Your thoughts on the Reproductive Health bill
By alena824
@alena824 (376)
Philippines
October 13, 2008 2:22am CST
With congress on a month-long break, we have a reprieve on the debates (and are they loud) about the proposed Reproductive Health bill. It's a very controversial piece of legislation but one that really needs to be given proper attention because of it's urgency. Many are supposedly against it because they see it as pro-abortion. That is hardly the essence of the measure. If anything, it is aimed at protecting life.
We have to face some facts -- poverty is only made worse when families are unplanned. It is difficult enough as it is to provide for one or two individuals with very meager resources. Consider the problem if you have four, five or six more mouths to feed. RH is about allowing people to make choices. And because you give them choices, this must be supported with information, materials and tools that will enable the decision-maker to follow through with their choice.
It is not about abortion or saying abortion is an option. As it is, without this measure, abortion is already being used as a way out because of unwanted pregnancies -- and there are many. If people are equipped with information they make better choices. Let us give them that freedom to choose.
3 people like this
5 responses
@eiram25 (1076)
• Philippines
13 Oct 08
i will probably go with the implementation of the said bill into a law.it's not that i'm against life,but the way our population is growing,we really need to control it.i guess the more important thing about this bill is the power of education,especially to those people in the slums and remote area.i agree with you that with this information given,we are giving people,especially the married couple,the choice on how many children they want to have.this is also to prevent having too many children with the parents who can manage to support only a few.
happy mylotting!
happy mylotting!2 people like this
@king4aday (680)
• Philippines
13 Oct 08
I agree with this bill. The bill does not legalize abortion nor does it state that the government would have a say on how many children a family have must have. It is more on information on contraceptives and family planning. Most of the politicians would not sign the bill because they are affraid of being outcasted by the church. The overpopulation is such a big problem here that extreme measure should be taken. We know that the poorer families in the Philippines knows the difficulties in having a big family, but they could not stop themselves either. With this, they will have alternative means of limiting their children
1 person likes this
@juliefaye (1214)
• Philippines
14 Oct 08
It's been a century old debates among the religious and the politicians. With or without that bill, the practice of birth spacing has been taught to urban women in health centers. Many followed, but there are still those who are not interested because they thought that children are their treasures who will help them out with poverty so they continue to "go and multiply". What we need is a political will to educate these women the importance of birth spacing specially in rural areas. Never mind those hypocrites clad in religious clothes for they never know how to raise a child. The RH bill is good if implemented and not politicized.
@jazel_juan (15746)
• Philippines
14 Oct 08
well for me, i think the reproductive health bill should be amended, it is a good in way in controlling the countries population and every Filipino as well. Plus people are given choices to follow and choose and in a way it might be of help to every family to improve their lives, we must all admit taht having too many kids are hard, financially specifically... plus at times women are faced with the choice to abort when they find out they are pregnant. People should be equipped with the knowledge regarding the reproductive health bill...:D
