PO Box 20203, Washington, D.C. 20041
2009 January Volume 3, No 1
2009: Focus on Hope for a Culture of Life
Abortion Opposition is Strong
The New Year brings new pro-life challenges and opportunities for success in numerous struggles around the world. May we be filled with hope for pro-life success as we consider our greatest resource and most effective weapon in stopping the advance of legal abortion—the hearts and minds of people around the world who recognize and believe that the unborn child is precious and needs to be protected.
Pro-abortion activists continually write plans and develop strategies designed for a single purpose—overcoming what they term “religious and cultural barriers to abortion”—including equating an induced abortion to a spontaneous miscarriage in a deceptive attempt to lessen opposition to the deliberate destruction of unborn children. We face pro-abortion activists who use every means available to change people’s hearts and minds on abortion and link the legalization of abortion to many noble causes including the reduction of maternal deaths, eradication of poverty, and education of young women. Yet, we know and women and men around the world know that abortion is not an acceptable solution to any problem.
Pope Benedict XVI’s New Year’s message stressed the need for life-affirming solutions that end poverty while respecting women and the lives of unborn children. The Pope condemned population control programs saying: "The extermination of millions of unborn children, in the name of the fight against poverty, actually constitutes the destruction of the poorest of all human beings." He pointed out that resources do exist to fight poverty without killing innocent life.
It is our hope that parliamentarians around the world will take the Pope’s message to heart and increase their efforts to stop the advance of abortion and enact policies that assist pregnant women with essential health care and practical resources.
Religious Unity Offers Hope for Culture of Life
Increased engagement in the struggle for a culture of life by religious leaders of all faiths offers us great hope for united action to protect unborn children and their mothers from the violence of abortion in 2009.
Catholic-Muslim Forum Emphasizes the Dignity of the Human Person
A Catholic-Muslim Forum was recently held at the Vatican which produced a document “Love of God, Love of Neighbor” and stressed the importance of defending life. His Eminence Mustafa Ceric , Grand Mufti of Bosnia Bosnia-Herzegovina, a fervently pro-life Muslim cleric and scholar, addressed the historic meeting expressing support for the joint document. The declaration recognizes the dignity of the person and states that every “human life is a very precious gift from God for each person, and therefore it should be preserved and honored in all of its stages.” The creation of a permanent Catholic-Muslim committee is underway.
Catholics and Orthodox Unite in First Forum
The First European Catholic-Orthodox Forum held in Turin, Italy released a joint document entitled “The Family: A Good for Humanity” which describes the family as a "unity of life-giving love, an indissoluble relationship, open to life." The document warned of threats to the family, including abortion and demographic decline. "The human being is the only one created in the image and likeness of God and this constitutes his particular dignity," the document states. "We do not give life to ourselves, nor are parents the sole source of human life, since divine intervention is necessary. The sacredness of human life from conception to natural death should be fully respected." The statement is also available in Russian.
PNCI Commentary
These historic religious forums give hope that people of all faiths will unite and work together in new ways to affect laws and policies on critical life and family issues. In discussing the Catholic-Orthodox forum Russian Orthodox Bishop Hilarion Alfejey stated, "The aim above all is to start clear and effective communication between our churches so that we are aware that we face the same challenges (secularism, consumerism, atheism, etc.) These are themes which all our churches face individually and instead it is important to tackle them together."
PNCI believes unity among faiths and denominations is essential to the formation of successful coalitions in every country to advance pro-life laws and policies in 2009. PNCI has developed a guide for pro-life advocates entitled “Informational Guide to the Legislative Process” which is free upon request and will help ensure that the pro-life and pro-woman message is clearly heard by elected leaders globally.
Pro-Abortion Action
Africa: Women Lawyers Seek Legalization of Abortion
Women lawyers in Uganda stated that the treaty of the African Union known as Maputo Protocol demands that abortion be legalized in Uganda. Deputy Speaker of the Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, agreed stating, “If the Government is committed to preserving the lives of pregnant women, it should legalise abortion.” Kadaga suggested that abortion advocates enlist the support of religious leaders in their campaign to legalize abortion. The remarks were made at a meeting organized by FIDA-Kenya (Federation of Women Lawyers) which in 2008 drafted Kenya’s Reproductive Health and Rights Bill which would legalize abortion if passed. The former head of FIDA, Violet Awori, now serves on CEDAW at the UN. Thirty women lawyers attended the workshop from South Africa, India, Zanzibar, Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania.
Pro-Life Action
Pro-life Leaders Unite at the UN
A coalition of pro-life and pro-family leaders known as the Familiokratos coalition has presented a petition of 5.4 million families to the UN declaring the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) protects the rights of the unborn and the family. The petition asserts that elected officials, governments and parliamentarians need to interpret the UDHR in such a way as to affirm the dignity of every human being, including the unborn. The presentation of the Familiokratos petition to the UN was announced by Members of the European Parliament Anna Záborská and Carlo Casini on behalf of the coalition on the 60 th anniversary of the Universal Declaration. US-based C-FAM gathered over 450,00 signatures in support of the petition asserting the rights of the unborn and families.
Legislative News
Philippines : Pro-life United Front Making Progress against Pro-Abortion Legislation
Coalition building has helped pro-life and pro-family advocates move toward success as the Philippine House of Representatives continues to consider the Reproductive Health bill. An alliance of groups, united by the Catholic Church, has been tirelessly working at the grassroots and national levels to lobby against passage of the legislation. “We shall see when the actual voting comes but I believe pro-family and pro-life legislators are growing in numbers and committed ones are the most vocal,” said Father Melvin Castro, Executive of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippine’s Episcopal Commission on Family and Life.
EU: Parliamentarians Form New Human Dignity Working Group
Members of the European Parliament, led by MEP Gay Mitchell, have formed a new working group to promote the dignity of the human person and promote the pro-life view on abortion and bioethics. The Human Dignity Working Group states in its mission that human beings are created in the image and likeness of God, and that “these properties have come to be known in the modern, secular state as ‘fundamental human rights’, and it is these rights the Working Group will seek to recognize in their fullest capacity by recognizing their source.” MEP Nirj Deva, a member of the working group and chairman of its Inter-Parliamentary Delegation commented on the need for such a group: “Why does the European Parliament need this Working Group? Because we believe it is essential to the balance between the rights and responsibilities of the individual and the power of the State.”
Scotland: MP Pushing Bill to Legalize Assisted Suicide, Including Children
Scottish Parliament Member Margo McDonald is pushing a bill to legalize assisted suicide, which would include suicide for children over 12 years old. McDonald, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease, entered Parliament in pursuit of legalizing assisted suicide so that she could choose to legally kill herself if she so desired. The legislation currently has little support, and similar attempts to legalize assisted suicide have failed.
Uruguay: Bill Before Parliament Would Legalize Euthanasia
The Uruguayan Parliament is considering a bill that will open the door for legalized euthanasia. The John Paul II Archdiocesan Institute of Bioethics has warned that the proposed law, which addresses extraordinary measures of care, does not distinguish between avoiding unnecessary treatment and euthanasia. “This means that it does not give sufficient guarantees that it is not legalizing, in practice, euthanasia,” the Institute said.
Jamaica : Parliament Considers Legalizing Abortion in Response to International Pressure
The Jamaican Parliament’s Joint Select Committee is debating the legalization of abortion . It is suspected that the move is in response to international pressure from the United Nations and European Union to legalize abortion as part of achieving its targeted Millennium Development Goals. Yet, in 2005 the Minister of Health had declared that there was no evidence linking induced abortion and maternal mortality rates. The current move is questionable to many. Catholic and pro-life leaders have protested the abortion push and urged Parliament to protect the unborn. Kingston Archbishop Donald Reece stated: “The people of Jamaica have not asked for abortion; the churches have not asked for it nor has the vast majority of civic groups or their leaders. A reasonable person might rightly question who exactly it is that wishes to impose abortion on this nation.”
Executive News
US: Conscience Protections Issued by Health and Human Services
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Service (HHS) has issued a final regulation under the Bush administration that will protect medical providers’ freedom of conscientious objection. Under the new rule, health care workers and institutions have the right to decline participation in procedures they object to without fear of discrimination. Welcoming the new rule, Dr. David Stevens, CEO of the Christian Medical Association (CMA), said it will "protect patients and patient access to physicians who adhere to life-affirming ethical standards." Pro-abortion activists are eager for the new US president or Congress to reverse these conscience protection rules. Rules are available at the Federal Registry.
Uruguay : President Resigns Party Following Veto of Bill to Legalize Abortion
Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez has left the Socialist Party following his veto of legislation to expand legalization of abortion in the country which permits exceptions for rape and incest. Vazquez twice vetoed legislation to legally allow surgical abortion on demand in the first trimester, arguing that the government should provide support for pregnant women rather than abortion. He has also declared that he will not be a presidential candidate for the Socialist Party in 2009. The ruling Broad Front coalition, of which the Socialist Party is a member, is now facing diminished prospects for election following Vazquez’s resignation. Nearly all members of the Broad Front coalition voted for the bill to decriminalize abortion.
Luxembourg: Grand Duke Stands Up for Life
Luxembourg’s Grand Duke Henri courageously stood up for the respect for life in opposing a law to legalize euthanasia and in so doing was stripped of his constitutional powers by the Parliament.
The Grand Duke promised to veto the law which will permit doctors to kill “terminally ill” patients after a review by two physicians and a medical panel. The law narrowly passed but will undergo revision next year. In a sign of solidarity, the pro-life community has come together to support Luxembourg’s Grand Duke Henri. Several pro-life groups have offered support, encouragement, and legal assistance to the Grand Duke in wake of the new law. Roger Kiska, of US-based Alliance Defense Fund, warned Americans of the implications of Luxembourg’s legalization of euthanasia: “American courts are increasingly pointing to the laws of foreign countries in their own decisions.”
Italy: Pro-Life MPs Delay Sale of Abortion Pills
Forty cross-party pro-life Members of the Italian Parliament opposed the approval of the abortion pills known as RU-486 and have successfully pressured the Italian Pharmaceutical Agency (AIFA) to delay final approval of the medication. It was expected that approval would be issued in mid- December but the agency now refuses to issue an approval date. The statement by the MPs of Premier Silvio Berlusconi’s center-right People of Liberties Party, the Northern League, and the Catholic UDC party branded RU-486 a “kill pill”. Prominent MP Isabella Bertolini said, “killer RU-486 opens a dangerous path and poses a threat to women’s health”. The Vatican voiced its opposition stating “abortion is abortion, whether it is carried out in a clinic or at home”. Presently the drug is only approved for hospital use.
Issues
Misoprostol: The Dangerous Self-administered Abortion Pill
The self- use of misoprostol alone for abortion has been brought to the spotlight as abortion groups study the use of chemical abortion by Hispanic women in the United States. Misoprostol, a drug approved for use by the Food and Drug Administration for gastric ulcers, has been long used off-label for abortion, and increasingly promoted overseas by abortion activists as a way of bringing abortion into pro-life nations illegally. The dangers of taking misoprostol, manufactured as Cytotec by Pfizer, are many, as it causes uterine contractions and can lead to blood loss with improper dosage. Dr. Mark Rosing, an obstetrician at St. Barnabas Hospital in New York explains the appeal of chemical abortion: “It turns an abortion into a natural process and makes it look like a miscarriage. For people who don’t have access to abortion for social reasons, financial reasons or immigration reasons, it doesn’t seem like this horrible thing.”
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The Parliamentary Network for Critical Issues (PNCI) is committed to networking members of democratically-elected legislatures in efforts to advance respect for the inherent value, worth, and inviolable dignity of every human being from the first moment of existence. PNCI issues the Parliamentary Network E-News to provide lawmakers, and those who work with them, news from various sources on the international threat to pro-life laws and current legislative and judicial actions on critical life issues challenging parliamentarians around the world. PNCI is a project of Life Issues Institute.
All news articles include links to original source. PNCI cannot verify that the information contained in the news articles is accurate. info@pncius.org
