NOTE TO ALL READERS

Starting September 8, 2012, anonymous comments -- whether for or against the RH bill -- will no longer be permitted on this blog.

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

More on Congressman Aumentado's opposition to the RH bill

From the Sunday (June 24, 2012) edition of The Bohol Standard Online:


By: JUNE S. BLANCO

UNCONSTITUTIONAL, redundant, unnecessary and just enriches multinationals.

Thus Rep. Erico Aumentado (2nd District, Bohol) describes the Reproductive Health (RH) Bill.

Aumentado is among the speakers of the anti-RH Bill rally slated in the Diocese of Talibon under Bishop Christian Vicente Noel. All towns within the diocese will be sending delegations to the event – up to Jagna to the east, Tubigon to the west and Carmen in the interior.

Pro-Life Philippines: 500 million Pesos wasted on condoms and pills.

For more on the background to this article, see That's a whole lot of money!

From the website of Pro-Life Philippines:

RH Bill Education






Section 10, Family Planning Supplies as Essential Medicines

¨      Products and supplies for modern family planning methods shall be part of the National Drug Formulary and the same shall be included in the regular purchase of essential medicines and supplies of all national and local hospitals and other government health units.

The World Health Organization defines essential medicines as “those that satisfy the priority health care needs of the population.” In short, what makes medicines classified as essential is that the population needs it in order to be healthy.

Under this section, however, products and supplies like condoms and pills are to be considered essential medicines and are to be part of the National Drug Formulary. This means that your tax goes to the purchase of someone else’s condom, and your hard-earned money goes to the immoral lifestyle of certain people. If condoms and pills are to be classified as essential medicines, it is necessary to ask the question: what illness do they treat?





http://business.inquirer.net/65955/doh-to-distribute-p500m-worth-of-pills-condoms

So the government has money to improve maternal health after all, but it spends it on condoms and pills! Shame! RH proponents even have the guts to evoke memories of women who have died because of complications in pregnancy – and yet here they are spending this money on condoms.



The way to prevent maternal deaths is not to prevent pregnancy! 500 million can be spent on better things: to invest on training more medical professionals and midwives, modernize hospitals and birthing centers, to provide vitamins for pregnant women, etc.

500 million Pesos wasted on condoms and pills. And we haven’t even passed the RH bill yet. If anything, this is a foretaste of what is to come if they do pass the RH bill.


Friday, June 22, 2012

Why three Boholano congressmen are against the RH bill

(Originally published on this blog on June 21, 2012 at 3:30 AM. Some newer posts below):

From the Bohol Chronicle article Church mounts rally vs. RH Bill with solons' support (the emphases are mine):



Aumentado and 3rd district congressman Arthur Yap were present during the rally. 


In his speech, Aumentado argued that the highly controversial RH Bill is clearly unconstitutional. He added that the experts of the constitution assured that life begins at fertilization, not implantation as the RH Bill proponents would say.

     

"The law guarantees protection of all persons, including the unborn", Aumentado stressed out. 


For his part, Yap warned that if made into law, the RH BILL will take money away from his medical and scholarship programs. 


The anti-RH Bill rally in Blessed Trinity Cathedral was the first venue where Yap made a public pronouncement against the RH Bill. 


Among specific provisions in the RH Bill Yap is critical of is the appropriation on the supplies which is to be taken from the congressmen's Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) once it is enacted into law. 


Yap cited the provision mandating that the congressman's PDAF will be the source of fund for the contraceptives which will then be classified as essential medicine, the free access and distribution of family planning supplies and commodities, as well as the fact that the Mobile Health Care Service van that will distribute these contraceptives and other family planning literature and supplies. 


"That will be disastrous, since half of the population in third district are in class E," according to Yap. 


Presently, thousands are receiving medical assistance, scholarships, farm-to-market roads, livelihood funds, accident and life insurance cards under the Congressman's HEART program. 


If the RH Bill is passed into law, these benefits will be drastically reduced since funds will now be used to fund family planning programs. 


Yap also cited the Filipino nation's common ideals regarding life, protection for the family, mothers and the unborn, as enshrined in the Philippine Constitution. 


Yap reminded the people that these beliefs are shared by all Filipinos and that these beliefs clearly show Filipinos are preferentially pro-life. 


First district congressman Rene Relampagos was not present during the rally. However, in a text message he sent to Uy, Relampagos said that he is with the Church's stand in opposing the RH Bill. In fact, Uy, with the consent of Relampagos, told the crowd that the first district solon is against the RH Bill. It maybe noted that Rep. Relampagos, who is a former seminarian, was the first Bohol solon to openly object the RH Bill.


Thursday, June 21, 2012

For the record: UP for Life's statement versus the RH bill

(Originally published on May 7, 2012):


UP4L Statement

For the record: NCR Youth Ministry Statement Against the RH Bill

NCR Youth Ministry Statement Against RH Bill

For the record: Students Choose Life statement versus the RH bill

Originally published on May 7, 2012Students Choose Life Stand on the Rh Bill

For the record: Catholic youth from Iloilo versus the RH bill

(Published May 4, 2012 but one in spirit with the statements published on May 7, 2012 by pro-life youth groups):


RH BILL STATEMENT of the Vicariate of St. Peter-Archdiocese of Jaro

The sweet spot


Published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer (mirabile visu!)

THINKING GLOBAL
By: Dr. Bernardo M. Villegas
June 15th, 2012


Thanks to Governor Amando Tetangco of the Central Bank, the man in the street has now been enlightened about a phrase that used to be limited to specialists in demographics and economic development. Referring to a “sweet spot” that the Philippine population is entering in the next 10 to 20 years, he expressed optimism about the prospects of higher growth for the Philippine economy because of the advantages of a young population both from the standpoints of abundant manpower supply and a large domestic market for goods and services. This sweet spot is made possible by what demographers call the demographic dividend, which is the benefit conferred on a country by a young labor force that is still growing faster than the retired force and the dependent children (those below 15 years of age).  This phrase was coined by Harvard demographer David Bloom. It was first applied to the favorable circumstances faced by such countries as Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea in the second half of the last century when these “tiger economies” grew at record levels of 10 to 12 percent for more than 20 years, catapulting their respective economies to First World status in just one generation.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Diocese of Talibon's Position Paper versus the RH Bill


From the blog of Fr. Abet Uy comes the following position paper, published by the Diocese of Talibon earlier this month:

Position Paper of the Diocese of Talibon Concerning the RH Bill (English Version)


We honor God. We respect human life. We value our family. We love our children. These are the main reasons why we, the People of God in the Diocese of Talibon, strongly oppose the passage of the Reproductive Health Bill.

We believe that the RH Bill is not in consonance with the will of God. The sacrament of marriage, authored by God, has two inseparable meanings, namely: the unitive – which serves the good of spouses; and the procreative – which serves the good of the human race. These noble purposes of marriage are being undermined by the RH Bill when it promotes artificial contraception, an act which holds couples from giving themselves fully to each other and which aims to close the possibility of conceiving a new human life.

We believe that the RH Bill lacks respect for life. Human life is most sacred because it is made in the image and likeness of God. We need to protect and care for it from the moment of conception up to its natural death. The RH Bill claims to be for reproductive health. However, by promoting artificial contraception, it can be dangerous not only to the health, but even to the life, of unborn babies. It can also be harmful to the physical and spiritual well-being of men and women.

We believe that the RH Bill does not truly care for the family. The family is called the “Domestic Church” because it is here that the love of God and neighbor can be taught and put into practice. By encouraging artificial contraception, the RH Bill puts the family in a precarious situation. Studies have shown that countries which promote artificial contraception consequently have higher incidence of adultery, divorce, premarital sex, teenage pregnancy and abortion.

We believe that the RH Bill has little love for children. Children are gifts from God. We treasure them because they give meaning to our Christian lives and inspire parents to work hard. The RH Bill considers children as hindrance to development. It presumes that the Philippines would be better off if there are fewer mouths to feed and fewer children to educate and to care for. It turns a blind eye on the fact that children can be our great assets or treasure.

Instead of supporting the RH Bill, we humbly ask our countrymen, our leaders and lawmakers to:

1) Promote and practice Natural Family Planning (NFP). NFP is part of God's wise design for human sexuality. It is free, highly effective and has no side effects. Importantly, it encourages mutual respect, shared responsibility, self-discipline and self-control, which are essential values for a permanent and happy marriage.

2) Defend the right to life of the unborn child. The baby inside the womb is the most powerless of all God's children. We need to secure its well-being by putting a strict ban on abortifacient contraceptives and a better enforcement of the law against abortion.

3) Use government resources for poverty alleviation, not for contraception. Most of the coffers of the government come from the hard-earned money of its people, majority of which are Catholics. It is therefore proper to use such funds for life-giving projects that benefit the people, not those things which offend or harm them.

4) Continue the hard fight against corruption, which is the main cause of our people's poverty and misery. Bring thieves to jail and oblige them to return stolen money to the government.

And so, we join the genuine voice of the Filipino nation as we say, “No to the RH Bill, Yes to God's will.”

RH Bill: Contrary to the Constitution?


Undue interference 
By Jose C. Sison 
June 18, 2012 

One of the topics reportedly taken up in the last “monumental” one on one meeting between PNoy and US President Obama at the Oval Office was the passage of the RH bill by the Philippine legislature. So its proponents and supporters are once more making a lot of noise about the eventual approval of the bill possibly within this year. On the contrary however, precisely because of such meeting where Obama got Aquino’s assurance to push for the passage of the bill, there is more reason now that the bill should be junked.

That's a whole lot of money!


From CBCP News / CBCP for Life:


MANILA, June 19, 2012— The government’s allocation of P500 million for birth control supplies supposedly to reduce maternal and child deaths is a waste of taxpayer’s money, a Catholic Church official said.

Fr. Melvin Castro, executive secretary of the CBCP’s Commission on Family and Life said that if the Department of Health really wants to reduce the problem, adequate health care services for pregnant mothers and unborn children is needed.

“They should use that P500 million in improving medical facilities and services instead of wasting that hefty amount on contraceptives,” Castro said.

DOH Secretary Enrique Ona yesterday announced that they would be allocating P500 million for family planning commodities and supplies in community health centers.

The move, he said, is in line with the government’s doubling of efforts to reducing maternal and child deaths in the country as sought by the Millennium Development Goal (MDG).

However, Castro said it is unfortunate that the DOH continues to give “false justifications” in promoting the widespread use of condoms and other artificial family planning methods.

“The contraceptives, by its nature, are population control. So let’s not invoke maternal deaths because they are using the women just to push population control,” he said.

Castro also believes that Filipinos will not support the government’s desire to promote the use of contraceptives in the country.

“I trust our people. Even if they give it free, Filipinos with well-formed conscience will not accept it… their morality will not go down,” he said. [CBCPNews]

An alien bill?


Note: the audio recording of the radio interview on which this article is based can be accessed here: Kape, Balita at Iba pa – May 04, 2012 (Friday)

From CBCP for Life: 


MANILA, June 14, 2012—Some sectors may praise what they regard as the merits of the Reproductive Health (RH) bill, but another pro-lifer from a nation that is grappling with the consequences of institutionalized contraception, comprehensive sex education and abortion has pointed out that the measure is alien to a culture that is immensely fond of children, such as that of Filipinos.

“The RH bill is not in favor of the Filipino people. It’s a concept that is foreign to the Filipino culture that is very welcoming of children, and loving of children, “said Brian Caulfield, communications specialist at the Knights of Columbus (KC) and vice postulator for the cause for canonization of KC founder Father Michael McGivney.

In an interview over online radio program Kape, Balita at Iba Pa, Caulfield explained that  the bill will have adverse effects especially on a promising developing nation such as the Philippines, pinpointing provisions that are contrary to Filipino values.

“The RH bill may not, like China, limit you but the force of law can be very persuasive in saying that you should limit your family to a number of children, and that there are sanctions if you speak out against this kind of bill. And there’s sex education that will indoctrinate children at a young age to this anti-life mindset,” he stressed.

“I think what the Knights would like to do is have an educational initiative. This is what we really do. We don’t get involved directly in politics—that’s not in our bylaws.  As Knights we are involved in education efforts and we are involved in getting the word out. We are involved in mobilizing the vote.”

Filipinos must be educated about the dangers of the RH bill, he said. Citing the example of the Knights of Columbus as an organization, Caulfield said, “We involve ourselves in things of education about issues and about citizen and civic issues where we support the democratic process. I think it is important that all Knights become educated about this [RH Bill] issue, that they talk about it within their families, that they spread the word in their parishes, that politely and with charity they may engage those who may disagree.”

“This is how democracy is pushed forward,” he continued, “and Filipinos really live in a very vibrant culture that discusses these things and hopefully comes to an understanding of the issue really that the RH bill is not in favor of the Filipino people.”

Caulfield in a Catholic News Agency article titled ‘A bill to nowhere’ in May wrote an extensive view of the bill in parallel of the controversial US Health and Human Services (HHS) mandate, which also coerces religious institutions to provide birth  control services even if contrary to their moral convictions. (CBCP for Life)

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Will the RH bill become an obstacle to peace with the Moros?

From CBCP for Life:


MANILA, June 14, 2012–The chairman of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) peace panel Mohagher Iqbal in a multi-stakeholders forum on the Government of the Philippines (GPH)-MILF peace talks today stressed that a population control measure, such as the Reproductive Health (RH) bill, is a deterrent to peace.

Iqbal, when asked if the bill hampers the peace process, said, “Oo, kung ang susundin sa kanila, yung proseso nila, talagang magkakaroon ng problema (Yes if we follow their principle [birth control], their process will really result in problems).” First of all, we don’t believe in that philosophy na mag-control. There are many ways of managing population, means that are acceptable to our religion.”

“The very product for the health policy of the government is not really applicable to us because we have our own way of addressing population,” he continued.

“It is not about control. We just manage because we believe that God has provided enough resources for everyone to enjoy and be the source of their living. So we don’t believe in birth control.”

In a group statement given at a pro-life rally last year, Alim Acmad Basher, President of the Imams’ League of the Philippines, cited the Koran—particularly Sura 17:31 which says, “Kill not your children for fear of want. We shall provide sustenance for them as well as for you. Verily the killing of them is a great sin.”

The Senate closed the period of interpellation early this month on the Senate version of RH bill or SB 2865, but one of the measure’s staunch opponents, Sen. Vicente Sotto III, will be delivering his turno en contra (turn to object).

Iqbal reiterated that the present content of the measure is objectionable, particularly on the use of artificial methods of birth control. “As presented we are not in favor of that bill,” he said in the vernacular. (CBCP for Life)

****

For the record, the following is a video of the statement made by Alim Acmad Basher last year:


Thursday, June 7, 2012

Catholics 4 RH and the Abortion Lobby

This is the first post of the brand-new Filipino Catholic apologetics blog, "Pinoy Templars":

C4RH: Taking a page (and money) from the abortion lobby 
Elisa Sangalang
June 6, 2012

They call themselves Catholics, but they readily admit that their pro-contraception positions don’t agree with the Magisterium. With help from a few dissenting clergy, they are building their own teaching authority, insisting at the same time on the authenticity of their Catholic faith. They organize and hold rallies and protests. They align themselves publicly and privately with known liberal politicians, atheists, agnostics, church/religion haters, ultra-feminists and the LGBT crowd. They rely heavily on funding from population controllers and other anti-life sources like Planned Parenthood and the Ford, Packard and Hewlett Foundations. They bash the bishops and the Pope every chance they get, and habitually twist and manipulate anything coming out of the Vatican. 

This is Catholics for RH (C4RH), the mish-mash of academics, lapsed and nominal Catholics, and kibitzers out to undermine the official Church position on the controversial Reproductive Health (RH) bill. But that’s not the story. Looking a bit beyond the local group that has made itself a champion for the RH bill, you'll find that these “Catholics in name only” learned these strategies from a well-funded foreign mentor, and learned them well. 

Their mentor, with whom C4RH's leaders have enjoyed a rather chummy relationship for a while now, is none other than the dissident US pro-abortion group Catholics for Choice. 

The testimony of a former contraceptive pill user

From the "Letters to the Editor" section of the Philippine Daily Inquirer:

How contraceptive methods turn women into liars 
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Monday, June 4th,

The Mother’s Day editorial (“For mothers and their kids,” Inquirer, 5/13/12), using a “CNN hero” to call for the swift passage of the Reproductive Health bill, must have been written under a certain spell. Our Magna Carta for Women, which just needs to be implemented, more than covers all our needs. 

Turning his back on an election promise that he would “not promote” contraceptives, the only new thing in President Aquino’s RH bill is a P3 billion yearly budget for contraceptives—found by the most reliable science to be harmful.

I always felt sick every time I used the pill. Now I know why. The 2010 study of the prestigious Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention concluded that “Current use of oral contraceptives carries an excess risk of breast cancer” and that “Previous studies convincingly showed an increase in risk of breast cancer associated with current or recent use of oral contraceptives from the 1960s to 1980s.” 

We also have three separate meta-analyses: (1) the Stroke Journal—Pill confers “risk of first ischemic stroke”; (2) The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism of 2005—“current use of low-dose OCs significantly increases the risk of both cardiac and vascular arterial events”; and (3) Archives of Family Medicine—the Pill works after fertilization; and thus aborts a 100-cell embryonic human. 

Plus many other serious studies showing that contraception increases promiscuity, leading to more AIDS cases, more single mothers, more fatherless children, more female poverty. 

As the Philippine Medical Association itself said:  Contraception turns women into liars. “I give myself to you entirely,” I tell my husband, “but I don’t give you a key part of me: my fertility!” 

I tell you: when my husband was using a condom, I could feel na ginagamit niya lang ako. I’ve told him so; and he has been so good as to change his behavior. 

Is the Inquirer really pro-women? Or has the Inquirer just been victimized and fallen under the spell of the materialistic, animalistic, amoral and atheistic brainwashing of the powerful media of the degenerate West? 

—YVONNE CHAN-DE LOS REYES