Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago on Love and Marriage
5 July 2011

Last 19th of June, Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago renewed her wedding vows at the Manila Cathedral. To symbolize their 40 years of marriage to former Interior Undersecretary Narciso “Jun” Santiago, she wore a ruby colored gown designed by Inno Sotto.

Though she refused to kiss her husband in public claiming it was “too sappy for my age”, she shared her thoughts on love and marriage.

Asked why they wanted to renew their vows, she answered:

"That is a tradition in our country. Catholic couples are supposed to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary, and then the 40th because they're still young enough to walk down the aisle, and then their 50th. But sometimes, many of them are already suffering from disabilities."

She also shared that she wanted to experience marching down the aisle with her 3 granddaughters, her reason in wanting to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary.

Asked about their secret to a successful marriage, she said:

"We never see each other in my house. That's the secret. Sometimes, I'm surprised that I'm married to someone so good-looking because I hardly ever see him."

Senator Santiago shared that they give each other autonomy, freedom, space. That freedom, of course, is given with the belief that they'll both be loyal with their marriage vows. To her, " marriage is an inviolable social institution as our Civil Code provides."

Her simple advice to young couples?

"Be kind to each other."

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Kasal.com thanks the following sources for this article:

ABS-CBN. Miriam on love, marriage and divorce (Posted on 20 June 2011) Retrieved on 3 July 2011 from http://ph.news.yahoo.com/miriam-love-marriage-divorce-120841951.html