No birth certificate: A headache

In this day and age, it's almost unimaginable that someone doesn't have a birth certificate. But I wouldn't be surprised if I was told that there are many people, especially those who live in remote areas of our country, without that piece of document.

What does a birth certificate show? It's proof of one's existence, for one, and identity, for another. While we may know who are parents are because we live with them, it's that piece of paper that serves as legal evidence that our mother and father are these people, who have acknowledged our coming into this world.

It indicates when we were born, and where, and our citizenship, information that become vital as we grow older and into adulthood when we set out into the world on our own.

Unlike in the past when the name of a child's father - if the parents are unmarried - may not appear in the birth certificate, laws have been amended to allow this information to be reflected now.

Even in cases where a child is adopted, unless it was a homebirth and no midwife or other healthcare professional was present to report the birth, a hospital or clinic is duty-bound to fill out a birth certificate form attesting to an infant's being born in the facility that was attended to by the staff.

Not very important

Unfortunately, decades ago a birth certificate didn't carry the weight it does today. Kids could enroll in schools without it, you could even apply for a passport or any other government-issued identification card without the document. (Birth certificates of old were not on some durable paper and would often end up worn and fragile after many years of safe-keeping)

In fact, many people travelled from the provinces to the big cities without any form of identification on them, a paid-for ticket being the only requirement to board a bus, plane or boat and settle in some new place.

Which is not the case today. A birth certificate, issued by the Philippine Statistics Office and printed on security paper, is among the primary documents required when applying for anything - a social security number, a passport, driver's license, to get clearance from the National Bureau of Investigation, and whatever government-issued identification card that will then be necessary when transacting for most official business.

It's even demanded in schools when a child enrolls for the first time, whether in public and private educational institutions.

While there are certain agencies that will accept a barangay (village) certification that a child is among the children of a parent or parents who live in the area, in lieu of a birth certificate, these are very few and far between.

Birth never registered

So, what happens when you're 60 years old, and without any form of identification card, and no birth certificate? How can you avail of benefits for senior citizens, or even register to be a voter?

A lost birth certificate isn't even a problem nowadays, as long as your birth was actually registered in the first place or even later, at the local civil registry of your province or hometown. And if this has been transmitted to the PSA, all it takes is filling up a form, paying a fee and you can always secure a new copy.

But there must be a record of your birth.

Unfortunately, there are cases when the civil registry office in provinces would burn down and all the records kept there are gutted so if your birth certificate, that has not be sent to PSA, is among those, then poof! You will need to have it reconstructed, which takes time, effort, and money.

But what if there was no birth certificate to begin with? As in the birth was never registered at all because you were born at home and the midwife was elderly, who didn't think to have this form accomplished and submitted to the municipal hall or the civil registry office.

Or what if both the parents died before any paperwork was accomplished, and the child ended up cared for by other people, who also didn't think to mind these things because it was unimportant at that time?

A big headache

This is the case of our caretaker. She's now 60, and as a senior citizen, can apply for a senior citizen card that 1) is recognized as a primary identification card; and 2) can serve as a discount card for medication, groceries, hospitalization, dining and takeout purchases, among other things.

But because she has no birth certificate, whether with her or at the PSA, then she doesn't enjoy all these benefits and privileges.

She's facing a host of problems all because her birth was never registered. For starters, her birthplace is way down south of the country, and since moving to another region, prior to coming to us, has not had any contact with her foster family. Neither does she remember any of her siblings or relatives from there.

Further compounding the problem is her using the family name of her foster parents without any legal basis! She had better be able to secure a birth certificate bearing that name because it is what her grown children have been using in all their legal documents.

There are people willing to help her sort things out, and finally get a birth certificate. How they're actually going to pull it off is a mystery to me, but I'm all for whatever it takes, hopefully without burning a hole in their pocket.

With the pandemic, however, and the COVID situation in their area still quite worrisome, it's difficult to go around and get things done for now.

I'm not sure if registering new births in this day and age remains a problem, particularly in areas so far away from main towns. Hopefully, people are now more aware about the importance of completing this document the soonest possible time to avoid problems in the future.

A birth certificate is a child's proof of identity. It is a vital piece of paper. It is evidence of a person's existence. And if the family or parents of a newborn are challenged (don't know how to read or write, don't know what to do, have limited to no resources) hopefully someone in the know where they live, and with the means, can guide them. It will save a lot of headache and hardship in the long-run.

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