Legalizing divorce in the country has more benefits than losses for children of couples in unhappy marriages, argued the author of the divorce bill.
Albay Representative and author of the divorce bill, Edcel Lagman, said that divorce will relieve children of the stress of being exposed to constant fights of their parents who are already out of their marriages.
“Studies would show that it would be better for children to have divorced parents than continue staying in a broken relationship because they are subject to agony and distress,” Lagman told ANC.
Lagman also cited other provisions of the bill, including gender sensitivity, which allows wives to file for divorce even without their husbands’ consent.
Another provision is to ensure that the divorce proceedings are cheap.
Under the bill, the grounds on granting an absolute divorce include:
• The grounds for legal separation and annulment of marriage under the Family Code of the Philippines;
• Separation in fact for at least five years;
• Legal separation by judicial decree for at least two years;
• Psychological incapacity;
• Gender reassignment surgery;
• Irreconcilable differences; and
• Joint petition of spouses
The court will not start the trial six months after the petition for divorce was filed to give opportunities for couples to reconcile.
Moreover, the bill states that cases of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) are given priority on court hearings.
The Philippines and Vatican are the two remaining countries in the world where divorce is not legalized.
