MANILA, Oct. 24, 2009— Of five presidential aspirants who recently affirmed their stand on sensitive issues like birth control, only Olongapo Councilor John Carlos (JC) de los Reyes is opposed to the use of contraceptives in family planning.

De los Reyes ruled out a population campaign that would promote the use of contraception, although he conceded that rapid population growth is hindering economic development in the country.

The Ang Kapatiran Party’s standard bearer said the government should curb population growth by educating couples on responsible parenthood and through natural means of family planning.

He said he is against the Reproductive Health, which according to the proponents will address the issue of unwanted pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, malnutrition, unemployment and poverty.

“Being a Catholic faithful, I have to be at the forefront in the fight for life,” said De los Reyes, a low-key councilor and a member of the Gordon clan in Olongapo City.

MDGs

At a leaders’ forum at the Asian Institute of Management in Makati City last Tuesday, five presidential aspirants declared their positions on how to address poverty, provide access to education and improve maternal health care.

These concerns are among the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that the Philippines has committed to achieve by 2015.

The three-hour forum was organized to also know the platform and position of presidential aspirants on reproductive health, sex education and other issues.

Aside from De los Reyes, the other presidential aspirants include former president Joseph Estrada, Senators Richard Gordon and Francis Escudero, and environment activist Nicolas Perlas.

The five discussed their priorities should they win the government’s highest position in 2010.

Organized by the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines and the United Nations Development Program, the forum ended with the five aspirants assuring support for the achievement of the MDGs by 2015.

The presidential wannabes sealed their guarantee to support the MDGs through a symbolic hand print but De los Reyes later wrote in the hand print plaque that he is for the program except the “reproductive health code.”

“You can’t separate faith from political life. As a Catholic, my role is to assert my principle and values to the society,” De los Reyes said.

Contraceptives

Of the five presidential aspirants, only Estrada was fully supportive of the RH bill, and De los Reyes was the sole guest who was totally against it.

The three others—Gordon, Escudero, and Perlas—expressed reservations on some provisions of the controversial measure.

All of them, except De los Reyes, also agreed that the government should promote and spend for contraceptives.

“I am against abortion in all cases and the use of birth control pills and condoms even among married couples,” De los Reyes said.

Aside from promoting artificial family planning, RH bill will also include sex education for students and advice on artificial contraception, which the Church considers as immoral.

Population control is a touchy issue in the Philippines—Asia’s only predominantly Catholic nation—with the Church opposing government programs that promote the use of contraceptives. (Roy Lagarde)