NextGen Day

Rep. Bienvenido “Benny” Abante Jr. of Manila’s 6th District encouraged lawmakers on Wednesday to approve the Magna Carta on Religious Freedom bill, which seeks to safeguard and advance the right of an individual to practice his or her chosen religion.

Additionally, the law ensures the freedom to transmit religious information or publications on any platform, including broadcast, print, social media, and other internet platforms, without fear of reprisal.

House Bill (HB) 6492, also known as the Magna Carta on Religious Freedom, is in line with the State’s obligation “to protect the right of every person to freedom of religion and liberty of conscience, as well as the free exercise or expression thereof,” according to Abante, the chair of the House Committee on Human Rights in his speech in support of the bill.

Abante claimed that Section 5 of Article III of the Constitution provides that “the free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference, should be allowed, established the right to freedom of religion or belief.”

“HB 6492 ensures that no act of the government or any of its agencies, instrumentalities, officers or employees shall burden, curtail, impinge or encroach on the person’s right to exercise one’s religion, freedom, and liberty of conscience,” he said. “The government must also prohibit any act by a person, natural or legal, or any group of persons that burdens or encroaches on the said right.”

The law lists a number of forbidden actions that “characterize breaches on the exercise of one’s freedom to proclaim one’s religion or belief.”

Infringers will be punished with a fine of at least $100,000 but no more than $500,000, an eight- to a ten-year sentence in jail, or a combination of both.

Among the behaviors that are forbidden by HB 6492 are:

— To coerce someone into joining or leaving a certain religious group or holding a specific belief by using coercion, threats, intimidation, or undue influence;

— To damage someone by threatening them or by applying undue pressure to stop them from changing their religion;

— To coerce someone into performing a deed that goes against their religious principles;

— To disparage, harass, humiliate, or otherwise offend someone due to their religion or the exercise of their faith;

— To hinder or stop access to religious information;

— To unjustifiably refuse to produce religious publications that are lawful to produce and distribute, as long as doing so does not conflict with the proprietors of the publishing company’s religious convictions or the law;

— To refuse to hire suitable candidates or to fire employees on the grounds of their religion alone.

It is “a significant opportunity for us, as legislators, to step up in our game and steer the course of human rights towards a path that fully guarantees the exercise of our freedoms of religion or belief, of thought, and conscience, as well as our right to promote the protection of human rights,” Abante said in a statement to colleagues.

“Since these assume that we are all human beings with inherent rights that are inalienable, with inherent rights that value equality, with inherent rights that accord to dignity and self-respect, it is my fundamental belief that conscience precedes freedom and non-discrimination resonates above all,” he continued.

Save/Share this story with QR CODE

---

Disclaimer

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute endorsement of any specific technologies or methodologies and financial advice or endorsement of any specific products or services.

Need to get in touch?

Feel free to Contact NextGenDay.com for comments, suggestions, reviews, or anything else.

---

We appreciate your reading. Simple Ways To Say Thanks & Support Us:
1.) GIVE A TIP. Send a small donation thru Paypal
Your DONATION will be used to fund and maintain NEXTGENDAY.com
Subscribers in the Philippines can make donations to mobile number 0917 906 3081, thru GCash.
3.) BUY or SIGN UP to our AFFILIATE PARTNERS.
4.) Give this news article a THUMBS UP, and Leave a Comment (at Least Five Words).

---

AFFILIATE PARTNERS

World Class Nutritional Supplements - Buy Highest Quality Products, Purest Most Healthy Ingredients, Direct to your Door! Up to 90% OFF.
Join LiveGood Today - A company created to satisfy the world's most demanding leaders and entrepreneurs, with the best compensation plan today.

---