Baguio Mayor lets his Prejudice Shine through

Mayor Domogan

Baguio City Mayor, Mauricio Domogan, is publicly backing a proposed ordinance to ban same-sex union ceremonies from taking place in the city.  The ordinance is currently pending action before the Baguio City Council.

Domogan believes same-sex unions are a violation of national law, and has thrown his support behind Councilor Philian Weygan, who has filed a resolution to effectively ban future same-sex unions in Baguio.

Another Councilor, Edison Bilog, wants the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and Baguio police to investigate the Metropolitan Community Church ceremony in order to decide if formal charges should be pressed.  Additionally, Councilor Elmer Datuin said Baguio is getting a reputation as the "same-sex wedding capital of the Philippines," and said it is a "horrible image for the city."

Actually, Councilor, gaining a reputation for becoming the discrimination and small-minded capital of the Philippines would be far more horrible.

The Baguio-Benguet Ecumenical Group (BBEG), which brings together Catholic, Evangelical, and Pentecostal churches in Baguio and Benguet, urged the city council to take action against same-sex unions, as well as lobby against HB 1483, the anti-discrimination bill.

BBEG spokesperson Alexander Bongsoy claimed the legislation would "legitimize new genders other than male and female," which shows how woefully misinformed he is of the bill itself, and of the basics of biology and sexuality.

In actuality, HB 1483, which is still pending in Congress, would ensure that LGBTs (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender persons) could not be discriminated against in employment, at the workplace, in education, and in accessing social services.  It has nothing to do with legitimizing "new genders," whatever that means.

LGBT persons are not "new" or "other" genders, or something other than male or female.  Such uneducated comments further demonstrate how out-of-touch many of these religious leaders are when it comes to modern science, which is why it is all the more important that the Philippines has anti-discrimination legislation in place immediately.