The Bill of Rights in the 1987 Constitution guarantees equal protection for every Filipino, and prohibits discrimination of persons based on ethnicity, race, religion or belief, political inclinations, social class, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, civil status, medical condition, or any other status in the enjoyment of rights. The fundamental law also declares that the State values the dignity of every human person and guarantees full respect for human rights (Section 11, Article II, 1987 Constitution). It also imposes on the State the duty to ensure the fundamental equality before the law of women and men (Sec. 14, Id.).

In addition, the Philippines is a signatory to numerous international agreements that seek to ensure respect for the human rights of all persons regardless of ethnicity, race, religion or belief, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, civil status, medical condition, or any other status. These international human rights instruments have consistently been interpreted by international institutions, such as the United Nations Human Rights Committee and the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Unfortunately, reality has yet to catch up with the noble intentions of these numerous laws and international agreements. In schools, workplaces, commercial establishments, public service, police and the military, prejudicial practices and policies based on sexual orientation and gender and cultural identity limit the exercise and enjoyment of basic human rights and fundamental freedoms.

We still see, for instance, employment practices that prioritize single over married job applicants; or other cultural practices that suppress an individual’s right to practice his or her religion, faith, or cultural belief. Many Filipinos in indigenous communities have yet to be fully integrated into the workforce; ignorance about their cultural practices often leads to stigma and marginalization.

Moreover, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transsexual (LGBT) community continues to be oppressed by the iniquitous treatment of society at large, primarily because of misconceptions and ignorance. LGBT students, for instance, are refused admission or expelled from schools due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. Companies block the promotion of LGBT employees due to the deeply embedded notion that homosexuality is an indication of weakness. Laws such as the anti-vagrancy law are also abused by law enforcement agencies to harass gay men.

In a democratic society that claims to give equal access and opportunity to each of its citizens, many Filipinos are still treated as “second-class citizens” when they try to exercise the rights to which they are rightfully entitled.  

There is, therefore, an urgent need to define and penalize practices that unjustly discriminate on the basis of ethnicity, race, religion or belief, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, civil status, medical condition, or any other status. In view of the foregoing, and of the need to correct the long-standing discrimination against marginalized communities in Philippine society, the early passage of this bill is earnestly urged.