News

MANILA, October 7, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) – In the wake of the passage of the Philippine’s highly controversial “Reproductive Health Bill,” a neophyte politician in the House of Representatives has proposed three different bills promoting a socially liberal view of sexually.

The latest bill, introduced by Rep. Marisol Castillo (Sol) Aragones this week, seeks to create a “lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) desk in every police station to ensure that victims of hate or sexually oriented crimes will have a place to go to for assistance.”

House Bill 2571 seeks to amend Republic Act 8551, the Philippine National Police Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998, by adding the LGBT specific desks in all police stations.

Image

Republic Act 8551 had created women's desks in all police stations throughout the country to administer and attend to cases involving crimes against chastity, sexual harassment, abuses committed against women and children, and other similar offenses. The women's desks are staffed by female police officers.

Aragones, a TV news personality turned politician who was elected in May, said she introduced the bill because of reports that people belonging to the LGBT community are victims of sexually oriented crimes. 

“These reports highlight the very real and pressing problem confronting the LGBT community in the Philippines,” Aragones said, adding, “There can be no true and meaningful democracy if we continue to systematically oppress the LGBT sector.” 

Aragones' Bill 2571 follows on the heels of a homosexual anti-discrimination bill (House Bill 342) she introduced in July. The bill calls for penalties that include imprisonment of between 1 month and one year and fines of not less that P10,000 (about $240 Canadian) for anyone found guilty of any of the discriminatory practices enumerated. 

Click “like” if you support TRADITIONAL marriage.

On the same day that she submitted Bill 342, Aragones also introduced a bill promoting “health education” as a means of reducing teen pregnancies. 

Aragones' “Teen Pregnancy Prevention, Responsibility and Opportunity Act” (House Bill 337) proposes to provide “age-appropriate … information on pregnancy prevention … suitable to particular ages or age groups of children and adolescents … comprising information that leading professional organizations and agencies with relevant expertise in the field recognize as accurate, objective, and complete.” 

The bill couches the call for sex education within a broader approach of “after school programs” that promote sports, positive role models and good decision-making skills, and calls for grants to be given to local agencies and non-profits “for the purpose of carrying out projects to provide education on preventing teen pregnancies.” 

On December 17, 2012, the Philippines House of Representatives and the Senate passed the controversial Reproductive Health (RH) bill, which called for government-funded contraception and sex education classes. Its passage came after a contentious 14-year battle that pitted pro-life Filipinos against internationally funded population control organizations, including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). 

However, in July the Philippines Supreme Court voted 8-7 to suspend implementation of the Reproductive Health (RH) Law “until further orders” from the Court. 

The Constitution of the Philippines provides that, “The State recognizes the sanctity of family life and shall protect and strengthen the family as a basic autonomous social institution. It shall equally protect the life of the mother and the life of the unborn from conception.” 

LifeSiteNews.com's extensive coverage of the Philippines battle over the Reproductive Health Bill is available here


Contact info:

Hon. Sol Aragones
District Representative, Laguna, 3rd District
House of Representatives, Quezon City
Rm. S-403
Phone: (632) 931-5001; local 7244, 9316205
Email via website: https://www.congress.gov.ph/members/search.php?id=aragones-m#