Legion of Mary

Senatus of Northern Philippines

No. 53 Dangay St. Project 7, Quezon City

POSITION PAPER
The Legion of Mary, Senatus of Northern Philippines is in solidarity with the Council of the Laity of the Philippines (Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas) in manifesting its vehement objection to House Bill No. 4244, otherwise known as the Reproductive Health Bill (or the RH Bill), for the following reasons, to wit:

1. The RH Bill tacitly approves the use of contraceptives leading to abortion in the dispensation of health care services which in reality gradually destroys the health of women, particularly those of childbearing age. 2. By classifying contraceptives as essential medicines, hence recommending them to be purchased and distributed by all national and local hospitals, and all other government health units, the RH Bill considers pregnancy a disease, justifying the use of public funds. Yet, it appears to be blind to the scientific finding of the World Health Organization that certain abortifacients are carcinogenic and therefore hazardous to womens health. 3. The RH Bill, in providing for the mandatory education of Grade 5 students on sexuality and family planning, unnecessarily exposes children to a delicate subject matter at a very early age, hence violative of the constitutional right of parents to raise their children pursuant to their moral and religious tradition. 4. While the RH Bill postulates that the rationale behind the measure is to curb unbridled population growth and reduce national poverty level, the reality is: our country is

impoverished and apparently is condemned to be poor forever due to the grossly uneven distribution of wealth and endemic corruption in high places. To quote His Excellency President Benigno C. Aquino in one of his campaign speeches: Kung Walang Corrupt, Walang Mahirap. 5. The RH Bill violates the right of health workers to decide according to their conscience by requiring them to participate in certain birth control procedures that lead to abortion, thus compelling them to be accomplices of an act that is contrary to their beliefs.

Considering that the Republic of the Philippines has been reputed to be 90 to 95 percent Christians, we believe it would be imprudent to pass a law that blurs such reputation, and thereby picture the Filipinos as a dichotomous race, a race incapable of holding to its time honored religious beliefs like seeds scattered in the proverbial bad soil, with nary some respect for the natural law of reproduction or procreation.

We the Legionaries of Mary submit that, instead of this contentious RH Bill, specifically House Bill No. 4244, Congress should focus its energies on bills that:

1. Seek to promote a strong social justice system whereby every Filipino will have food on the table, a garment that will protect him from the scorching heat or the shivering cold, and a roof over his head. 2. Recognize the complementariness of labor as an integral and necessary element of production, to the end that it be given a fair share of the fruits of any economic enterprise. 3. Promote solidarity in the family by giving a living wage to every working Filipino, so that he will not have to work abroad and virtually expose his family to insidious forces that tend to violate its sanctity as a basic unit of society on which to build a strong and self-reliant nation. 4. Reward the good and punish evil with strict impartiality and rectitude. 5. Develop a thoroughly studied curriculum in all schools, where there is a working balance between moral values and the skills necessary for every college graduate to find gainful employment right in his own country. That education should be available to every wage earner and his offspring of working age.

We appeal to all our Legislators, Christians and non-Christians, for their spirit of patriotism and genuine love of country, by putting the welfare of every Filipino over and above personal interests, always keeping in mind that all laws that emanate from the Halls of Congress are nothing compared to Divine Law.

With Authority to Represent the Legion of Mary in this particular undertaking by the Leadership of the Senatus of Northern Philippines.

DIONISIO A. CIFRA, JR. Former Senatus President Editor, Senatus Bulletin