Kamakailan ay nakipagpulong si Senator Risa Hontiveros kay Jessica Stern, United States special envoy to advance LGBTQIA+ rights, upang talakayin kung paano maisasabatas ang Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression, at Sex Characteristics (SOGIESC) Equality Bill.

Sa panahon ng lumalalang poot at karahasan laban sa mga miyembro ng LGBTQIA+ community sa buong mundo, ikinatuwa ng mambabatas ang prognosis ni Stern na ang pagpasa ng SOGIESC Bill sa Pilipinas ay makakatulong sa pandaigdigang diskurso sa mga karapatan ng LGBTQIA+.

“This is a bill whose time has come. I deeply appreciate the growing support for the bill, and I am also delighted to have shared with the US envoy the good news that 18 out of 24 senators signed the committee report of the SOGIESC Bill,” aniya sa isang pahayag ngayong Miyerkules.

Ayon kay Hontiveros, “As Senator, I first filed the SOGIE Equality Bill in the 17th Congress. In the 18th Congress, I refiled and sponsored it; however, it did not go beyond second reading. I am positive that this 19th Congress, we will finally make it.” 

“The support from the majority of my colleagues is a small, but significant, sign of hope in taking this forward,” dagdag niya.

Nagpayo rin ang senador na, bilang karagdagan sa pagsisikap na maipasa ang SOGIESC Equality Bill, dapat na suportahan ang mga lokal na pamahalaan at mga grassroots organization na nagtataguyod para sa mga karapatan ng LGBTQIA+.

“It’s the LGBTQIA+ community that has given us heart. It’s the community that has not given up on this bill, and as allies, we can do no less. We need to match the community’s persistence, and the newly filed committee report is an important first step towards taking the SOGIESC Equality Bill to the finish line,” pagtatapos niya.

Photo Credit: Facebook/lgbtphilippine/