UK official backs Reproductive Health Bill

Because the global financial crisis is making it hard for governments to improve standards of living, the importance of the Reproductive Health bill that is pending before the Philippine Congress should not be ignored, a United Kingdom official said.

According to Mark Pritchard, the chairman of the Philippine Committee in the UK Parliament, he recognizes the stand of the local Catholic Church that having a small family is not the key to fighting poverty, but that the Philippines’ rapid population growth has made it more difficult for the government to improve or even maintain the living standards of Filipinos.

The Philippines is the 12th most populous nation in the world with an estimated 88.7 million people. Its fertility rate is 3.05 percent, placing it at the upper bracket of 206 countries. There are approximately four babies born every minute and the country’s population is expected to hit an alarming 160 million by 2038.

The Reproductive Health and Population Development Act of 2008, which Rep. Edcel Lagman of Albay and five lawmakers authored, seeks “to promote respect for life, informed choice, birth spacing and responsible parenthood in accordance with internationally recognized human rights standards thru guaranteeing universal access to medically-safe, legal and quality reproductive health-care services and relevant information.”

“The bill just encourages a responsible family life through improved sex education in schools and universities and provide universal access to contraceptives,” Pritchard said.

He added hat while the church condemns abortion, the main issue here is providing free will and choice to couples.

Various Catholic Church groups, including the influential Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), view the Reproductive Health bill as pro-abortion and a measure that would entice unmarried couples to have sex, because of the bill’s provision that classifies hormonal contraceptives, intrauterine devices, injectables and other allied reproductive health products as essential medicines. The bill would make available all these contraceptives to all national and local hospitals and other government health units.

The country’s population growth, according to Pritchard, has reduced standards of living that would make the country more reliant on food imports.

“Progress cannot be based solely on a country’s export or gross domestic product, or even decreased budget deficits. Authorities should have social and economic reforms that will empower the people with the right skill set that will eliminate them from poverty,” he pointed out.

Pritchard said that better access to quality education would put the debate on the population control bill to rest.

During an international conference on population, President Gloria Arroyo had cited pillars of population and development: parenthood, informed choice and birth spacing. But Mrs. Arroyo has yet to issue an official position on the controversial bill.


Author: Llanesca T. Panti
Source: Manila Times (Philippines)
Friday, December 05, 2008