' v r j ' i 11'
SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
First Regular Session
of H ) p r r ( > t . i r j
*16 JUL 21
All :02
SENATE
S. B. No.
758
H h'A
Introduced by Senator FRANCIS G. ESCUDERO
AN ACT
PROHIBITING STEREOTYPING BASED
ON RELIGIOUS OR ETHNIC ORIGIN
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Every citizen enjoys the fundamental right to be free from discrimination
which arises from his or her race, religion or etlmicity. The importance of this
fundamental right cannot be overemphasized, especially in a country such as ours
with a rich and diverse socio-cultural background. A peek into our history will
reveal that stereotyping based on religion and etlmic background is one of the
major barriers that our country has to hurdle in order to progress —hampering as it
does efforts to unite the nation.
Stereotyping typically casts particular groups of people in a particular mold
simply because of race, religion or ethnicity. Rooted in bigotry, it ascribes to these
groups certain negative traits, such as when a person suspected of being involved
in a crime is referred to as a "Muslim suspect", when no such identification is
made when such a suspect belongs to the Christian or other religions. This creates
mistrust among our people and our institutions. It seriously erodes public
confidence, discourages people from taking advantage of opportunities, effectively
denies basic services to the most vulnerable sectors and thus creates a long-lasting
negative impact both to the economy and to the community.
Individuals who belong to the stereotyped communities feel a dimiiiished
sense of citizenship, a feeling of being an unequal member of society even though
we purport to live under one flag and one country. They also feel singled-out,
simply because they belong to these stereotyped communities or groups. Thus, it
also disempowers communities and creates divisions and an unwillingness to
identify with and submit to the laws of the country.
This bill does not purport to be a panacea to cure these age-old ills. It is
however believed that a greater knowledge and consciousness about the dangers
of stereotyping and racial-cultural profiling will go a long way in mending and
improving relations among the diverse members of our community and country.
Urgent passage of this measure is therefore proposed.
FRANCIS G. ESCUDERO