Ties that unbind: will the Philippines finally embrace divorce?

Lawmakers have been trying to pass a divorce law since 2005, but continue to face resistance in the Catholic-majority country

Nearly 79 per cent of Filipinos are Roman Catholic and the Philippines and the Vatican are the only countries in the world that do not have divorce laws. Annulment exists but is a tedious and often expensive process. Muslims are currently the only Filipinos able to legally divorce under the Code of Muslim Personal Laws.

As the 20th Congress opened on Monday, three representatives filed two measures that aim to revive the absolute divorce bill that the House of Representatives passed earlier but ultimately languished in the Senate as conservative legislators and religious leaders vowed to fight the bill.