Miriam: RH bill part of right to privacy

MANILA, Philippines – The Reproductive Health measure is an affirmation of the constitutional right to privacy as stipulated in several Supreme Court decisions, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago said yesterday.

“The Supreme Court has recognized a right to privacy, even if there is no specific constitutional provision, because it is implied by several provisions in the Bill of Rights,” Santiago said in her co-sponsorship speech on the RH bill.

“The right to privacy applies to sex, marriage, and procreation,” she said.

“The Constitution, directly or indirectly, does not prohibit the RH bill. Therefore, in constitutional terms, this Senate is free to enact this bill,” she added.

“The state cannot restrict the right of married persons to use contraceptives. The state cannot prohibit distribution of contraceptives to unmarried persons. And the state cannot require that contraceptives should be sold only by pharmacists,” Santiago said, citing several court decisions, including some handed down by the US Supreme Court.

Santiago said the SC is likely to seek direction or draw inputs from its US counterpart on right to privacy issues.

She said the right to privacy first appeared in the 1965 US Supreme Court ruling on the case of Griswold v. Connecticut.

The US Court held that a law was invalid because it restricted the right of married persons to use contraceptives.

In the 1972 case of Eisenstadt v. Baird, the US court held that another law was invalid because it prohibited the distribution of contraceptives to unmarried persons.

In the 1977 case of Carey v. Population Services International, the US court voided a law which allowed only pharmacists to sell non-medical contraceptives to persons over 16 years old, and which prohibited the sale of such items to individuals under 16 years old.

She also said the Philippines is signatory to several international treaties requiring the passage of reproductive health measures or similar laws.

“A treaty is like a contract. If we fail to pass the RH bill, we are breaking our contract with other states,” she said.

The treaties, she said, include the 1968 Proclamation of Teheran; 1976 International Covenant on Economic, Cultural, and Social Rights; 1979 UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW); and 1994 Program of Action of International Conference on Population and Development.

“Every treaty in force is binding upon the parties and must be performed by them in good faith,” she pointed out.

Position firm

At Malacañang, presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said that while the Aquino administration acknowledges the “moral objection” of the Roman Catholic Church to the RH bill, the state has an “obligation to make sure that the choices and the family size should be provided to the public.”

“From the very start, the (Catholic) church will not agree to the RP (responsible parenthood) bill, owing to the fact that there are provisions which encourage the use of the artificial planning method,” Lacierda said.

The dialogues over the issue between the Aquino administration and opponents of the bill, particularly Catholic bishops, ended in stalemate.

“We have asked the CBCP many times. And we understand their moral objections to the RP bill. Knowing that they are against the RP bill, the President has already decided to make it as a priority measure,” he said.

“We respect the decision of the CBCP, knowing that from their point of view, they are against the RP bill,” he said.

“So, we respect their position. It’s a matter of making sure on the part of government, we’ll be able to inform the public of the nature and the purpose of this responsible parenthood bill,” Lacierda added.

Lacierda said the President felt the need to “emphasize the use of natural family planning method” in light of accusations that the government’s stand “was purely pro-artificial family planning.”

“So, the President mentioned: Look, we are not colorblind with respect to the methods of family planning. So, we emphasize that both natural and artificial family planning methods will be encouraged by the state,” he said.

Acceptable

The “clarificatory amendments” to the RH bill proposed by President Aquino are “acceptable” and “did not water down nor dilute the bill since its salient features have been retained,” House Minority Leader and Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman said yesterday.

“The President himself rejected the insinuation that Malacañang watered down the RH bill as he explained that the principal provisions remain intact like freedom of informed choice, promotion of all medically safe, legal and effective methods of contraception, sexuality and reproductive health education among the young and adequate government funding,” Lagman said in a statement.

“In fact, the Office of the President did not anymore craft its own version of a responsible parenthood bill and instead endorsed for priority enactment HB 4244 which the President considered ‘more comprehensive,’” he said.

Lagman is the lead proponent of the RH bill in the House.

The amendments include the deletion of the phrase “sexual orientation” in the provision against discrimination found in the “Declaration of Policy” since non-discrimination based on “sex” is already encompassing.

Also dropped was the phrase “funding support to promote natural methods of family planning” considering that all forms of medically safe, legal and effective family planning methods are to be promoted.

The requirement for accredited health facilities to provide a full range of modern family planning methods will be made optional to “hospitals owned and operated by a religious group” in deference to different religious beliefs.

Mandatory age-appropriate reproductive health and sexuality education shall start from “Grade 6” instead of Grade 5 stipulated in the original version.

The teaching of values formation, based on the amended version, would be made “with due regard to religious affiliation.”

Praises

President Aquino drew praises for his inclusion of the RH bill in the 13 priority legislations.

“The President has always said that he is in support of responsible parenthood and reproductive health and now he has made a call to legislators to hurry up on their debate and vote on it already,” former health secretary Esperanza Cabral said.

“It’s the poor who do not want to have anymore children than they obviously can take care of who need to have access to family planning and reproductive health services. I’m glad that the President had made the final step to assure the quick passage of the bill,” she added.

“We are so happy that finally, after so many years, there is a President who truly listens to the voice of his people,” said Benjamin de Leon, president of the Forum for Family Planning and Development and commissioner of the Commission on Population.

“We particularly commend the Cabinet secretaries such as Secretary Enrique Ona, Secretary Dinky Soliman among others for rallying behind the RH bill. Now we are rallying behind them and our legislators,” De Leon said.

Elizabeth Angsioco, chairperson of the Democratic Socialist Women of the Philippines (DSWP), also lauded Aquino’s move but vowed to remain vigilant.

Angsioco said the passage of the RH bill may become the Aquino administration’s biggest legacy to women, especially those living in poverty.

“His action just shows that he is listening to the voices of his constituents and this can help fast-track the debate in both houses,” Dr. Eden Divinagracia, executive director of the Philippine NGO Council on Population Health and Welfare Inc., said.

Members of the Reproductive Health Advocacy Network (RHAN) also praised Aquino’s move.

But for Fr. Melvin Castro, executive secretary of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines Episcopal Commission on Family and Life, Aquino’s move was a disturbing development.

“The fight is not yet over. We have just started and it would take a long time before the issue is settled,” said Castro.

“I doubt that he (President Aquino) would veto that. Let us just pray for him even if it pains me to think that he preferred to listen to the advice of other people, he preferred to listen to the theories that the solution to poverty is depopulation. Let us pray for him and we would not stop in believing that he would be enlightened,” he said. with Helen Flores, Sheila Crisostomo, Evelyn Macairan, Paolo Romero, Marvin Sy and Delon Porcalla (The Philippine Star)