NINETEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
)
First Regular Session 
)
of the &'i'ncf,H‘p
*22 JUL11 P3 50
SENATE
s.No. 245
RECEIV'tD ;
Introduced by Senator Loren B. Legarda
AN ACT
PROHIBITING DISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEXUAL 
ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY OR EXPRESSION (SOGIE) 
AND PROVIDING PENALTIES THEREFOR
EXPLANATORY NOTE
The 1987 Constitution guarantees the right of every Fihpino to equal protection 
of the laws and full respect of human rights, including the right to life, the right to 
freedom of expression, the right to be free from torture, and the right to be free from 
any type of discrimination. However, many reports, studies, and surveys show that 
discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression (SOGIE) 
persists in our society.
Numerous members of the lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders, intersex, 
and queers (LGBTIQ) community have related unfortunate incidents of harassment 
and aggravation by individuals or groups who seemed to lack recognition, 
appreciation, and understanding of SOGIE. According to a study conducted by the 
United Nations (UN), thirty (30%) percent of LGBTIQs reported harassment and 
discrimination cases while at work due to their SOGIE.1 Moreover, based on the 2018 
survey from Rainbow Rights Philippines, six in every ten LGBTIQs have experienced
1 United Nations Development Programme and International Labour Organization, LGBTI People and 
Employment: Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression, and Sex 
Cliaracteristics in China, tlie Philippines and Thailand, 10 (2018).


discrimination, of which most cases happened in schools.2 Based on another study 
conducted by the Philippine LGBT Chamber of Commerce and research firm, 
Cogencia, out of the TOO companies surveyed, no Philippine-based company was 
found to implement policies to protect employees from SOGIE-based discrimination.3
Thus, this proposed measure seeks to address this concern and to secure the 
welfare of not only the LGBTIQ community but also all Filipinos of any class, status, 
ethnicity, color, and beliefs. This measure intends to help recognize the rights of the 
LGBTIQ so they can fully enjoy such rights, and to provide them the opportunities to 
develop their skills and reach their full potential as individuals and as members of the 
Filipino society.
In view of the foregoing, the passage of this bill is earnestly sought.
N LEGARDA
2 https://news.abs-cbn.coin/spodight/03/09/19/sogie-equality-bill-might-start-from-scratch-19-ycars-since- 
proposal?fbclid=IvvAR29-KEEMUaNDW-Gt5WM90qM9rHNgNZDBpG-uluTuslhyTBwLCajDu96D5s
3 https://www.cmiphilippincs.com/life/cultuie/2018/11/14/Fihpino-conipanies-not-accepting-LGBTQ.html


NINETEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
)
S. No.
SENATE
245
Ornate
•22 JI111 P3 SO
4^-
RECEIVED BY:
Introduced by Senator Loren B. Legarda
AN ACT
PROHIBITING DISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEXUAL 
ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY OR EXPRESSION (SOGIE) 
AND PROVIDING PENALTIES THEREFOR
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Represen tatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled:
1 
Section 1. Short Title. - This Act shaft be known and cited as the "Anti-
2 
Discrimination Act of2022."
3 
Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State recognizes the fundamental right of
4 
every person, regardless of sex, age, class, status, ethnicity, color, disability, religious
5 
and political beliefs, sexual orientation, or gender identity, to be free from any form of
6 
discrimination. It shall therefore intensify its efforts to fulfill its duties under
7 
international and domestic laws to respect, protect and fulfill the rights and dignity of
8 
every individual.
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Towards this end, the State shall exert efforts to address all forms of
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discrimination and violence on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity or
11 
expression and to promote human dignity as enshrined in the United Nations
12 
Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All
13 
Forms of Discrimination Against Women, particularly the General Recommendation
14 
No. 28 on Non-discrimination based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity,
15 
Convention on the Rights of the Child, International Covenant on Civil and Political
16 
Rights, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and all other


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relevant and universally accepted human rights instruments and other international
2 
conventions to which the Philippines is a signatory of.
3 
Sec. 3. Definition of Terms. - As used in this Act, the following terms shall be
4 
defined as follows:
5 
a. Discriniination - refers to any distinction, exclusion, restriction, or
6 
preference based on the ground sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or
7 
expression, hereinafter referred to as "SOGIE", and has the purpose or effect
8 
of nullifying or impairing the recognition, access to, enjoyment, or exercise
9 
by all persons on an equal footing of all rights and freedoms. For purposes
10 
of this provision, the actual sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity of the
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person subjected to discrimination shall not be relevant for the purpose of
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determining to whether an act of discrimination has been committed.
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b. Gender Expression - refers to the outward manifestations of the cultural traits
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that enable a person to identify as male or female according to patterns that,
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at a particular moment in history, a given society defines as gender
16 
appropriate.
17 
c. Gender Identity - refers to the personal sense of identity as characterized,
18 
among others, by manner of clothing, inclinations, and behavior in relation
19 
to masculine or feminine conventions. A person may have a male or female
20 
identity with the physiological characteristics of the opposite sex.
21 
d. Profding - refers to subjecting a person or group of persons to investigatory
22 
activities, which include unnecessary, unjustified, illegal, and degrading
23 
searches, or other investigatory activities, in determining whether an
24 
individual is engaged in an activity presumed to be unlawful, immoral or
25 
socially unacceptable.
26 
e. Sexual Orientation - refers to the direction of emotional sexual attraction or
27 
conduct. This can be towards people of the same sex (homosexual
28 
orientation) or towards people of both sexes (bisexual orientation) or
29 
towards people of the opposite sex (heterosexual orientation).
30 
f. Stigma - refers to the dynamic devaluation and dehumanization of an
31 
individual in the eyes of others which may be based on attributes that are


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arbitrarily defined by others as discreditable or unworthy and which result
2 
in discrimination when acted upon.
3 
Sec.4. Comm uni ties Vulnerable to Discrimination and Abuse on the Basis of SOGIE.
4 
- This Act seeks to protect individuals and communities that experience human rights
5 
violations on the basis of SOGIE, including, but not limited to, individuals and
6 
communities of diverse sexual orientation or gender identity or expression who are
7 
children, young, poor, differently abled, of different ethnic background or cultural
8 
background, and of various religious beliefs.
9 
Sec. 5. Discriminatory Practices. - It shall be unlawful for any person, natural or
10 
juridical, to:
11 
a. Promote and encourage stigma on the basis of SOGIE in the media, in
12 
educational textbooks, and other medium. Inciting violence and sexual
13 
abuse against any person or group on the basis of SOGIE is likewise
14 
prohibited;
15 
b. Include SOGIE, as well as the disclosure of sexual orientation, in the criteria
16 
for hiring, promotion, transfer, designation, work assignment, re-
17 
assignment, dismissal of workers, and other human resource movement
18 
and action, performance review and in the determination of employee,
19 
compensation, career development opportunities, training, and other
20 
learning and development interventions, incentives, privileges, benefits or
21 
allowances, and other terms and conditions of employment Provided, That
22 
this provision shall apply to employment in both the private sector and
23 
public service, including military, police and other similar services; Provided
24 
further. That this prohibition shall likewise apply to the contracting and
25 
engaging of the services of associations or organizations with lesbians, gays,
26 
bisexuals, transgenders, intersex, or queers (LGBTIQs) members or of
27 
associations or organizations advocating LGBTIQs rights;
28 
c. Refuse admission or expel a person from any educational or training
29 
institution on the basis of SOGIE: Provided, however. That the right of
30 
educational and training institutions to determine the academic
31 
qualifications of their students or trainees shall be duly upheld;


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d. Impose disciplinary sanctions, penalties harsher than customary or similar 
punishments, requirements, restrictions, or prohibitions that infringe on the 
rights of the students on the basis of SOGIE, including discriminating 
against a student or trainee due to the SOGIE of the student’s parents or 
legal guardian;
e. Refuse or revoke the accreditation, formal recognition, registration or plan 
to organize of any organization, group, political party, institution or 
establishment, in educational institutions, workplaces, communities, and 
other settings, solely on the basis of the SOGIE of their members or of their 
target constituencies;
f. Deny a person access to public or private medical and other health services 
open to the general public, as well as access to public and private health 
insurance, including HMOs, on the basis of SOGIE;
g. Deny an apphcation for or revoke, on the basis of SOGIE, any government 
license, authority, clearance, permit, certification, or other similar 
documents necessary to exercise a profession, business, or any other 
legitimate calling;
h. Deny a person, access to or the use of establishments, facilities, utilities or 
to services, including housing, open to the general public on the basis of 
SOGIE: Provided, That the act of giving inferior accommodations or services 
shall be considered a denial of access or use of such facility or service; 
Provided further, that this prohibition covers acts of discrimination against 
juridical persons solely on the basis of the SOGIE of their members or of 
their target constituencies;
i. Subject or force any person to undertake any medical or psychological 
examination to determine or alter the person’s SOGIE without the expressed 
approval of the person involved, except in cases where the person involved 
is a minor and below the age of discernment in which case prior approval 
of the appropriate Family Court shall be required. In the latter case, the 
child shall be represented in the proceedings by the Solicitor General or the 
latter’s authorized representative;


1 
j. Subject any person, natural or juridical, to profiling, detention, or verbal or
2 
physical harassment on the basis of SOGIE. Profiling, detention, or verbal
3 
or physical harassment on the basis of SOGIE by members of law
4 
enforcement agencies, including the military, police, immigration, is
5 
likewise prohibited. Physical or verbal harassment based on SOGIE of
6 
persons in custody or detention of the police, including subjecting them to
7 
extortion, is also prohibited; and
8 
k. Subject a person to any other analogous acts that shall have the effect or
9 
purpose of impairing or nullifying the enjoyment, recognition, and exercise
10 
of a person's human rights and fundamental freedoms.
11 
Sec. 6. Administrative Sanctions. - Willful refusal of a government official whose
12 
duty is to investigate, prosecute, or otherwise act on a complaint for a violation of this
13 
Act to perform such a duty without a valid ground shall constitute gross negligence
14 
on the part of the official and shall be subjected to pertinent administrative sanctions.
15 
Sec. 7. Penalties. - Any person who commits any discriminatory practice
16 
described in Sec 5(a), 5(d), 5(e), 5(g), and 5(h), upon conviction, be penalized by a fine
17 
of not less than One Hundred Thousand Pesos (Php 100,000.00), but not more than
18 
Two Hundred Fifty Thousand Pesos (Php 250,000.00), or imprisonment of not less
19 
than one year, but not more than six (6) years, subject to the discretion of the court
20 
Any person who commits any discriminatory practice described in Sec 5(b), 5(c), 5(f),
21 
5(i), and 5(j) shall, upon conviction, be penalized by a fine of not less than Two
22 
Hundred Fifty Thousand Pesos (Php 250,000.00) but not more than Five Hundred
23 
Thousand Pesos (Php 500,000.00) or imprisonment of not less than six (6) years but
24 
not more than twelve (12) years, subject to the discretion of the court
25 
Any person who commits any discriminatory practice described in Sec 5(k)
26 
shall upon conviction be penalized with the same penalty as the prohibited act to
27 
which it is analogous.
28 
In addition, the court may impose upon a person found to have committed any
29 
of the prohibited acts the rendition of community service in terms of attendance in
30 
human rights education's familiarization with and exposure to the plight of the
31 
victims.


1 
Nothing in this Act shall preclude the victim from instituting a separate and
2 
independent action for damages and other affirmative reliefs.
3 
The penalties provided under this Sec shall be without prejudice to the imposition of
4 
administrative liability for government officials and employees.
5 
Sec. 8. Discriniinatori/ Practices as Qualifying Aggravating Circnnistance. - If any
6 
civil, criminal, or administrative offense, not falling under this Act, is committed and
7 
proven to be attended by any discriminatory practice prohibited under Sec 5 of this
8 
Act, said offense shall be qualified and the corresponding penalty provided thereto
9 
shall be applied in its maximum period.
10 
Sec. 9. Redress Mechanisms for SOGIE-related Cases. -
11 
a. Inclusion of SOGIE Concerns in All Police Stations - The Women and
12 
Children's Desks now existing in all police stations shall also act on and
13 
attend to complaints/cases covered by this Act. In this regard, the police
14 
handling said desks shall undergo trainings on human rights and SOGIE,
15 
gender sensitivity and awareness, and sensitization on the issue of violence
16 
and abuse on the basis of SOGIE.
17 
Complainant-minors can be represented by parents, guardians, social
18 
workers, or a non-government organization of good standing and reputation.
19 
b. Role of the Civil Service Commission - The Civil Service Commission (CSC)
20 
shall mandate the establishment of a grievance mechanism to address
21 
discriminatory practices committed by officers or employees of government
22 
agencies, instrumentalities, and government owned and controlled
23 
corporations (GOCCs) and other offices under its jurisdiction.
24 
c. Role of the Department of Labor and Employment - The Department of
25 
Labor and Employment (DOLE) shall mandate the establishment of a
26 
grievance mechanism to address discriminatory practices committed in the
27 
workplace.
28 
d. Role of the Commission or Human Rights - The Commission on Human
29 
Rights (CHR) shall investigate and recommend the filing of a complaint
30 
against any person/s violating this Act. If the Commission has reasonable
31 
cause to believe that any person or group of persons is committing acts


1 
penalized under Sec 5 of this Act, the Commission shall recommend a legal
2 
action in the appropriate prosecutor's office or court.
3 
The CHR shall also direct the officer concerned to take appropriate
4 
action against a public officer or employee at fault or who neglects to perform
5 
an act or discharge a duty required under this Act, and recommend the
6 
revocation of license, removal from office or employment, suspension,
7 
demotion, fine, censure, or prosecution, and ensure compliance therewith.
8 
Refusal by any officer without just cause to comply with an order of the
9 
Commission to revoke the license, remove, suspend, demote, fine, censure, or
10 
prosecute an officer or employee who is at fault, or who neglects to perform an
11 
act or discharge a duty required under this Act, shall be a ground for
12 
disciplinary action against said officer.
13 
The CHR shall also document cases of discrimination on the basis of
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SOGIE and shall include these documented cases in its annual human rights
15 
report The Commission shall actively provide recommendations to different
16 
branches of government on how to address and eliminate discrimination on
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the basis of SOGIE.
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Sec. 10. Programs to Promote Non-Discrimination and Diversity. - To ehminate all
19 
forms of discrimination, the State shall pursue initiatives and programs that seek to
20 
enable an environment free of stigma and discrimination. It shall direct the machinery
21 
and resources of the State to promote non-discrimination and shall encourage other
22 
sectors of the society to engage and participate in these efforts. It shall ensure the
23 
implementation of the following programs:
24 
a. Social Protection Programs - the national government shall ensure that
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communities vulnerable to stigma and discrimination on the basis of SOGIE
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are integrated into government-run social protection programs.
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b. Diversity Programs and Policies - All government agencies, government-
28 
owned and controlled corporations, private companies, public and private
29 
educational institutions, and other entities shall establish diversity
30 
programs to ensure human rights violations and violence on the basis of
31 
SOGIE are prevented. They shall also create an internal redress mechanism


1 
to address cases of discrimination and develop administrative remedies or
2 
sanctions for such cases. Public institutions shall incorporate these
3 
programs into existing gender and development programs.
4 
c. Information and Education Campaign - All government agencies and
5 
instrumentalities are mandated to develop and implement SOGIE-specific
6 
gender sensitivity education and information dissemination. They shall
7 
endeavor to produce and publish information and education campaign
8 
materials on gender and human rights.
9 
Sec. 11. Congressional Oversight Committee. - For the effective implementation of
10 
this Act, there shall be created a Congressional Oversight Committee, hereinafter
11 
referred to as the Anti-Discrimination Oversight Committee (ADOC), within sixty (60)
12 
days after the enactment of this Act. The ADOC shall be composed of ten (10)
13 
members from the Senate and the House of Representatives, which shall include the
14 
following: the Chairperson and two (2) members of the Senate Committee on Women,
15 
Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality; the Chairperson and one (1)
16 
member of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights; the Chairperson and
17 
two (2) members of the House Committee on Women and Gender Equality; and the
18 
Chairperson and one (1) member of the House Committee on Justice. The members of
19 
the ADOC shall be appointed by the Senate President and the Speaker of the House,
20 
respectively, with at least one (1) member representing the Minority.
21 
The ADOC shall be jointly chaired by the Chairpersons of the Senate
22 
Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality and the
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House Committee on Women and Gender Equality. The Vice-Chair of the ADOC shall
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be jointly held by the Chairpersons of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human
25 
Rights and the House Committee on Justice. The Secretariat shall come from the
26 
existing Secretariat personnel of the Senate and the House of Representatives
27 
committees concerned.
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The ADOC shall monitor the compliance of public institutions to the provisions
29 
of this Act. Within three years after the enactment of this Act, the ADOC shall conduct
30 
an audit of national and local policies that discriminate on the basis of SOGIE, and


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shall submit a report to Congress, the Office of the President, and the Supreme Court,
2 
on this subject.
3 
The ADOC shall cease to exist six years after its organization.
4 
Sec. 12. Sepnrabiliti/ Clause. - If any provision of this Act is declared
5 
unconstitutional or otherwise invalid, the validity of the other provisions shall not be
6 
affected thereby.
7 
Sec. 13. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations or
8 
parts thereof inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.
9 
Sec. 14. Effectiviti/. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
10 publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.
Approved,