Church vs. Government in Repdroductive Health Bill

Conflict is now looming between the predominant Roman Catholic Cuhrch and lawmakers over the proposed Reproductive Health Bill in the Philippines. The proposed law mandates government control over the number of children a family can have.

The Catholic church maintains its stand that couples should have the sole choice as to the number of children they can have, and that, the control of birth runs counter with church doctrines on the preservation of human life. Meanwhile, lawmakers who are for the enactment of the bill insists that the leading cause of poverty here is overpopulation.

A recent independent survey points to the three leading causes of poverty: 1. Graft and corruption, 2. Mismanagement of government affairs, and 3. Wrong priorities in government programs. Population has not been determined or identified as a cause of poverty.

11 billion Philippine Pesos had been earmarked for the bill, 2 billion thereof had been released for the information dissemination campaign. There is public outcry over the release of the said budget, as observers view the amount as huge and can be used for better government programs to alleviate poverty in the country instead of being spent for a controversial bill.

When approved, the bill will provide for the sale of contraceptive devices and medecines over the counter in drugstores and grocery stores , much like the sale of medicines for a number of ailments. The church says that this will mainly construe pregnancy as a common disease.