Reproductive Health Opponents in Philippines ‘Spreading Lies and Scare Tactics’

Unsuccessful in blocking the plenary sponsorship of the controversial Reproductive Health and Population Development bill (House Bill 5043) in the House of Representatives, the bill’s oppositors had intensified their scare tactics – from pressuring lawmakers to spreading misinformation targeting the general public.

Ramon San Pascual, Executive Director of the Philippine Legislators’ Committee on Population and Development Foundation, Inc. (PLCPD), sees efforts of the oppositors as cheap shots meant to scare the public and legislators regarding the prohibitive acts in House Bill 5043.

He clarifies that contrary to the oppositors’ allegations, HB 5043 promotes freedom of informed choice to couples and parents to plan their families in terms of spacing their children, the number of children they wish to have, and the methods of family planning they want to use. San Pascual said, “The key principle of the bill is the exercise of the freedom of informed choice, being so, it therefore proposes sanctions to those who will deliberately deny such freedom.”

San Pascual cited some penalty provisions included in House Bill 5043. Sec. 21-A, # 3 “Any health care service provider, whether private or public, who shall refuse to provide reproductive health care services to an abused minor, whose abused condition is certified by the proper official or personnel of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) or to duly DSWD-certified abused pregnant minor on whose case no parental consent is necessary and Sec. 21-E “Any person who maliciously engages in disinformation about the intent or provisions of this Act.”

“The overall intent of the bills is to provide information and services particularly to poor members of our society,” he added.

Meanwhile, amid the intensified campaign of the oppositors, more supporters of the bill are openly defying the Catholic church by expressing their support to the reproductive health bill. Recently, the Welga ng Kababaihan, a coalition of women organizations and a certain group in Negros have published their support to the bill.

“We are happy to note that amid intense pressure by the Catholic church, more and more sectors of the society are now openly expressing their support to the bill, even the number of authors in the House of Representatives had increased to 105 lawmakers,” San Pascual concluded.=##=