EU presses for immediate passage of RH bill in RP

MANILA, Philippines - The European Union’s top official in the Philippines on Thursday pressed Congress to immediately pass the controversial reproductive health bill. Ambassador Alistair MacDonald, head of the delegation of the European Commission in the country, said the absence of an effective framework for reproductive health is “anti-poor, anti-women, anti-children, and anti-development." “The poor are paying the highest price, both individually and collectively. The European Union therefore calls for the effective implementation of a comprehensive national family planning policy, promoting access to family planning method," McDonald told a reproductive health forum in Manila. House Bill 5043 - or "An Act Providing for a National Policy on Reproductive Health, Responsible Parenthood and Population Development" - is currently pending before the House of Representatives. The Catholic Church has been very vocal in its opposition against the measure, saying it will promote abortion, among others. But for McDonald, it is the absence of a reproductive health framework that had led to abortions. Citing 2007 figures, he said an estimated 500,000 unwanted pregnancies ended in abortions in the Philippines. He also described as “appalling" the statistics of Filipino women who die in or as a consequence of childbirth, or whose lives are shortened by an inability to space the children that they bear. MacDonald stressed that “it is essential for the Philippine state to be more supportive of the needs of its citizens in relation to reproductive health, and to devote more resources, at the national level, to making effective reproductive health services accessible to all." He lauded the lawmakers who are pushing for the measure despite criticisms and oppositions from various sectors. “[I would like to express] my personal appreciation for these efforts, and by wishing you every success in the passage of these crucial bills," he said. - GMANews.TV