00:00Former Far Eastern University Law School Dean Mel Santamaria tells the Supreme Court local rules on recognizing foreign divorce in
00:07the country are unfair to Filipinos.
00:10Santamaria serves as amicus curiae or friend of the court during oral arguments for a case involving a Filipino with
00:15dual citizenship who obtained divorce abroad.
00:18The petitioner wanted the divorce to be locally recognized but it was junked by a Nueva Ecija court.
00:23And our policy today on disallowing recognition, our policy today, Your Honor, I'm sorry to say, borders on racism, is
00:34sinocentric, and it mirrors a colonial mentality where the natives have less rights.
00:42Santamaria says rules on recognizing divorce are discriminatory, with petitions between two Filipinos automatically rejected.
00:48In contrast, a Filipino's divorce from a foreign spouse obtained outside the country may be recognized in the Philippines under
00:55Article 26, Paragraph 2 of the Family Code.
00:58He points out how Filipinos only have more rights when they associate themselves with a foreigner.
01:03Apart from the Vatican City, the Philippines is the only country in the world with no divorce laws.
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