Reproductive Health Bill Philippines

Typical propaganda. Don't believe it.

The Reproductive Health Bill (RHB) has been on the books for 16 /17 years and now, finally, it seems that it may pass. What the RHB is, among other things, is the option for women to choose what to do with their bodies. It is not, as the Filipino Catholic Church, or any church for that matter, solely about abortion. I don't have the statistics on Planned Parenthood Philippines, but I imagine that abortion is a very small percentage of what Family Planning Centers and the RHB offer.

My beautiful Philippines is the ghetto of S.E.Asia. While Singapore, Thailand, Japan etc...have experienced tremendous growth in the global economy, the Philippine Islands (PI) are battling two rebel forces, over population, gov. corruption and the Catholic Bishops Conference. Just as in other parts of the world, it is the poor that consist the bulk of believers. Lack of education, superstition and no econ. opportunities is common among the islands believers.. Catholicism is widely practiced in the islands and what comes with that is "doing God's work,"biblical interpretations that command abortion is wrong, contraceptives are wrong, and everything happens for a reason  kind of stuffs.

From a protest held by the Filipino Freethinkers.

Like I have said many times, religion is all about control (that is one of the many reasons to become an atheist). No one on the choice side is saying that women must have an abortion, they are only saying that the choice must be there. Up to 500,000 women in the islands have abortions whether is is legal or not (and off the top of my head, I don't know if it is or is not). At one maternity ward in Manila there are 70 births a day. It is believed that in the very near future (2025) the Philippines will not have enuff resources to feed their own peeps. Over population is the elephant in the room in every room in every country. Why would an all powerful God want humans to shoot ourselves in the foot like that. Doing God's work and the belief that everything happens for a reason (things just happen, no reason) are stretching resources that are already thin. something is gonna break.

There is support for the RHB, even among Catholics. If abortion is biblically wrong because it kills a human life, then god is the biggest murderer because there are far more miscarriages than abortions. While the bible may be a good book to learn life lesson symbolically, it it not a rational book that addresses problems here on earth, in the here and now. 16 years is a long time and it is my hope that the Philippines passes this bill and moves forward in a positive and secular way...for the sake of the people.

C'mon now Philippines.

* Filipino Freethinkers

* Reproductive Health Bill Philippines

* Al Jazeera 101 East. Very good 1/2 hour program with three diff. voices on the RHB. Fair and balanced, and the journalist is totally hot-just saying.