Erap on condom ads ban: Pinoys should be given choices on family planning

CEBU CITY — While he did not say he was against the Catholic Church’s call to ban condom advertisements, former President Joseph Estrada on Thursday said Filipinos should be given a free choice on matters of family planning. Estrada, who was also careful on his stand on the controversial Reproductive Health bill, said the government should enforce measures to curb population explosion in the country, which he said worsens the poverty situation in the Philippines. "Filipinos should be given the right to choose. Women should be given the right to plan their families. There are good provisions [in the bill], but there are also [those] inconsistent [with my platform]," Estrada said. He did not elaborate on which provisions he was against. Estrada then suggested that Church leaders hold dialogues with civil society groups to arrive at a compromise on promoting reproductive health in the country. Sold outside the Vatican? At press conference at the Waterfront Hotel here, Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino senatorial bet and former Negros Occidental Rep. Apolinario Lozada said that when he was the Philippine Ambassador to the Vatican from 1990 to 1991, he witnessed the open sale of condoms outside the Vatican. Lozada made the claim amid Catholic leaders' strong resistance against condoms and the RH bill, which pushes for natural and artificial contraception. Catholic leaders claim that the proliferation of artificial contraceptives would give rise to immorality and promiscuity, and have even advised Catholics not to vote for candidates supporting the measure. Earlier, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines called for the restriction of condom ads on television, radio, movies, newspapers, magazines and public places. "[The ads desensitize the youth’s delicate conscience and weaken their moral fiber as future parents," CBCP president Bishop Nereo Odchimar said. [See: Bishops seek ban on condom ads in media, billboards] The CBCP also called on Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral to resign after her department distributed free condoms last Valentine’s Day as part of its advocacy against the spread of the HIV/AIDS virus. Cabral refused to heed the resignation calls, and said the Church is partially blocking government efforts to prevent HIV-AIDS. [See: DOH chief scores Church for blocking AIDS prevention effort] Government data show that in 2004, confirmed HIV cases reached 199. In 2007 until October of 2009, the number has drastically gone up to 629, more than double the previous years’ recorded cases. The RH bill The proposed RH bill, or An Act Providing for a National Policy on Reproductive Health, Responsible Parenthood and Population Development, has long been pending in Congress. The House of Representatives version proposes, among others, mandatory age-appropriate reproductive health education starting in Grade 5, and the purchase of contraceptives by state hospitals as part of its essential medicines and supplies. Its Senate version, Senate Bill 3122, was also up for interpellation but Congress adjourned session last February. Estrada was not the first presidential aspirant to take the safe side on the reproductive health issue. [See: Presidential bets weigh in on RH bill] In recent presidential debates, other contenders like Senator Benigno Simeon Aquino III and administration bet Gilberto Teodoro Jr. have not made categorical statements on whether or not they were in favor of the controversial reproductive health measure. - RSJ, GMANews.TV