Freedom of religion and speech for our families and friends
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
Malacañang Palace
JP Laurel Street, San Miguel, Manila NCR 1005
cc: Speaker Prospero Nograles, House of Representatives
Your Excellency,
As friends of the Republic of the Philippines, we are concerned. Since many of us have family or friends in the Philippines, we hope that you will oppose the newly consolidated " AN ACT PROVIDING FOR A NATIONAL POLICY ON REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH, RESPONSIBLE PARENTHOOD AND POPULATION DEVELOPMENT, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES", and the agenda of UNFPA to mandate family size limits. For over 25 years, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has been an aggressive and shameful accessory to gross crimes against women and babies in the Peoples Republic of China. Despite being admonished to do otherwise on countless occasions, the UNFPA continues to be the chief apologist and enabler for past and ongoing crimes against humanity. Since the UNFPA is working with Philippine government leaders, we are also concerned with news reports of coercive practices in forced contraception.1 Further, the U.S. Government has found evidence of illegal sterilization quota systems in the provinces.2 We hope that further investigations of the funding sources and training objectives of these healthcare organizations continue. We are also concerned for the Filipino youth. We feel that the UNFPA funded information campaigns will give the minors a false sense of "adolescent sexual/reproductive rights" that does not respect the dignity of the human person or the rich family values of Filipinos. We are concerned about the unconstitutionality of these bills. According to the Constitution of 1987, the proposed bills would be unconstitutional on the grounds that the human life must be protected from the moment of conception. 3
Also, we feel that these bills discriminate against Catholic healthcare workers who cannot offer reproductive health care services out of conscientious objection. 4 Further, we hope that our family and friends who are Catholic or Muslim educators will be protected by their constitution and not imprisoned, (up to six months), because they will not offer sex education or contraceptives to children as a matter of personal conscience and religious freedom.5 Also, we hope that for the sake of Filipino marriages, the bills do not pass because the bill authorizes in a guised manner "same sex marriages".6 Finally, we feel it is imporant to give a voice for the freedom of speech due to our family and friends that will be jeopardized by this bill. 7
Many Americans, including Filipino Americans, are concerned that Filipinos should have a government that protects their choice to determine the size of their own families and respects their rich cultural heritage. We are encouraged with the spirit of the Filipino people to fight for values that are important to family and faith traditions because you are known as a people of hope. The 1.9 population growth rate reported by the National Statistics Bureau is a solid basis for the future. Western European countries with smaller population growth rates now have increasing mortality rates that impact their Social Security programs. Citizens of working age will soon be unable to sustain the retirement of the aging population. We do not want that for our Filipino family members and friends.
We respectfully encourage you to join us in solidarity to the opposition of any further coercive practices of the UNFPA and we hope you will encourage others to oppose H.B. 17, "The Responsible Parenthood and Population Management Act", H.B. 812, "An Act Providing for Reproductive Healthcare Structures and Appropriating Funds", and H.B. 39, "Creating a Baranguay Population Worker" and yet to be numbered but sponsored consolidation of these bills called "AN ACT PROVIDING FOR A NATIONAL POLICY ON REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH, RESPONSIBLE PARENTHOOD AND POPULATION DEVELOPMENT, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES".
Signed,
Names City Family residence
Eileen Macapanas Cosby Washington D.C. Antipolo City, Butig, Salcedo
1 Manila Standard Today, May 16, 2005 “Bishops building up case vs. family planning workers”
2 Lifesite News, July 16, 2007, "US funds Sterilizations of Philippine Women"
3 The Constitution of the Philippines, Article 2: Declaration of Principles and State Policies and Principles, Section 12.
4 Section 6,7,9,10, 11,18, 20, 21 & Section 22.
5 Section 12 & Section 21.
6 Section 21.
7 Section 21, a.
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