鈥淔ears? Higit sa fears, malakas ang pag asa ko sa ngayon sa bisa ng substitute bill 鈥� sa bisa ng hindi talaga ito binibitawan ng advocates ng pag-iwas sa teenage pregnancy para sa ating mga adolescents,鈥� Hontiveros said at a Kapihan sa Senado forum on Thursday.
(Fears? More than fears, my hopes are high given the filing of the substitute bill through the never ending support of many advocates against teenage pregnancy.)
Hontiveros said there is ample time for the Senate to 鈥渄o right鈥� in terms of addressing the needs of Filipino adolescents.
The opposition lawmaker said she is expecting that the Senate, under the leadership of Senate President Francis Escudero, would pave the way for a normal legislative process for SBN 1979.
鈥淯maasa ako sa kanyang liderato na patuloy buksan ang espasyo para sa normal na legislative process sa Senate Bill No. 1979 na sana, bagamat normal na legislative process, ay huwag po naming kalimutan na tinatrabaho namin ito sa gitna ng isang krisis 鈥� sa gitna ng isang emergency,鈥� said Hontiveros.
(I am hoping that his leadership would continue to make way for a normal legislative process for SBN 1979 and while it is a normal legislative process, I hope that we don鈥檛 forget that we are dealing with this in the middle of a crisis, in the middle of an emergency.)
鈥淪o a bit more sense of urgency, please, mula sa mga kasama sa Senado,鈥� she added.
Hontiveros filed a substitute bill to the SBN 1979 on Wednesday evening.
Some changes made to the bill are as follows:
- Removal of the phrase 鈥済uided by international standards鈥� in terms of implementing Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE)
- Limiting CSE to children 10 years old and above
- Inclusion of a provision guaranteeing academic and religious freedomAccording to Hontiveros, Sen. Escudero himself have pitched certain changes to the bill which include the following:
- Limit access to contraceptives without parental consent to adolescents 16 and up
- Explicit inclusion of parent-teacher organizations as part of stakeholders to be consulted in terms of CSE implementation
- Removal of the provision that states that CSE is being conducted as a requirement for accreditation of private schools鈥淚 hope this allays valid and genuine fears. I hope this helps bring us senators together to finally pass a Prevention of Adolescent Pregnancy Bill our country so desperately needs,鈥� said Hontiveros.