Filipinos were globally ranked the 10th most accepting nation of the LGBTQ+. But as the article went, “acceptance is easier voiced out than lived out.”
The Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression Equality Bill; A battle inside the Malacañang Palace
Equality bill is a piece of legislation which aims to protect members of the LGBTQ+ community from different forms of discrimination enacted against them. While it actually passed in the lower house of Congress in the previous session it was blocked by certain senators in the upper house. These senators were namely Manny Pacquiao, Joel Villanueva, and Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III.
They want to emphasise that LGBTQ are NOT VULNERABLE people. They are highly capable people and many of them even made big names for themselves. So there is no need of any Bill like this.
SOGIE Bill as far as I see it is a “Prelude” to a wider moral degradation of Filipino values and practices.
Open homosexual practice is not a part of Filipino culture and family values. Such practice is a liberal Western Influence. Should we really accept such practice even if it is against our culture and family values?
Homosexuality destroys family values. It is anti-moral, anti-progeny, and anti-traditional family. Even until now, EU and US despite of their laws like SOGIE are still in constant debates to whether or not these laws and promotions are helping the US or is pulling down the US to the bottomless pit of moral degradation.
Do we really need to follow the same path? We are Filipinos, not western.
AFP thumbs down SOGIE bill, says respect for LGBT need not ‘sacrifice rights of majority’
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has rejected the proposed Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression (SOGIE) Equality bill, claiming that respect towards the LGBTQIA+ community may be given “without having to sacrifice the rights of the majority.”
In a position paper submitted to the House committee on women and gender equality, the AFP thumbed down the SOGIE bill, which seeks to prohibit discrimination towards the LGBTQIA+ community.
The AFP said provisions in the proposed measure is only a reiteration of various existing laws.
Moreover, AFP said its policies such as those concerning promotions and disciple “which seeks to provide true equality among individuals are threatened to be violated if SOGIE bill will be pursued” catering to specific individuals.
Several lawmakers, government officials, and religious leaders were invited to deliver their stand on the controversial measure.
The bill was first filed in congress in 2000 by former Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago and former Akbayan party-list Representative Etta Rosales. The bill passed a third reading in the House but stalled in the Senate. Similar measures were filed by other senators in the 15th and 16th congresses without success. The bill was refiled by Defensor-Santiago in every congressional period in the Senate until her last term in 2016. The counterpart bill in the House was also filed continuously by the representatives of Akbayan.
This bill won’t ruin anybody’s conviction. It expect to shield the individuals in the LGBTQ people group from segregation and detest violations. Some people have said that there isn’t really a need for a SOGIE Bill, since there are many members of the LGBTQIA community who are accepted and successful in different industries. But according to Atty. Mendoza, “There are also members who live their lives deprived of basic rights, such as the right to work, the right to education, the right to access to health services, facilities, and establishments, and others, simply because of their sexual orientation and gender identity or expression. Discrimination has been a reality in the lives of LGBTIQAs. While some might not have been discriminated against, or might not have felt stigmatized, it does not negate the lived experiences of others who have.”
The SOGIE Bill also mentions programs to promote non-discrimination and diversity; Social Protection Programs to protect those who are vulnerable to stigma and discrimination on the basis of their SOGIE; and diversity programs and policies. It also mandates all government agencies to develop and implement SOGIE-specific gender sensitivity education and information dissemination.
PROS OF SOGIE BILL
- Wide selection of job opportunities as the LGBT group would not be limited to a certain role just because of their sexual preferences.
- Equality not only for LGBT but for everyone else in the country.
- To be able to provide fairness and equality that for discriminating a person based on their sexual preferences.
- Getting penalized for such actions can prevent other people to commit such behavior towards a person based on their sex orientation.
Medical services for all
All medical institutions, both private and public, are to serve persons in need of medical attention. Under the bill, they are obliged to serve and will be penalized if they deny access to patients based on their SOGIE. The bill will also protect any LGBTQ+ person from being forced or subjected to take any medical psychological examination without approval, unless you’re a minor. This rule also applies to health insurances.
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