No govt position on divorce yet - Palace exec

Amid the renewed interest on the possible introduction of divorce in the country, President Benigno Aquino III has yet to discuss the issue with his Cabinet, a Malacañang official said Tuesday. At a press briefing Tuesday, presidential deputy spokesperson Abigail Valte said Malacañang has no official position yet on divorce, but assured that stakeholders will be consulted first before coming up with a decision. "As of the moment, we don’t have position on that yet. Hindi pa po namin napag-uusapan with President Aquino," she said. "In general, we always consider iyong opinion ng mga stakeholder kasi alam naman natin na consensus building ang style ni Pangulong Aquino," she added. The Philippines is now the only country in the world without divorce after Malta, in a referendum, approved the introduction of divorce over the weekend.

House hearing On Wednesday, the House committee on revision of laws will start deliberations on House Bill 1799, which seeks to introduce divorce in the country. Under HB 1799, couples who have been legally separated for two years can already file a petition for divorce. The measure lists psychological incapacity, irreconcilable differences and failure to comply with marital obligations as grounds for filing a divorce petition. Already, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. has expressed support for the passage of the bill. But early as last year, President Aquino had expressed opposition to divorce when a bill seeking to legalize divorce was filed by Gabriela party-list Representatives Luz Ilagan and Emmi de Jesus. Back then, Aquino said he cannot support moves to legalize divorce, but for unions that are ‘irreparable,’ he said they can always go for legal separation. He believed legally separated couples should be allowed to remarry. Under the Family Code, legally separated couples "shall be entitled to live separately from each other, but the marriage bonds shall not be severed," thereby making them ineligible to remarry. Collision with Church? Asked if the Palace’s refusal to comment on the issue was because it does not want to collide with the Church, Valte said Malacañang is just being prudent because they have yet to discuss the issue. "It’s not [that] we’re being cautious because we don’t want to collide with the Church, it's a rule of thumb for us na kapag may naitatanong na hindi pa talaga nadi-discuss with the President, we will tell you outright," she said. — RSJ, GMA News