Aquino: I’m against abortion

MANILA, Philippines—Shortly after his speech at the University of the Philippines graduation rites, President Benigno Aquino made it clear that a responsible parenthood program under his administration would make natural and modern family planning methods “equally available” to all couples.

The President issued the clarification in a five-point declaration titled “President Aquino’s stand on responsible parenthood.” It was posted on the Official Gazette (www.gov.ph) on the same day he told UP graduates that he would ensure that such a law was passed under his watch despite strong opposition from Catholics and other pro-life advocates.

“I am against abortion,” Mr. Aquino said in the declaration, adding that he was in favor of “giving couples the right to choose how best to manage their families so that in the end, their welfare and that of their children are best served.”

“In a situation where couples, especially the poor and disadvantaged ones, are in no position to make an informed judgment, the state has the responsibility to so provide,” he said. “In the range of options and information provided to couples, natural family planning and modern methods shall be presented as equally available.”

The President also put a premium on individual conscience, the primacy of which Church leaders and moral theologians have long maintained could not be made the sole barometer of sound judgment.

But Aquino, a Catholic, said: “The state must respect each individual’s right to follow his or her conscience and religious convictions on matters and issues pertaining to the unity of the family and the sacredness of human life, from conception to natural death.”

In his message for Easter Sunday, the most important day for Catholics, the President took yet another swipe at the previous administration, saying it left him a “calvary” of problems to solve.

“Gaano man kadilim ang kabanatang ating dinaanan, ang pagsusulong ng tapat at mabuting pamamahala, kaakibat ang matibay na pagtitiwala at pagkakaisa, ang pundasyon natin upang malampasan ang kalbaryong ating dinatnan (However dark the chapter we’ve gone through, pursuing good governance, together with strong faith in unity, is the foundation for us to overcome the calvary we inherited),” he said.

He urged the public to keep faith in the campaign against graft and corruption, the overriding theme of his 10-month-old administration.

“Sa pagwawakas ng Semana Santa, hindi sana magtapos dito ang ating taimtim na pananalig sa Panginoon. Ipagpatuloy natin ang pagtupad sa Kaniyang mga aral at lalo pa nating paigtingin ang ating pagkakawanggawa (As the end of the Holy Week draws near, I hope that our faith in the Lord would never as well end. Let us continue observing His teachings and boost charity),” he said.

Aquino asked the faithful to draw on the “spirit” of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice to realize their contribution in putting an end to corruption.

“Bawat isa sa atin ay may maiaambag sa pagtuldok sa katiwalian upang maisalba sa hirap at pasakit ang marami nating kababayan. Sa pamamagitan lamang nito, mararamdaman ng bawat Pilipino ang tunay na liwanag ng pagbabago (Everybody has something to contribute in putting an end to corruption to haul out from suffering and poverty our many countrymen. Only through this that every Filipino will see genuine change),” he said.