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Philippines not yet ready for same-sex marriage: Government
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said that same-sex marriage may still be “too revolutionary” for the Philippines.
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Illustrative photo of a same-sex marriage ceremony. (Shutterstock/File)
M
alacañang presidential palace on Thursday said the Philippines is not yet ready for same-sex marriage even as the Supreme Court has already begun holding oral arguments for a petition to legalize it in the country.
In a Palace briefing, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said, “There is a right time for these kind of issues. I believe that the Supreme Court and the country are not yet ready for same sex marriage.”
Roque commented that same-sex marriage may still be “too revolutionary” for the Philippines.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court started holding oral arguments over a bid to legalize same-sex marriage in the Philippines.
On Wednesday, the New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) expressed hope that the Supreme Court would favor legalizing same-sex marriage.
The group said granting the petition for same-sex marriage would allow the Philippines to have equal marriage laws.
However, Roque said HRW is “detached from what’s happening in the Philippine Supreme Court.”
Meanwhile, President Rodrigo Duterte earlier said he was open to changing the law to allow same-sex marriage in the Philippines.
In constrast, the Catholic Church and other Christian churches remain opposed to legalizing same-sex unions.
This article appeared on the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
