MANILA, Philippines?The Philippine Legislators Committee on Population and Development (PLCPD) composed of, among others, some authors of the reproductive health bills pending in Congress, have asked the public not to consider abortion as a family planning method.

?Legalization of abortion is not the right approach to address the increasing number of mothers dying every day due to pregnancy and pregnancy-related complications,? PLCPD executive director Ramon San Pascual said Sunday in a statement.

He said the PLCPD strongly opposed the call of the New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR) for Congress to pass a law that would permit abortion in the country.

?Abortion is not part of the PLCPD?s proposed measures on reproductive health and [we are] not part of any group calling for the legalization of abortion in the Philippines,? San Pascual said.

And while abortion was illegal, the government must still ensure that all women needing post-abortion care must be treated in a ?humane and non-judgmental manner,? the PLCPD said.

Another group, Ang Kapatiran Party (AKP), also condemned CRR?s ?reckless, irresponsible and inhuman? call for the legalization of abortion in the country.

In a statement, AKP said that CRR, a foreign law firm, ?wrongly blames the continued criminalization of abortion as a source of women?s rights violations.?

?Our nation?s pro-life laws do not violate the rights of women. Rather, they protect the inalienable right to life of all persons, including the unborn, around half of whom are female,? AKP said.

The CRR report had said that many Filipino women turned to abortion for economic reasons.