2 days ago
SolGen hopes Congress will pass legislation on divorce
Solicitor General Darlene Berberabe on Tuesday said it may be an opportune time to revisit the Family Code as she expressed hope that Congress will pass on a legislation on divorce during the oral arguments on foreign divorce.
'I hope also that our Congress would be on the way to pass a legislation on divorce. As we have heard a while ago, it is only the Vatican and our country which do not have divorce,' Berberabe said.
'And if we follow legal realism as a philosophy, we should be acknowledging that the times have changed. And perhaps the time is now opportune to revisit the premises of the Family Code and the intent that is expressed by the Committee on Civil Code and the Family Code,' she added.
During the interpellation of Supreme Court (SC) Associate Justice Samuel Gaerlan, Berderabe said she believes that this is the responsibility of Congress.
Gaerlan questioned Berberabe if it is problematic that only one sector or religious group has a statutory enactment relative to divorce, referring to the Shari'ah Law.
Following this, Gaerlan asked the solicitor general about the reason behind the prohibition regarding absolute divorce in the country.
Berberabe said that there is no express statutory prohibition but that laws do not provide a mechanism to avail of absolute divorce.
'But policies can be changed within the changing of times,' Gaerlan said.
This was affirmed by Berberabe.
'As I mentioned on the legal realism, society evolves. There have been so many changes in the last decade and the laws should also evolve,' she said.
'And that is why we believe that it is high time for Congress to really open the debate and the discourse on this topic in order to adapt or to adopt laws that will reflect the changes,' Berberabe added.
Guam
Meanwhile, Amicus Curiae Atty. Ma Carolina Legarda raised that some Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) have sought divorce from their spouses in Guam as there is only a seven-day residence requirement before one can file.
'Seven days. So many Filipinos who are our OFWs who are there [are] doing that, your honor. And they come back to this country having obtained a divorce in Guam,' she said.
'The only requirement there is that the Filipino spouse here has to sign an agreement that they are not objecting to the separation of property and the custody and support of the children,' she added.
Legarda said the Guam court may then issue a divorce within two months.
According to Legarda, this is happening due to the lack of a law on divorce in the Philippines.
'I think perhaps it is time for the court to interpret Article 26, Paragraph 2 as including a mechanism in which to protect the Filipino here and abroad,' she said.
Atty. Maria Liza Lopez-Rosario, another Amicus Curiae, meanwhile called on Congress to look into Dual Citizenship, saying that some rights in the Philippines may be different from those abroad.
'I think it's proper that legislators should also take a look, a second look, on this Dual Citizenship Act because they might be abused by some Filipinos,' she said.
The SC set the next oral arguments on October 21, 2025.
According to the SC, the case involves a Filipino national with a dual citizenship who obtained a foreign divorce. While abroad, she acquired foreign citizenship through naturalization, and thereafter reacquired Philippine citizenship. — RF, GMA Integrated News
