Kris Aquino is no longer just another screeching Filipino showbiz personality. She is now the sister of the President of the Philippines. The timing of her marital woes with basketball player James Yap couldn’t be worse for the spin machinery of her brother President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III — a man who owes much of his appeal to the masses to the Catholic mind of the Filipino.
Poor Kris. Flushing her marriage with James Yap down the crapper is not as simple as pushing down on a lever. Like the national economy, the landscape of options available to her in a backward theocratic society such as the Philippines is poor.
In an exclusive interview with ABS-CBN’s Marie Lozano, lawyer Anna Liza Logan said the TV host is not seeking legal separation.
[...]
“We will have the court decide [that the] marriage was void from the beginning,” she said.
What’s up with the moronosim known as “annulment”, anyway? For me it is quite simple, really™:
“Annulment” is no more than a legal process for a state-sanctioned acceding to the tantrums of childish people crying over spilt milk.
The process of annulment aims to void the fact of the marriage so that both parties may, in principle, be free to re-marry without “moral” consequence. Contrast this with divorce which, conceptually, recognises the fact of the marriage and opens both parties to exercise options.
Annulment retroactively removes the fact of the marriage and, with said fact nullified, parties have none such to be accountable for. Divorce, on the other hand, moves on from the fact of the marriage to be terminated. It leaves the involved parties to opt for next steps under the presumption that said parties are personally accountable for any implications on their individual values (moral and ethical) associated with moving on.
In short, annulment seeks to unspill milk, while divorce seeks to mop it up.
Framed in this way, which of the two represents the thinking of a saner society? It’s no wonder that a people raised in an environment laced with moronic philosophical frameworks that include fantasies such as “annulment” are renowned for their disinclination to take control of their futures.
In her bestselling book The Art of Choosing, author Sheena Iyengar implies an interesting proposition — that some cultures habitually frame their world around pre-set paths also known as “destinies” in contrast with Western societies where the key guiding principle is choice.
In short, to the Western mind, every situation is framed by choice. The question is usually What happens next? — and therefore oriented to prospect. To the Filipino mind lorded over by idiocies such as “annulment”, the question seems to be more around What was it that pre-ordained us to this situation? — and therefore oriented to retrospect.
Prospect implies a desire to control, whereas retrospect inclines towards resignation.
Is Philippine society framed by choice, or by destiny?
One of the key insights offered by Iyengar’s book is that people — and even animals — who were raised in environments where evaluation of options is encouraged and a semblance of control over the outcomes of these choices is felt are more likely to fight for survival — and success — more ferociously. That picture provides a stark contrast to a culture such as ours — one famously propped up by the three pillars of loser mentalities: pwede-na-yan (that’ll do), bahala na (come what may), and impunity.
It’s high time that we start to re-think the very fundamental philosphies that underpin the things institutionalised in our society. It’s high time that we junk this insult on the already meagre intelligence of Da Pinoy known as “annulment” and implement a decent Divorce Law.
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I find the comparison of divorce and annulment funny where the latter didn’t have the accountability to recognize what had been done by both parties.
It’s not too unlike this story:
Radio caller: “Ms Rosaroso, do you recommend virginity restoration in my case?”
Ms. Rosaroso: “No, absolutely. Even if your hymen gets restored, technically , you’re no longer a ‘virgin’.”
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killem Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 11:35 am
the explanation of annullment is wrong thats why it sounds funny.
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The routine misuse of the annulment law helps to undermine the enforcement of any other law in the country. Legally, annulment is only possible if the marriage was legally invalid at the time it was created, in other words, if the legal capacity of either one of the parties to enter into a marriage was misrepresented in some way. That is the way the law is written; the legal grounds upon which a marriage can be defined as having been “void from the beginning” are quite narrow.
Of course, none of that matters if you have sufficient money and influence to get a lawyer to make up something and get a judge to go along with it. Call a spade a spade, though: Mr. “Walang Corrupt” is silently letting his own sister openly and very publicly flout the laws of the Republic which he swore an oath to uphold.
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The ordinary reasonable Filipino will no doubt be dumbfounded by Kris’s marriage situation. I mean what exactly do they mean when they said that the marriage is void at the beginning. Ano yun? Kasal kasalan lang.
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J.B. Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 1:21 am
It rest heavily on religious dogma disallowing divorce.
So the solution is to introduce annulment so reconcile the religious point of view.
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As a Magandang Gabi Bayan episode was once titled, “Kasalan, Sakalan o… Kalasan?”
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I am for divorce in the Philippines. A friend of mine is having her annulment process. A corrupt psychiatrist is extorting money from her, her lawyer is too expensive, and the court procedures are too slow. For an ordinary person, the process is exhausting but celebrities (except Zsa Zsa Padilla) seem to have the “short cut” privileges.
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ChinoF Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 11:45 am
Among the best reasons to cite having a divorce law. Annulment allows a feast of vultures over the hapless annuller.
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KRIS AQUINO…YOUR BROTHER JUST BECAME PRESIDENT AND NOW YOU’RE ABOUT TO GET DIVORCED! WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO NEXT?
“I’M GOING TO DISNEYWORLD!”…Kris Aquino
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ChinoF Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 10:59 am
Will she get employed as a mascot there?
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ulong pare Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 11:17 am
… daaang
… kris a. will audition for snow white…
… with her experience, kris could handle the seven dwarves…
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grapevine sources say the grounds to be invoked by Kris would be Art. 36 or psychological incapacity. if I were James, i’d contest that and say she’s the one psychologically incapable. nyarhar.
anyway, for divorce law to be implemented, i think the constitution itself has to be rewritten, as the 1987 constitution provides that the state’s policy shall be to preserve the sanctity of the family as the basic social institution. i’m pro-divorce myself.
cheers guys.
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Couldn’t agree more. Such a waste of judicial resources, pretending to adjudicate over people’s moral standing at the time they agreed to be wed.
Divorce is a legal concept, recognizing that two parties have rights and responsibilities. If two parties agree the marriage is not constructive, who is wise or cruel enough to say they must stay bound to each other as indentured servants, one to the other?
Annulment considers the marriage to be a moral promise, absolutely unbreakable unless it was flawed at the beginning. It is not considered a moral flaw if a husband beats his wife, skips out on her and the kids to make haystacks with the a classmate’s wife, or takes all the money and leaves the kids in rags. It is a cruel law that imposes the state’s wisdom on individuals, or, in truth, at least in the Philippines, imposes the Catholic Church’s morality on individuals. It is freedom turned inside out.
That said, I don’t give a rat’s crap about Kris Aquino or James Yap, and think President Aquino ought to be working on a complete overhaul of Judiciary to get rid of the perennial backlog of 300,000 cases that prevent anyone except the influential to find justice. To get the courts rational and productive.
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divorce will finally prove that women are bitches and whores
think of it this way. the process of divorce also includes the separation or division of properties
it is a matter of time on who gets the bigger share or who gets the better divorce lawyer
which means that girls can marry and divorce and get the properties of the male party since divorce does not require any reason to terminate a marriage
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BongV Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 6:54 am
if divorce becomes legal. make a pre-nuptial agreement to the effect that you keep the assets you generated BEFORE the marriage – and list those assets accordingly.
you divide only the assets that accrued AFTER the marriage.
if divorce proves women are whores – it also proves men are man-whores and satyrs.
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ChinoF Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 7:17 am
If women are bitches and whores, men are snitches and womanizers.
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NFA rice Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 8:06 am
if women are sluts, men are studs!
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ilda Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 9:34 am
This guy has a real sense of humor!
It’s the best comment here in AP so far…not! Maybe his own mother is not a woman?
How about: Divorce will finally prove that some men who make comments like the above are losers?!?
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eleanor Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 10:46 am
LOL. We don’t need divorce to prove that. Just the fact that noko above posted such a comment is proof positive of the idiocy of some men.
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ulong pare Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 10:55 am
… daaang
… ms eleanor naman naman namannn
… whaaaat “idiocy of some men..”?
… sexy gurlz keepknocking at my door… it takes two to tong ting… ooopsie tango…:mrgreen:
Back then, in my high school, our Religion teacher was discussing why the Church is so against Divorce(and others like homosexuality, abortion, euthanasia etc.). One student asked “What is the difference between divorce and annulment? Why is the Church so against divorce when the results will be the same with annulment?” The religion teacher said, “It’s because in divorce it involves money”.(Or something along those lines).
Herp derp…
T-up for divorce in the Philippines. Why would we believe people WHO DOESN’T experience marital relationships and believes that the all marriages are salvageable?
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… daaang
… NOT GONNA HAPPEN…
… prez gung gong abnoy is singol… shacking up with a hootsie momma…
… divorce, annulment, pre-nuptial, etchastera, etc is alien to him…
… ‘sang tambaks na teenajas are preggies (buntis)… ‘sang tambaks na flip households are not legally married…
… stroll down the squathood, i bet my underwear that 100% of squats are NOT married… ‘sang tambak na pulubis are the product of devout katolickdick padre damaso’s pekeng relihiyon…
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first o all kris lawyer is talking about declaration of nullity and not annulment….
annulment presupposes a valid existing marriage but suffer from defects, which if properly invoke can be a ground for dissolution of marriage. In shorts, it is a voidable marriage, valid until annulled..
Whereas in declaration of nullity., a marriage is void from the beggining, generally produce no legal effect., and as if no marriage took place…
If a marriage did not comply from the req of art2 and art4 of Family code, or suffering from any impediment mention in art.35 36 37 38 of the same code. it is considered as void marraige., and for purposes of remarriage, a person need a decree declaration of nullity.
whereas in annulment, a marriage is voidable if one the instances mention under art45 of the FC is present.,
The distinction of voidable (annulment) and a void (declaration of nullity) marriage are;
1. void marriage produce no legal effect, since it is void from the beggining; while, a voidable marriage is valid until annulled,
2. children conceived or born before decree of annulment is issued are legitimate,while in void, children conceived and born in the void marriage are illigitimate
3. there is exist a property relation bet spouses in voidable marriage; while in void marriage, its co-ownership
4. dissolution of conjugal property is subject to the rules mention in art 50. in relation to article 43 and 44. while in void marriage, it is govern by art 147 or 148.
heres a link to family code: http://www.chanrobles.com/executiveorderno209.htm
with the above explanation the ff paragraphs should be revisited…
“Annulment” is no more than a legal process for a state-sanctioned acceding to the tantrums of childish people crying over spilt milk”
The process of annulment aims to void the fact of the marriage so that both parties may, in principle, be free to re-marry without “moral” consequence. Contrast this with divorce which, conceptually, recognises the fact of the marriage and opens both parties to exercise options.
Annulment retroactively removes the fact of the marriage and, with said fact nullified, parties have none such to be accountable for. Divorce, on the other hand, moves on from the fact of the marriage to be terminated. It leaves the involved parties to opt for next steps under the presumption that said parties are personally accountable for any implications on their individual values (moral and ethical) associated with moving on
It’s high time that we start to re-think the very fundamental philosphies that underpin the things institutionalised in our society. It’s high time that we junk this insult on the already meagre intelligence of Da Pinoy known as “annulment” and implement a decent Divorce
and final note, there is already a divorce here in the phil, known as legal seperation or in foreign land it is called “relative divorce”..
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Dee Reply:
July 17th, 2010 at 1:40 am
Thanks for the very informative link. I’ve always been baffled by the sense of annulment in the Philippines.
So basically the grounds for annulment are:
1. Lack of parental consent for the underage
2. Insanity
3. Fraud
4. Force, intimidation and undue influence
5. Impotence
6. STD
Doesn’t matter if the husband is physically abusive, you can’t get annulled. But if you have the money, if you have lots of money, you can manage to get around the law and get annulment faster than normal. Just legalize divorce; Philippines is one of the two countries in the world without divorce.
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palebluedot Reply:
July 17th, 2010 at 2:46 am
Impotence?!? If so-called moralists do not scorn on pre-marital sex, couples would have saved themselves from the burden of having to go through annulment.
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killem Reply:
July 17th, 2010 at 6:23 am
even if you have lots of money., cannot be anulled since the ground enumerated is exclusive, however you can always chose an action for declaration of nullity based on art 36 or legal seperation….. which the latter is a better option if you dnt want to get married anymore, since the guilty spouse will forfeit his share in the conjugal property., In short, he cannot get anything from the conjugal property……
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Kris Aquino, the sister of Noynoy Aquino was married to several men. Everytime she separated and married another man: there is a Marriage Annulment. The Catholic Church, that is their major Political Supporter turned a Blind Eye on this matter. Their Religious dogmas, do not apply to the Aquinos. If you and I, who are common believers, will seek annulment of our marriages. Because we and our wives, are fighting like cats and dogs. Their religious dogmas, suddenly apply. We will have difficulties seeking for marriage annulments.
I am in favor of Divorce. We all make mistakes in our lives. Including the choices of our mates. If the husband is abusing the wife; or the wife is abusing the husband. If you have a mother-in-law from Hell. Or if the husband is a philanderer; or the wife is “Kabit” prone. What is the use of staying married. Life is short. To live in a marital Hell is the worst thing you can have in life.
I am in favor also of Priests getting married. They are sexually abusing boys and girls. Some are hiring prostitutes to relieve their raging hormones. Let us not be hypocrites. Pretending we are living a holy life. In truth, we are not.
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ulong pare Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 12:19 pm
… daaang
… katolickdick padre damasos require 10% tithe…da aquinos give more than the minimum…
… during ate glo’s regime, a string of prayer breakfast at shang-ri la make up for santa ate glo’s tithes…
… therefore, katolickdick aka pekeng relihiyon turn a blind eye…
… mahal na buy bull ooooopsie bible sez “the poor and gung gongs shall inherit the earth; and, it’s easier to pass thru the eye of the needle thingy” … kaya ang mga flips would rather remain gung gongs… mas malapit sa gate ni san pedro…
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Hyden Toro Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 12:44 pm
The Aquinos are very interesting people. Noynoy Aquino is Undersex. While, Kris Aquino is Oversex.
Can she give some of her raging hormones to her brother? So, that, he will become, at least, normal sexually? The guy is already in his fifties; and he is not yet married. Something wrong with his libido?
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ulong pare Reply:
July 16th, 2010 at 1:36 pm
… daaang
… kris a. compensates for prez gung gong abnoy lack of sexual drive…
… kaya sige lang kris… iyot ng iyot… enjoy your youth… your doing the ****ry good…
… lookit ate imeldific, a waray maneater, botox and eskinol w/ papaya extract no longer work for her biyuti…
mel Reply:
July 17th, 2010 at 5:02 am
@Hyden
If someone is having psycho medication, one of the side effects is impotence.
I think there is nothing wrong when you are 50 and unmarried. A lot of Europeans stay single for one reason or another.
PNoy’s reason is perhaps the side effect and I find it just fair to the lady….
I am getting nasty, get over it, PNoy!
Have a psycho medication…then, kiss your libido goodbye? Tell him the Beauty of the : Viagra, Cialis, Levitra, etc…I still think the Guy is born Undersexed. While her sister, Kris Aquino is born Oversexed. It is a family sexual dysfunction, like: frigidity, undeveloped sexual organ, etc…Hormones are part of a normal person. It makes life wonderful…unless, otherwise, he is Gay…come out of the closet?
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NFA rice Reply:
July 17th, 2010 at 11:09 am
His sexual orientation is irrelevant. It would be more interesting to know if he really has psychological problems. Some countries demand psychological tests on candidates.
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Definitely psychological problems…
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“In short, annulment seeks to unspill milk, while divorce seeks to mop it up.”
the first thing that popped into my mind after I read that was
in short, divorce seeks to mop a spilt milk, while annulment attempts to say “what milk? are you talking about?”
Nice read, keep it tight AP!
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The closest thing we have to a divorce law is “annulment.” God, even the CIC (Codex Iuris Canonici; Code of Canon Law) of Holy Church prescribes what is effectively divorce if it can be proven that one party is psychologically incapable of understanding the marriage bond! Considering Kris Aquino, well, we know she fits the bill to a T.
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killem Reply:
July 19th, 2010 at 7:06 am
please read my above post in order to clarify some things which the author of this article was not aware of..
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Hey, Kris!
Whatever the **** happened to your promise to leave the country if you become a burden on your brother?
GTFO! Ha ha ha!
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Annulment is just not implemented properly or has loopholes. There should be a law penalizing those psych doctors who have wrong findings! Roman Catholic Church vs. Psych Doc. That should lessen the paid annulment.
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Now I really believe that this man has a small brain!
http://www.gmanews.tv/story/198898/aquino-no-to-divorce-yes-to-remarriage-after-legal-separation
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An analysis from Prof. Monsod on divorce.
http://www.gmanews.tv/largevideo/latest/65406/qtv-prof-winnie-monsod-discusses-divorce-bill
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