The Rule of Jus Soli in the Philippines
![handle is hein.journals/philplj20 and id is 376 raw text is: The Rule Of Jus Soli In The
Philippines.
By FELICISIMO SAN Luis
J US Soli and Jus Sanguinis
are the two ways by which
citizenship is generally ac-
quired. By the doctrine of jus
soli, a person acquires the citizen-
ship of the country where he is
born irrespective of the citizenship
of his parents. By the doctrine of
jrxs sanguinis, on the other hand,
a person acquires the citizenship
of his parents irrespective of the
place of his birth. Are both these
rules observed and followed in the
Philippines?
Article IV. Section 1 of the
Philippine Constitution provides:
The following are citizens of the
Philippines: (1) Those whose
fathers are citizens of the Philip-
pines; (2) Those whose mothers
are citizens of the Philippines and
upon reaching the age of major-
ity, elect Philippine citizenship.
Under this provision of the
Constitution, it is quite clear that
only the doctrine of ]us sanguinis
is followed. The Constitutional
Convention did not deem wise to
adopt the doctrine of jus soli as
aliens, such as Chinese, Japanese
and Europeans do not necessarily
imbibe Filipino ideals nor appre-
ciate Filipino institutions by the
mere accident of their being born
in the land. They should not,
therefore, be made citizens of the
Philippines when their loyalty
may have still remained in the
country of their parents. The dis-
integration of a state is bound to
occur with perilous rapidity when
its citizenry is saturated with un-
absorbed elements (Sinco, Phil.
Gov't. and Political Law, p. 344,
5th edition).
Before the adoption, however,
of the Constitution, was the doc-
trine of jus soll recognized in the
Philippines? The determination
of this question is of particular
importance in view of the fact that
the citizenship status of thousands
of persons born in the Philippines
of foreign parents is involved.
Should these persons be considered
citizens of the Philippines by the
mere fact of their birth in the Is-
lands and consequently entitle
them to the right to hold public
office, the right to be protected by
thq state (Te kin Guk v. Alda-
nese, G. R. No. 44244, 1936),
the right to acquire and hold agri-
cultural lands, own and operate
public utilities, lease mining terri-
tories and enjoy all other rights
secured and granted exclusively to
Filipino citizens by the Philippine
Constitution? In answering this
question, we will divide the pe-
riod prior to the adoption of the
constitution into two: (1) during
the Spanish regime, and (2) dur-
ing the American regime.
During the Spanish Regime
Before the cession of the Phil-
ippines by Spain to the United
States, the term citizenship was
unknown in this country. All the
inhabitants of the islands were
considered subjects of Spain (Yu
Ching Po. v. Collector of Cus-
toms, G. R. No. 46795, Oct. 6,
1936). Before the enforcement
of the Civil Code in 1889, Chil-
dren of foreigners and the children
of a foreigner and a Spanish mo-
ther born in the Spanish territory,
were foreigners as long as they did](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/philplj20&div=61&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
What Is HeinOnline?
Contact us for annual subscription options:
Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?
profiles profiles most
The Rule of Jus Soli in the Philippines
Contact us for annual subscription options:
Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?
profiles profiles most