The Controversial RH Bill

The burgeoning of population in the Philippines has tempted several lawmakers to pass a Reproductive Health Bill which states the approval of the use of contraceptive methods like condoms and pills. However, this law become a controversy as different sectors especially the church did not approve of the said bill.
Even before the bill was made into a law officially, there were different groups and organizations who favoured the bill because they believe that it is for the betterment of the Filipino citizen especially the women. The Department of Health as well as other volunteers that is supportive of the bill, started teaching about contraceptive methods and its positive effect on the health of women, and some started to distribute free condoms. Because of these bold acts, the Catholic Bishop Conference of the Philippines made a statement that they do not approve of the bill.
Philippines, as a Christian dominated country, believed that it is immoral to use contraceptive methods just to prevent the rise of population because it is parallel to abortion. According to the church, natural methods and abstinence are enough to stop the population boom and no need to resort to such acts. If I remember correctly, our parish priest discussed on a Sunday noon mass about the negative effects of the RH Bill and why the church is not approved of it. According to our priest, using contraceptive method, such as using condoms or pills, can evoke polygamy or unfaithfulness to one’s partner. It is because when a male thought of using a condom, he will not worry of his partner getting pregnant, thus this can lead to him having one sexual partner, and this applies to females too. Therefore, the sacred of marriage will be destroyed. In addition, according to him, if you read and re-read the whole RH Bill it ends up to abortion.
The Difference in opinion from the church and from the different sectors and government sectors made the President stand up for what he knows is right for his people. The President Aquino made his stance as he support the controversial RH Bill despite the strong opposition coming from the church. The move of the President made a controversy since her mother, the late President Cory Aquino, was a devoted Christian, and the church could not believe that the President would support the bill. Many reports have been released that if the President will not change his opinion, the church will have no choice but to rally against the President.
However, just recently, Pope Benedict the XVI made a statement regarding the use of condoms. In the Pope’s statement, the HIV-infected male prostitute should use a condom in order to prevent the spread of the HIV and other diseases, and to protect the female from contracting this disease. For the staunch advocate of the Reproductive Health Bill, the message of the Pope is an advantage. Meanwhile, some argue that the message was different from what the lawmakers intended because the Pope reiterated that the use of condoms is to prevent diseases and infections, and not to prevent creating babies.
The Philippines is just a small country with a population of almost 99,900,177 as of July 2010. We are the 12th most populous country in the whole world. The rise of population over the years created economic problems in the country especially in the field of education Moreover, because of the rise of population, the poverty also rises. We need to know that as the population grows - education, employment and services should also meet the equal number of people. Take for example: our education is incompetent to other countries because of the lack of school buildings, classrooms and teachers for it cannot meet the demands of the rising population.
Employment is another issue because the employment rate in the Philippines cannot serve all the people that is why many have resorted on working abroad, but the worst part is, numerous Filipino people do not have a job and this contributes to the poverty level of our country. Another is the services that the Filipino should be getting. The ideal ratio is for every 500 Filipino, there is one cop to serve them, but in reality, the ratio is 1:1500. The problem in population is that it creates problems not just for the country but to the economy and society as well.
I cannot blame the lawmakers to pass a reproductive health bill because, reality wise, we need to control the population of our country. I cannot blame the church either for their strong opposition of the bill because I know that they are being true to their duty. But how can we solve the problem in population if both the powerful sectors in the country, the government and the church, cannot cooperate? I think they should talk it all out, settle their differences and make a better proposition to solve the problem of population because whether we like it or not, we need to act before it is too late.