Reproductive health bill signature drive launched

ZAMBOANGA CITY – A women’s group advocating reproductive health has launched an online signature campaign to support a House bill authored by Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman

The Reproductive Health Advocacy Network (RHAN), through its organization, the Democratic Socialist Women of the Philippines (DSWP), initiated an online petition aimed at gathering a million signatures.

“We hope to gather one million signatures to show our legislators that there is a wide support base for the bill’s passage despite what the opposition says,” group member Chi Laigo Vallido said in a statement.

Those who support the bill are encouraged to log on to http://www.PetitionOnline.com/rhan2008/petition.html and make their stand known.

The group will present the signatures both to the House of Representatives and Senate later this month as they wait for the schedule of plenary deliberations on the bill in Congress.

The reproductive health bill advocates said more than 10 women die daily due to pregnancy and childbirth-related causes.

“This is simply unacceptable and must be stopped. Congress has the power to do this,” the group said.

Meantime, Pampanga Archbishop and Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines-Episcopal Commission on Family and Life (ECFL) chairman Paciano Aniceto said in an interview over Radio Veritas yesterday that he is willing to seek the help of President Arroyo to prevent the reproductive health bill’s implementation just in case it becomes law.

“Just in case the reproductive health bill passes Congress, we are willing to block its implementation by making an appeal to the President. This is not a political issue, what is at stake here is the dignity of the family and the future of the (unborn) babies,” Aniceto said. – With Evelyn Macairan