Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

Persons deprived of liberty under the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology - Santa Rosa enter into marriage in a mass wedding in Santa Rosa, Laguna on January 24, 2024. According to the BJMP Santa Rosa, th mass wedding aims to show the public that positive events can still happen even within confinement Mark Demayo ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

Mass Wedding for BJMP Sta Rosa Inmates

Job Manahan

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/177848320956920240124-pdl-mass-wedding-bjmp-MD-27.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Persons deprived of liberty under the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology - Santa Rosa enter into marriage in a mass wedding in Santa Rosa, Laguna on January 24, 2024. According to the BJMP Santa Rosa, the mass wedding aims to show the public that positive events can still happen even within confinement. <em>Mark Demayo ABS-CBN News/File</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — A group on Monday renewed its call for Congress to pass a divorce law, saying while it made significant strides in the past, there were also challenges that led to its “standstill.”</p><p>&quot;Divorce for the Philippines Now&quot; founder Cici Leuenberger Jueco described their lobbying efforts for the unified divorce law as “challenging” in the last 12 years, noting that it reached the final reading at the House of Representatives in the 19th Congress.</p><p>When this was transmitted to the Senate, however, Jueco said it was  not calendared for plenary discussion.</p><p>“Pinag-aawayan nila ang word na divorce ba o dissolution ang gagamitin. Whether the final language of the bill refers to dissolution of marriage or absolute divorce, we affirm the name is negotiable, that justice is not,” said Jueco during the House Committee on Population and Family Relations hearing.</p><p>“What matters is 20th Congress delivers what decades of survivors, women’s rights advocates... and legal reformers have demanded – a law that ends forced entrapment and abusive loveless or dead marriages,” she added.</p><p>She said divorce advocates are open in using the term dissolution of marriage or divorce, as long as the law would protect survivors and other women who were victims of abuse and neglect during the course of their marriage.</p><p>“This is not about destroying families, it is about freeing those already destroyed by violence, abandonment, and irreconcilable harm... Our call to all the legislators, we urge our lawmakers, do not let semantics stall justice, do not let another congress pass without delivering this long-overdue reform,” she said. </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>‘ATTITUDE ON MARRIAGE’</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Rep. Bienvenido &quot;Benny&quot; Abante Jr. said while he is not against the passage of divorce bill, this should replace the annulment process.</p><p>“I don&#x27;t have any problem with the divorce bill. Wala akong problema dun. Ang problema ko, we have more laws that destroy marriages than laws that protect them,” Abante said.</p><p>“For example, mayroon tayong nullity of marriage, mayroon tayong legal separation, ano ang batas na nagawa natin to protect marriages,” he said.</p><p>“Ito ang gawin natin: Tanggalin natin ang annulment, ipalit ang divorce. Pero kung hahayaan natin madagdagan pa ang divorce bill, mayroon tayong annulment, makikipag-debate ako dito,” he added.</p><p>Abante told the committee that married couples should look at their attitude when it comes to this.  </p><p>“Alam ko mayroong marriages na dapat talaga nating i-dissolve because of some bad attitude of people pero kinakailangan din malaman ng bawat isa na nagsimula ito sa kasalanan, kasalanan ng tao. Huwag natin i-blame ang gobyerno dito. Ang simula niyan kasalanan,” he said.</p><p>“The thing is this, I am more agreeable that we counsel with marriages that seemed to be broken than try to make laws that break marriages,” he added.</p><p>Gabriela party-list Rep. Sarah Elago said their proposed measure on divorce sought to provide an additional option to opt out of a toxic relationship, and that this would be optional.</p><p>The measure, Elago said, wants to also provide accessibility and affordability that current processes do not have.</p><p>Elago said the measure would also provide community-based programs to be spearheaded by the DSWD.</p><p>“Ang pakay ng panukalang batas na ito ay hindi para pahinain ang institution ng kasal bagkus, nagbibigay ito ng makataong solusyon kapag ang kasal, kapag ang marriage ay nakakasama na at hindi na maaayos pa,” she said.</p><p>“There is free legal service for petitioners with limited finances and there is also a cap on attorneys’ fees. Depending on the ground of divorce, a summary judicial proceeding can be availed of while recognition of foreign divorce or religious degree of divorce can be done with administrative proceedings,” she added.</p><p>The committee said they would provide another date for the hearing and would create a technical working group to sort out the differences of the proposed measures on divorce. </p><div><strong><br/></strong></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/szW9FwwOiaE?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong><br/></div>

<p>Advocates said they are open in using the term 'dissolution of marriage' or divorce, as long as the law would protect survivors of abuse and neglect during the course of their marriage.</p>

Advocates said they are open in using the term 'dissolution of marriage' or divorce, as long as the law would protect survivors of abuse and neglect during the course of their marriage.

Group reiterates call for divorce law to end 'abusive loveless marriages'

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Group reiterates call for divorce law to end 'abusive loveless marriages'

Job Manahan,

ABS-CBN News

Published May 11, 2026 03:08 PM PHT

Read More:

Divorce Law

Absolute Divorce Law

dissolution

marriage dissolution

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