OSG’s improper entry
BY AMADO P. MACASAET
Reproductive Health notes
A.G ROMUALDEZ JR., M.D
‘The comments are the first indication that Benedict XVI has7 begun taking note of scientific evidence.’
ONLY last year, Pope Benedict XVI caused outrage in the global HIV/AIDS community by stating that the use of condoms may worsen the AIDS pandemic. Apparently that statement was premised on an assertion, made by Catholic extremists such as some members of Opus Dei, that the AIDS virus can easily penetrate condoms rendering them ineffective in the prevention of transmission. That assertion does not have any scientific basis and health experts had long debunked it.
Last Sunday, a startling announcement from the Vatican implied that the Pope had changed his position with regards to condoms as a protective device against the human immunodeficiency virus. "In certain cases, where the intention is to reduce the risk of infection, it can nevertheless be a first step on the way to another, more humane sexuality," the head of the Roman Catholic Church was quoted as saying.
Even as some reproductive health activists hailed the revelation as a triumph, more sober observers noted that the Pontiff had made no mention about contraception in relation to the use of condoms. However, the comments are the first indication that Benedict XVI has begun taking note of scientific evidence. Even more significantly, his reference to a "more humane sexuality" is evidence of the sincere compassion that His Holiness demonstrated in the way he has thus far handled the pedophile controversy that still plagues the Church.
There is room to hope that compassion and concern for the suffering of poor people will now begin to inform dogmatic pronouncements that have heretofore dominated the arguments of anti-reproductive health activists. Perhaps after this, the discussions on reproductive health legislation for our country will take a turn toward civility and reasonableness.
Nevertheless, extremism dies hard especially in the face of obvious majority support for government provision of family planning information and services. Protests and threats sometimes appear to be the only way that the minority can be heard. Indeed, as Congress moves closer to approving the measures, oppositors appear to become even more shrill.
Even as meetings between Catholics bishops and the President are being negotiated, there are plans to stage "prayer meetings" and "protest marches" by a number of Catholic groups such as "El Shaddai" - which in fact turned out to be political duds in the last national elections. Because these types of activities are susceptible to demagoguery and political grandstanding they tend to be unhelpful in rational discourse concerning real life issues. They are nevertheless acceptable forms of expressions of beliefs and should not be suppressed.
More troubling is the threat to freedom of expression underlying the call of a congressman to deport a visiting academic who stated that the Philippines faces the possibility of becoming a failed state if the linked problems of grinding poverty and growing inequalities are not soon addressed. Fortunately, knowledgeable people have stopped taking seriously the pronouncements of this militaristic legislator (trained in the naval academy of the world’s only remaining military superpower) as he quotes authoritatively from "google searches" and "Wikipedia".
Irrelevantly, the solon demands deportation of an expert simply because he pioneered in the use of modern methods of safe abortion such as the "Manual Vacuum Aspirator" (MVA). The fact that the academic in question never applied his methods in this country with its antiquated "anti-abortion" laws did not appear to be significant in the logic of the congressman.
It is worrisome that authoritarian thinking like this may be applicable to Filipinos, like this column writer, who believe that abortion during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is not illegal and that the use of manual vacuum aspiration during this period is justified under certain circumstances. If foreigners can be deported for their beliefs, the prosecution of citizens for espousing the same thoughts may not be far behind. Hopefully, such despotic attitudes will never be vested with executive power at either local or national levels.
But the congressional sage was even more outraged by the reference to a failed state. He said that the population expert had "insulted the Philippines by comparing us to super backward Somalia whose economy is based on virtually livestock only, compared to our sophisticated industry and economy. Not to mention their long history of civil wars and warlordism." Apparently, the so-called representative of the people of his district forgets that twice recently we came close to civil war - averted only by the refusal of two besieged presidents to fire upon civilians. More relevantly, he is in denial about the numerous private armies of his colleagues who in fact behave like warlords.
As a footnote, it may be worth noting that the Batasan scholar’s favored bibliographic reference, "Wikipedia", makes the following observation: "Ancient pyramidal structures, tombs, ruined cities and stone walls such as the Wargaade Wall littered in Somalia are evidence of an ancient sophisticated civilization that once thrived in the Somali peninsula".
A recent issue of "The Lancet", a prominent medical journal in the United Kingdom, seemed to be warning that "raising funds may be harmful to health." This is implied by an article on the way UNICEF (United Nations Childrens Education Fund) has conducted its fund raising in Canada.
The report noted that "Cadbury", well-known internationally for its chocolate products, had pledged $500,000 over three years for UNICEF Canada’s program to build schools in such poor countries as Malawi and Rwanda. The sweets company was thus allowed to put in a blurb under a UNICEF logo in its packaging material that states: "Just by purchasing this product you are helping to give children in Africa a chance at a better life".
The Lancet observes that "in a country where more than 20% of adults are clinically obese, encouraging products which are undeniably unhealthy is irresponsible" and quotes Amir Attaran of the University of Ottawa as saying that this undercuts the credibility of "UNICEF whose raison d’être is to promote childhood health and nutrition, and to do so in an evidence-based way.
The journal article says further: "Corporate partnerships are essential for charities, but at what cost? $500,000 is a drop in the ocean in the context of UNICEF’s worldwide income of approximately $3,320 million in 2009. According to UNICEF’s policies, such use of the logo is permitted.... Clearly, UNICEF needs to take a hard look at how they use their brand and consider the long-term implications of their actions. Worryingly, UNICEF is also ‘prepared to consider alliances with corporate affiliates of companies in the alcohol or tobacco industry’ even if only under strict limits. The stringency and specificity of guidelines for entering into corporate partnerships must be increased to ensure that future decisions are in the best interests of all children. In the current environment of economic hardship, such relations could become increasingly common as charities fight to survive and big companies that sell unhealthy products find it easier to buy institutional goodwill."
One wonders about the position of the Philippine tobacco industry in this regard.