Pres. Barack Obama's reversal on abortion funding ban deserves praise

When then-candidate Barack Obama promised influential change, I already believed in him. Very recently as the new president, he restored US funding for organizations that promote safe and legal abortion as well as life-saving abortion services. This complete reversal on the ban reactivated in 2001 by failed US president George W. Bush is, in my personal opinion, a corrective measure and a step going the right way.

It does not end there though. Obama's act goes on to promote safe motherhood, reducing maternal and infant mortality, and provide educational and economic opportunities for both women and girls. His act will show the big difference between life and death for the 500,000 women all over the country who were driven to complications from unsafe abortion, as well as psychological damage.

Because our country is overpopulated and manipulated by religious leaders, more Filipinos are falling below poverty and as such family planning is needed more than ever. It is time we, Filipinos, should be serious in planning the future of our families and resist the long-lasting misconception that multiplying leads to prosperity and peace. In addition, women's rights and choices should be strengthened.

Obama's pro-family planning act is in line with the guidelines of international human rights law. Women all over the Philippines can become better off by dismissing the colonial mindset and focusing on the scientific, legal and civil aspect of family planning. With this new development, there is now a need to approve the pending Reproductive Health bill in Congress. Obama has paved the way. It is entirely up to us to follow his lead.

Dina Layam

Aznar Road, Cebu City