GMA to issue EO defining population policy

President Arroyo said yesterday she will soon issue an executive order (EO) defining the government’s policy on the ticklish issue of population control and responsible parenthood.

The President indicated that the State should leave it to the parents to determine the number of their children within the limitations of their religious and cultural beliefs.

"The parents should be the ones to determine their responsibility to their family and children and part of that is their decision on the appropriate number of their children which they can support with dignity," Mrs. Arroyo stressed.

Addressing yesterday’s launching of the government’s Framework Plans for Women at the Philippine Sports Arena in Pasig City, the President said she has instructed her legal advisers to ensure that the draft EO covers her population policies as embodied in the Framework Plan.

The affair marked yesterday’s observance of National Women’s Day.

She revealed that Malacañang began working on the plan as early as two months after she took over the presidency.

"Hopefully by next year, we can expect the implementation of this framework plan and it is already being felt by our women, especially those living in the depressed areas," Mrs. Arroyo said. "I hope our framework plan will help alleviate poverty and address exploitation of women and the empowerment of our women in the new century."

Although government leaders recognize the need for a stronger population program by promoting artificial birth control, they are held back by the Church’s rejection of such methods.

The National Statistics Office reported that the country’s population reached 75.3 million as of May 1 last year, while the average population growth rate was placed at 2.3 percent, or 1.7 million babies being born every year.

The President said she wants to closely study first the draft EO on the "Reproductive Rights of Women" before signing it. "I want to make sure that the policy stated there would be in accordance with the letter and spirit of the population policy of our administration."

She pointed out that her administration’s population policy conforms with the constitutional provisions on responsible parenthood which leaves the decision on the size of the family to the parents by planning the number of their children through natural or artificial intervention.

Militant groups mark Women’s Day with rallies

Various militant women’s groups took to the streets yesterday to denounce government for alleged failure to protect their rights.

An estimated 10,000 women nationwide took part in the protest actions.

About 200 members of Gabriela marched to the US Embassy in Manila to demand the pullout of American troops currently involved in a joint military exercise with their Filipino counterparts in Mindanao.

The rallyists claimed that the presence here of US forces might only pave the way for the return of the US bases to the country.

The rallyists proceeded later to Malacañang where speakers criticized the President for alleged anti-women policies.

They charged that Mrs. Arroyo was committing the same mistakes of her predecessors, specifically the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos and jailed ousted President Joseph Estrada.

For its part, Migrante slammed the President for the unabated exportation of Filipino women to work as entertainers and domestic helpers abroad. –Marichu Villanueva, Sandy Araneta, Mayen Jaymalin