MANILA – The head of the Philippines' House of Representatives on Monday called for laws that would allow the easy dissolution of marriage and the legalization of same-sex unions in the predominantly Catholic country. House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez outlined the bills during the opening of the body's second regular session, urging lawmakers to support it when it is filed. Under current Philippine law, couples are only allowed to either get an annulment, which is a tedious and expensive process, or legal separation, which does not allow them to re-marry. Without a law protecting LGBTs and ensuring they have equal rights, same-sex unions would be "treated as second-hand unions or special and illegitimate unions," Arnaiz said. "Assuming that same-sex unions were to be considered legal, what measures will secure that these couples will not be discriminated against in public and by private institutions, or (keep them) safe from violence from conservatives and religious extremists?"

Source: The China Post July 24, 2017 09:00 UTC