Rallying for the Unborn

By Mike Gomez

With the high number of abortions performed in the Philippines each year, it is ironic that this is happening among a people whose Constitution explicitly prohibits it. Abortion is considered murder because it involves taking the life of another person. Of course, there are myriad other daily activities among Filipinos that are prohibited by law-from national plunder to overtaking on the right lane-which seem to have become a way of life or death in this country.

    Abortion is, therefore, still another of the many crimes or violations of Philippine laws that continue unabated. There are two significant aspects that make abortion unique, though. These are the sad fact that no one has ever actually been charged with murder for undergoing or performing an abortion, and the sadder fact that powerful forces are involved in the ongoing battle to decriminalize it and even encourage it.

Business as Usual

    Amazing, but true: Every violator of the anti-abortion policies of our country has gotten away scot-free. These would include the doctors, witch-doctors, nurses, midwives, traditional birth attendants, pharmacists, herbalists, complementary medicine practitioners, and even that kid with the coat hanger; anyone who has willfully performed any act intended to terminate a human life already in progress. Of course, the mother of the unborn child is, herself, as guilty of murder as any of the aforementioned if she consents to the abortion.

    It is the latter that usually poses a problem. Before the law can charge anyone for a violation or a crime, a complaint must be filed by an offended party, a concerned citizen, or by the state itself. In the case of abortion, there is a conspiracy among the parties involved. Even in instances wherein something goes wrong, the mother does not file formal charges against the abortionist because it would necessitate admitting that she, indeed, consented to the abortion, thereby making her a guilty party as well. Of course, the father, or some other friend or relative could file charges or file a complaint, but that would, again, be placing the mother in hot water, which is not the sort of thing we Filipinos are wont to do, despite everything we believe in.

    At the very crux of the issue is the problem of the offended party, the murdered child himself who cannot file the complaint against the abortionist, the irresponsible mother, and everyone else. Whether or not a child in gestation possesses the same civil rights as say, a congressman, is hardly the issue here. The matter in question is not as trivial as a property dispute or a libel case, but a situation wherein a human life was not allowed to continue, and was deliberately terminated by another Filipino.

Enemies in High Places

    Philippine policy will perpetually be in peril so long as it contradicts policy of other nations the country associates with, especially when those nations are donors or in strong positions of influence within the global community. Such us the case of the anti-abortion laws. In many other "developed" countries, the state regulates abortion, rather than prohibiting it. Regulation pertains to enforcement of standards for quality and safety, ensuring proper conduct, protecting the consumer, etc., very much in the same way the Land Transportation Office endeavors to ensure road safety and the smooth flow of traffic.

    As such, there are individuals and groups in the Philippines who deliberately work towards actually increasing the flow of traffic of unborn babies into the afterlife. Every now and then, some other legislator comes forward with a bill or two seeking to allow abortion in the Philippines under specified circumstances such as for victims of rape, incest, etc., and when the pregnancy is only so-and-so months, weeks, or days in progress.

    Such discussions recently escalated into fever pitch with the resurrection of the issue of the "emergency contraception" pill Postinor (levonorgestrel). This is a synthetic hormone, progestagen that behaves like the female hormone progesterone. The product is taken within 72 hours after sexual intercourse by women who still hope to prevent a possibly fertilized ovum from implanting on the endometrium, thereby causing a termination of the new life-or an abortion.

    The product was in use in the Philippines under supervision by the Department of Health at a time when Joseph Estrada sat blissfully in Malacañang, and former WHO heavyweight Dr. Quasi Romualdez ran the show at the DoH. Postinor has since been delisted by the Bureau of Food and Drugs at the time the Assumption-bred Catholic President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo set national policies, while her Jesuit-trained health secretary Dr. Manuel Dayrit carried them out rationally at the DoH.

    Even as prolife advocates and Church groups worldwide rejoiced at the banning of Postinor in the Philippines early this year, the abortion-advocate groups are down but not out. Whether or not they are backed by USAID, UNFPA, WHO, FIGO, etc., these groups seek a reconsideration of the BFAD delisting of Postinor, clamoring for its inclusion in the DoH armamentarium of services, specifically for victims of rape presenting at Child Protection Units.

    Sec. Dayrit stressed that the use of Postinor, or any similarly-acting product, is a violation of Philippine policy because its action, as attested to by literature and its product insert, is indeed abortifacient. The international agencies and governments seek to prevail on Sec. Dayrit to define the beginning of life as the implantation of the fertilized ovum on the uterine wall, a process which they insist defines "conception." Sec. Dayrit, however, held his ground in defending the Filipino Constitutionalists' position defining conception as the union of gametes upon fertilization of egg by sperm, thereby establishing that the fertilized ovum is indeed a human life.

    The argument over when life actually begins is irrelevant in light of the pronouncement of Sec. Dayrit it upholding the ban of any kind of emergency contraception or "morning after" pill. The Secretary elaborated that a fertilized egg has the complete set of gametes to make one unique human being, and would continue to develop into that human being unless some outside force is employed to stop it. Applying that outside force whether through mechanical or chemical means is abortion. Clear and simple.

    Never in our country's history has the national leadership and the health care administration been so enlightened and dedicated in its mission and duty to protect the unborn citizens of the nation. Yet, the prolife and Church organizations are not sighing with relief at this victory. The many groups and individuals bent on promoting abortion are rallying together and mustering up forces for a protracted battle with a time frame even beyond the watch of Pres. Macapagal-Arroyo or Sec. Dayrit.

    If people cannot be bought, they can be replaced. If the law does not favor the cause, the law can be changed. If people do not believe in something, they can be convinced. As the issues in this conflict become more clearly defined, and the opposing poles become more clearly delineated, we expect to see more and more characters from government, media, NGOs, cause-oriented groups, etc. to crawl out of the woodwork or from under logs and start lambasting the government for its distinctly anti-abortion position. Indeed, the shroud of the dark side has fallen. Begun, the clown war has.

    At the very crux of the issue is the problem of the offended party, the murdered child himself who cannot file the complaint against the abortionist, the irresponsible mother, and everyone else. Whether or not a child in gestation possesses the same civil rights as say, a congressman, is hardly the issue here. The matter in question is not as trivial as a property dispute or a libel case, but a situation wherein a human life was not allowed to continue, and was deliberately terminated by another Filipino.