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Draft:Amadea Angela Aquino

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(Amadea) Angela Aquino
BornOctober 9, 1978
EducationSt.Scholastica's College (High school)

De La Salle University in Manila (BA in Business and Marketing)

New York Real Estate Institute (Real Estate Development)
OrganizationEqual Rights for Children
Political partyDemocratic
Websitehttps://www.equalrightsforchildren.org

Amadea Angela Aquino (aka Angela Aquino - born October 9, 1978), is an Asian American human rights advocate based in New York City. She is the founder of Equal Rights for Children,[1] a non-profit organization, advocating for the rights of marginalized children, such as those born out of wedlock, recruited into terrorism and those with undocumented status.[1]

Aquino was the petitioner of a big landmark case Aquino vs Aquino GR 208912.[2] The Philippine Supreme Court ruled unanimously in her favor, with the decision penned by Supreme Court Justice Marvic Leonen.[2] This ruling struck down a 300-year-old Iron Curtain Rule,[3] setting forth a new legal doctrine allowing children born to unmarried parents to obtain an inheritance through their grandparents. [4] This redefines succession laws for children born out of wedlock. [5]

Aquino is a candidate for the 2025 Public Advocate elections in New York City.

Early life and education

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Aquino was born on October 9, 1978, the only daughter of Susan Kuan, a Chinese Immigrant, and Arturo Cabaguio Aquino, a Spanish-Filipino real estate developer.[6]

Aquino attended St. Scholastica's College, Manila, a private high school. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Business and Marketing from De La Salle University in Manila, Philippines. [7] Aquino also studied Real estate development at the New York Real Estate Institute] in Manhattan.[8]

Landmark Case: Aquino vs Aquino GR 208912 [2]

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Aquino’s father passed away before marrying her mother, resulting in her being classified as an illegitimate child.[6] Despite this, her grandfather, Miguel Aquino, recognized her as his own and provided for her. However, upon her grandfather's death, she was denied her inheritance due to the Philippine legal system, which restricted inheritance rights for illegitimate children. [5]

When Aquino first petitioned her case, the Office of the Solicitor (OSG) Solicitor General Jose Calida claimed that without her father's will or other legal documents, she was barred from establishing her filiation. [9] Aquino responded by arguing that it was "unreasonable, illogical, and even absurd" to demand a document signed by her deceased father, stating a "dead man cannot sign a document to prove the filiation of his child."[9]

Aquino pursued her rights through a nearly two-decade legal battle. In the landmark case Aquino vs. Aquino (GR 313149), she ultimately prevailed with a unanimous 15-0 decision by the Philippine Supreme Court, authored by Justice Marivic Leonen, a progressive jurist and Columbia University alumnus.[10] The 47-page ruling redefined succession laws, allowing illegitimate children to inherit from their grandparents, and struck down the 300-year-old Iron Curtain Rule (Article 992). [11]

Equal Rights for Children [1]

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Aquino launched the non-profit organization Equal Rights for Children in December 2021 to raise awareness for children's rights. Equal Rights for Children follows the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)[12]. The organization focuses on raising awareness for marginalized groups, such as child soldiers and undocumented children.[1]

Angela Aquino at Couture Fashion Week, an fashion event for Equal Rights for Children

The platform has gained attention and support from various industries, including fashion, film, and the arts, to raise awareness and promote solutions for these global issues. This includes support from Manny Pacquiao, who sponsored the Couture Fashion Week[13] at New York Fashion Week for the organization.[14]

Film

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Aquino has experience in the film industry. She is currently collaborating with Mandala Productions[15] on Chiaroscuro (an Italian word that means "light-dark"), a fictional memoir dedicated to her father that advocates for children recruited for war. [16]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Equal Rights for Children".
  2. ^ a b c "Supreme Court E-Library".
  3. ^ "SC Revisits 'Iron Curtain Rule' in Succession Law, Upholds Best Interest of the Child - Supreme Court of the Philippines".
  4. ^ "Case Digest (G.R. No. 208912)". December 6, 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Maggie Aquino SC Petition Illegitimate Children". 17 September 2019.
  6. ^ a b "Amadea Angela K. Aquino, Petitioner, vs. Rodolfo C. Aquino and Abbulah C. Aquino, Respondents". December 7, 2021.
  7. ^ "Aquino vs Aquino Memorandum" (PDF). May 29, 2015.
  8. ^ "New York Real Estate institute".
  9. ^ a b "Supreme Court tackles inheritance rights of illegitimate children". 12 August 2019.
  10. ^ "Philippine Supreme Court rules that children born out of wedlock can also inherit".
  11. ^ "Landmark decision SC revisits Iron Curtain Rule Inheritance nonmarital children". The Philippine STAR.
  12. ^ "Angela Aquino's message to the ambassadors of the United Nations". 17 July 2023.
  13. ^ "Couture Fashion Week New York-New York Fashion Week". Couture Fashion Week.
  14. ^ "Couture Fashion Week Partners With Equal Rights For Children To Promote Legitimacy And Sustainable Development" (Press release).
  15. ^ "Chiaroscuro".
  16. ^ "Mandala Productions".