CATHOLIC YOUTH GATHERED IN THE LARGEST ANTI-RH BILL FORUM

Youth heed the call to celebrate Humanae Vitae teachings

MANILA,
July 20, 2011–In a massive display of support for the call of the
Catholic Church to reject the House Bill 4244 or the Reproductive Health
(RH) bill authored by Albay Representative Edcel Lagman, student
delegates from the Manila Archdiocesan and Parochial Schools Association
(MAPSA) and Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP)
trooped the University of Santo Tomas (UST) campus in what could be
tagged as the largest anti-RH forum ever held.

Dubbed
“Kalakbay Patungo sa Kapunuan ng Buhay at Pamilya,” the forum marking
the 43rd anniversary of Pope Paul VI’s encyclical Humanae Vitae (On
Human Life) had a combined crowd estimate of 4,000 from UST, St. Paul
Manila and Quezon City, Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle
University-Taft, Lourdes School Quezon City, Letran College-Intramuros,
St. Jude Academy, Cainta Catholic School, La Consolacion College Pasig
and Valenzuela, San Beda College, St. Mary’s College of Quezon City,
Philippine Normal University, Assumption College Makati, Technological
University of the Philippines, and Santa Catalina College-Legarda
filling the UST Chapel.

Renelyn
Tan of World Youth Alliance Asia Pacific (WYAAP) started the forum with
an overview of what Humanae Vitae is and how the youth should
appreciate the prophetic encyclical of Pope Paul VI. 

Richard
Pazcoguin of the UST Institute of Religion reiterated how the RH bill
now pending in Congress is anti-life and anti-youth.

Zambales
Representative Ma. Milagros “Mitos” Magsaysay, on the other hand, said
that the problem of maternal deaths should have been addressed by now.

“We passed a law already, but the government failed to implement the provisions of the Magna Carta for Women,” she said. 

The solon also reminded young women that they should value themselves as they are worth “more than a pack of condoms.”

A
video featuring Adamson University and UST students was presented for
deepening and workshops as part of the forum, followed by a CBCP for
Life music video shown to promote the recently launched resource portal
for family and life issues.

Student
representatives from participating schools also joined the
slogan-making activity, from which the chosen student and school would
be awarded a plaque. The slogan will be adapted for the CBCP for Life
site. 

Students
posted their entries on CBCP for Life’s Facebook page. One student from
UST Faculty of Arts and Letters posted, “God gives us what men DESERVE
to have (life), not what men DESIRE to have (contraceptives).” (Raymond
Bandril)

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