By Charissa Luci-Atienza 1-Ang Edukasyon partylist Rep. Salvador Belaro expressed hope Monday that the Senate would pass the Sexual Orientation, Gender Identification or Expression (SOGIE) Equality bill before 17th Congress ends in June. (PIXABAY / MANILA BULLETIN) He lamented that the bill has met opposition in the Senate based on "religious grounds". "This is not a religion issue. The SOGIE equality bill is a civil rights measure which I hope the Senators will find it in their hearts to approve on third and final reading before the last session of the 17th Congress ends in early June," Belaro, one of the bill’s authors in the House of Representatives, said. "Marami sa mga LGBT, ang iba ay guro at estudyante, ang biktima ng diskriminasyon, pang-aabuso, at krimen sanhi ng kanilang kasarian o sekswal na oryentasyon. Niyuyurakan ang kanilang pagkatao at hindi itinuturing nang patas gaya ng pagtrato sa mga heterosexual," he said. Belaro described President Duterte's latest statement recognizing LGBTs as "also created by God" as a "booster shot" for the bill to hurdle the 17th Congress. "The enactment of the SOGIE equality bill would be historic and life-changing not just for the LGBT but also for the whole nation," he said. He urged the LGBT community to prod the Senate in immediately passing the measure. "We have here a special window of opportunity to genuinely accept the LGBT with open arms as equal members of Philippine society," he said. "I urge heterosexuals and LGBT all over the country to write to the senators to convince them that approving the SOGIE equality bill is the right and moral thing to do," the lawyer solon added. The House of Representatives approved the bill on third and final reading last September 20, 2017, and transmitted to and received by the Senate on October 03, 2017.