Before their arrest, Pagente had defended the performance as "art" and argued "drag is not a crime." Westerberg wrote on Instagram on Thursday, accompanied by the hashtag #FreePuraLukaVega and with bank accounts to fund Pagente's bail, which is set at P72,000. "This isn't right in the eyes of God Human Rights Watch Senior Researcher Carlos Conde said Pagente's arrest was "an outrage." Father Jerome Secillano, of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, has described Pagente's performance as "blasphemous" and "really disrespectful." Apart from his arrest, Pagente was also declared persona non grata in 17 localities and cities, including the city of Manila, where he lives.

Source: Manila Times October 05, 2023 11:26 UTC