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| Kabataan Partylist representative Raymond Palatino |
MANILA, Philippines—After drawing strong condemnation from Catholic
bishops and other lay leaders, Kabataan party-list Rep. Raymond Palatino
apologized and meekly withdrew his bill seeking to prohibit religious
rites and images in government buildings and offices in line with the
Constitution’s separation of Church and State.
Palatino said he was withdrawing House Bill No. 6330, or An Act
Empowering Heads of Offices and Departments to Strictly Implement the
Constitutional Provisions on Religious Freedom in Government Offices,
“in response to the appeal and clamor of some of our members,
constituents and supporters, various groups, institutions and the
general public.”
“Kabataan seeks to clarify that the bill has no intention to ‘ban
God,’ suppress any religion or belief and prevent government employees
from practicing their faith. The purpose of the bill is to ensure that
government offices do not favor one religion over the other, or
discriminate one against the other,” Palatino said in a statement.
According to Palatino, Kabataan sincerely apologizes for any offense
the bill caused. “We are sad that we hurt the religious sentiments of
many, when our desire was to uphold and promote religious sensitivity
and harmony,” he added.
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