Edcel Castelar Lagman Sr. (Tagalog pronunciation:[ˈʔedsɛl], born May 1, 1942) is a Filipinohuman rights lawyer and politician from the province of Albay. He was elected as a member of the House in 1987 to 1998 and 2004 to 2013 and 2016 up to the present. He served as Minority Floor Leader of the House of Representatives of the Philippines until 2012, when he resigned the office. Lagman is one of the key Liberal Party figures in the House of Representatives, having supported the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act (which he principally authored), the SOGIE Equality Bill, the Free Tertiary Education Act, the Anti-Dynasty Bill, and the Freedom of Information Bill. He is also the principal author of the Divorce Bill, the Human Rights Defenders Bill, the Prevention of Teenage Pregnancy Bill, and the Anti-Child Marriage Bill.
Lagman was instrumental to the abolition of the death penalty in the Philippines in 2006 and continues to oppose proposals to reinstate capital punishment in the country. Lagman is also the principal author of a triumvirate of human rights laws, namely the Anti-Torture Act of 2009 (R.A. 9745), the Anti-Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance Act of 2012 (R.A. 10353), and the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act of 2013 (R.A. 10368).
Early life and education
Lagman was born on May 1, 1942, in Malinao, Albay to Pedro Eduardo Lagman Jr. (1919–2006) and Cecilia Castelar (1920–2012).[1]
Lagman was previously a member of Lakas-CMD, of which he is the party president from 2011 to 2012,[3][4] He is now a member of the Liberal Party, of which he is the party president since 2022,[5] and is one of the leading opposition members of the House of Representatives.
Controversy
On June 5, 2017, Lagman criticized the bill declaring martial law because of the Siege of Marawi. The petition[a] states that:
The declaration of martial law has no sufficient factual basis because there is no rebellion or invasion in Marawi City or in any part of Mindanao. It argues that acts of terrorism in Mindanao do not constitute rebellion since there is no proof that its purpose is to remove Mindanao or any part thereof from allegiance to the Philippines, its laws, or its territory.[6]
In May 2024, Senate President Tito Sotto claimed that the Absolute Divorce bill, which Lagman authored was "lost". The bill itself was accepted by the Philippine House of Representatives, considering the acceptance, Lagman claimed that Sotto was "lost". “I don’t think he knows how to count. It’s as if he was not Senate president,” Lagman said. The bill was also criticized by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, Fr. Jerome Secillano stated that “It’s not surprising anymore. The Lower House always passed it in previous Congress. We already have existing legal remedies to couple separation and yet Congress decided to add more”.[7]
Lagman was married to Maria Cielo Lagman (née Burce) (1944–2017), Tabaco's first elected woman City Mayor and has seven children: Krisel, Edcel Greco, Larah, Mahar, Mark, Karina and Andre. Edcel Greco is the incumbent Governor of Albay.[8]
Notes
^The petition is called the "Lagman Petition", but multiple representatives are included in the petition.