RH advocates seek dialogue with Aquino on RP bill

Reproductive health (RH) advocates urged President Benigno Simeon Aquino III to hold dialogues with them on the Responsible Parenthood (RP) bill as Malacañang has done with Catholic Church leaders. National Anti-Poverty Commission Secretary Joel Rocamora told Malacañang "kausapin din ninyo 'yung mga RH advocates, kasi hindi pwede na kinakausap lang ninyo 'yung mga obispo." (Speak with RH advocates too because it is not right that you are talking with bishops only.) At a press conference on Friday, Rocamora said he understands how important the Catholic faith is to the Aquino family. "Sinisikap ni PNoy na maghanap ng paraan para hindi nila maging kalaban 'yung leadership ng kanilang simbahan,"Rocamora said. (PNoy is striving to find a way not to clash heads with the leadership of their church.) Friday's gathering was the first press conference where both government and non-government RH advocates were present. RH advocates hope to set a meeting with the President next week before he submits his list of priority measures to the Legislative-Executivee Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) at the end of the month. Aquino is scheduled to have another dialogue with the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) on February 24. Inclusion of RH bill in list of priority bills During the press conference, Albay Representative Edcel Lagman, one of the proponents of the RH bill in Congress, said they will continue to lobby for the inclusion of the RH/RP bill in Aquino's list of priority measures to be submitted to LEDAC. However, he said the exclusion of the RH/RP bill in the list of priority bills "does not matter at the moment." "Malacañang said that list to be submitted [to LEDAC] is just an initial list," he said, adding that another list of priority bills may be submitted to LEDAC at another time. Lagman also said the exclusion of the RH/RP bill in the priority measures list does not mean that Aquino is withdrawing support for the controversial measure. "We are happy that the president has been steadfast in supporting responsible parenthood and family planning based on freedom of informed choice," he said. "Whether it is [on the list] or not, it remains to be a priority measure of the House of Representatives," he added. Lagman quipped that he is glad the President is supporting a bill whose lead author is the minority leader. "Sa usapin ng RH, walang majority at walang minority. Para sa kabutihan ng taong bayan, walang administration at walang minorya," he said. (When it comes to the RH bill, there's no majority or minority. There's no distinction between administration or minority when it comes to the welfare of the public.) RH bill will be passed 'on time' Lagman said he is confident that the RH bill will be passed in the 15th Congress "on time." Based on the schedule of the Congress, he said that he is hoping the RH bill will reach the plenary vote before the mandatory recess in June. Two weeks ago, the House Committee on Population and Family Relations approved a consolidated version of the RH bill. On Wednesday, the House Committee on Appropriations approved the initial funding for the measure, taking it one step closer to the plenary debates. 25 years of fighting for reproductive health Former senator Dr. Leticia Shahani said she did not think the RH bill would be "such a controversial issue." "When I entered the Senate in 1987, I thought it would be an easy thing to pass," she said. "I've been counting the years, it's been 25 years that legislators in the Senate and the House have been trying to push something like this." Shahani said the progress of the RH bill gives her hope that when passed, it will positively change the lives of Filipinos. She cited for example the case of Filipinos convicted in China for smuggling drugs, who she said were "forced out of desperation to do things that we will not do as self-respecting people." "Our future is closely linked to the quality of our population. Just think of the desperate situation of Filipinos to find employment [abroad] because so many people cannot have opportunities here," she said. "As independent Filipinos, we can make up our minds about our own future," she said. "I hope that today, President Aquino will lend his ears to what we have to say." Opposed to the RH Bill The Catholic Church has been opposed to the RH bill, which would permit artificial contraception, because the Church accepts only natural methods of family planning. The CBCP, in January this year, issued a pastoral letter entitled "Choosing Life, Rejecting the RH Bill." The pastoral letter spoke about the Catholic Church's opposition to the RH bill but did not issue any directive to deny Holy Communion to pro-RH advocates. The Church also issued an oratio imperata (mandated prayer) for the respect of all human life. – VVP, GMA News