Quite apart from the reason (to in theory protect Filipinos when they are in another country) if a western country had a similar process they would be taken to the court of human rights. If my country did anything to stop me marrying the person I choose or anything to prevent me from leaving my country to live with her I would raise the roof.
The problem here seems to be that many Filipinos have not have sufficient experience of being a democracy, i.e. living in a place where they have basic human rights and can demand to know where any person in authority, who wants to ask them anything, get the right, in law, to do so.
I am not criticising how things are done in Phil just that I do not believe any other government in the civilised world would even try to
get away with what they do get away with.
