doing so. So, because of that, I just think that divorce is a practical thing that should happen in the Philippines.
INTRODUCTION OF ANTI-DIVORCE LAW
DIVORCE:
What is…..
Divorce (or the dissolution of marriage) is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties (unlike annulment which declares the marriage null and void).
FACTS….
The term Divorce is understandably termed same as separation, slip-up, and break-up after having conflict on things between couples. The two main persons involved here are the husband and the wife who took the vows of marriage, the end-product to take more of the consequences is the off springs.Why I am Against DivorceIt is not what God wants. Nothing in the Bible will tell you that God favored and felt better for divorce. It was only allowed due to the hardheadedness of men. God did not make man and woman to be united and then separated if they got into some problems.If you fear the Lord and his commands, there is no way that you will agree on divorce. This is not what God wants. As simple as it is. Even if some pastor and theologians quantify it as a “necessary amputation”, I would say that divorce is divorce, and God hates it. It was only men who want it, not God.It is not the answer to the growing violence against women and children. Most divorce advocates gives emphasis on the growing children and women abuse. But I really do not see it as a solution for these problems. In fact it extends to the growing problem of immorality and sexually related diseases and problems such as unwanted pregnancies and sexually related diseases. And I believe that you will agree with me that these problems are a threat to women, children and even family. But why? Simply because people were given the so-called choice and chance to change while the fact is, it is where the so-called “rights” is abused. It is where many people make use of the right and abuse it for their own self-centered selfish quest for happiness and will only bring them to the same situation again and again and again. That’s why you will see people divorced not just once, nor twice, but multiple times.It gives a wider path to domestic problems. As I mentioned earlier this right has proven to be easily abused. And we are not actually giving people a solution to their problems, but a chance to repeat the same mistakes. Divorce is like a medicine… but an unrecommended one.For example, there is an abusive husband who has been divorced by his wife. This husband will then just look for another woman to abuse. While the woman if she’s the one having some problems, she will just look for another guy and if things will not get well, all she has to do is to apply again for divorce. Ridiculous isn’t it? It is just a picture of FREEDOM TO TRY MARRIAGE.It gives a wider path for immorality and marital infidelity. Immorality, I guess this is not so much “in” nowadays. It’s something that most people don’t want to talk about except those that are of the religious sectors and religious people. I hate to say this but the Philippines have a steep moral degradation and that is why most of these divorce proponents put forward a SILLY SOLUTION for various problems.Did we not learn from the US? Did the stats of violence against women and children dropped by the use of divorce law? We talk much about the positive things that we can get from the divorce law, while the negative effects far outweighs the positive.Here’s the summary of the advantages of divorce:Spouses will have a “second chance” for a happier life.Spouses will have a “second chance” for a non-violent life.…. “second chance”…. “second chance”…. “second chance”to be happy…to be happy…to be happy….My goodness… is there any solid advantages of divorce bill than being self-centered and selfish reasons??? What about your family??? What about your children??? That’s what family is for… Divorce is not only anti-Filipino, but is anti-Family and anti-marriages. It simply opens a wide range of disadvantages over the family.But here’s the list of what they are not talking about:1. One out of every two marriages ends in divorce.2. In 1991, only 50.8% of American children were living with a mother and a father. The numbers have worsened since that study.3. Approximately 4% of American children are living only with their father.4. The vast majority of children who are raised in a two-parent home will never be poor during childhood. By contrast, the vast majority of children who spend time in a single-parent home will experience poverty.5. Children from female-headed homes are five times as likely to be poor as children in two-parent families.6. Four times as many divorced women with children fell under the poverty line than married women with children.7. Children from disrupted marriages experience greater risk of injury, asthma, headaches, and speech defects than children from intact families.8. Suicide rates for children of divorce are measurably higher than for children from intact families.Read more about the Side Effects of Divorce and see that there are more side effects than that of a solution.CONCLUSION…
So what’s The Real Answer?
Fear of God and teach Morality… Morality… and Morality…. If we have the fear of God and we understand what morality means, then we understand the real answer to the growing problems related to violence against women and children.
Divorce is definitely NOT a TRUE medicine nor a solution to the growing domestic problems. I see it just like illegal drugs which may have a little benefit of easing the pain of the patient. But in most cases, it is an addictive medicine that can kill and destroy life and relationships.
And finally, let me state this as Filipino as possible:
HWAG PO TAYO MAGING “GAYA-GAYA SA IBANG BANSA”. Nag-approve lang ang Malta na magkaroon sila ng divorce, tayo gusto na rin natin. Wala na bang maisip na batas ang mga Congressman and Congresswomen natin kundi mga gaya-gaya na batas?
It is NOT TRUE that you will be happy with second chance. It is NOT TRUE that you will gain your happiness back when your marriage fail and divorce is the solution. The only solution for marital problems is to adhere what the word of God says…. “Wives, submit to your husbands. Husbands, love your wife as you love yourselves…” (Ephesians 5:22-33). This is where you gain happiness and fullness of marital life and your family.
