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Immigration Law
The Supreme Court found in the Poe-Llamanzares case that Foundlings are as a
class, natural born citizens. While the 1935 Constitution is silent as to foundlings, there is
no restrictive language that would exclude them either. Because of silence and ambiguity
in the enumeration, there is a need to examine the intent of the framers 1.
The argument that the process to determine that the child is a foundling leading to
the issuance of a foundling certificate are acts to acquire or perfect Philippine citizenship
is without merit. Hence, the argument that as a foundling, Poe underwent a process in
order to acquire or perfect her Philippine citizenship, is untenable4.
“Having to perform an act” means that the act must be personally done by the
citizen. In this case, the determination of foundling status was done by authorities, not by
Poe5. Second, the object of the process is to determine the whereabouts of the parent,
not the citizenship of the child and last, the process if not analogous to naturalization
proceedings6.
I agree with the decision of the Supreme Court in the Grace Poe-Llamanzares
case because They say that Natural Born Filipinos are those that need not an act to
make them Filipino Citizens. it would be outrageous to think of a scenario where a
foundling or a child would be able to do a positive act to make himself or herself a
Filipino Citizen.
Lastly, I think it is with great humanitarian consideration that the Justices elected
to vote in favor of classifying foundlings as Natural Born citizens because if they were
not to classify them as such there would be a lot of people who would be discriminated
or looked down upon. This case again proves that Law is the great equalizer of
mankind.