Len spends most of her time ruminating on her writings that never made it to paper; keeps sane by reading books and listening to music. She reviews most of them out of love and the joy of it.
Bits: Carlos Celdran was jailed yesterday after holding up a placard with the words, "Damaso" on it inside the Manila Cathedral. Damaso is a character from the Jose Rizal's book, Noli Me Tangere, who's depicted as an abusive Spanish friar (priest). This protest was held by Celdran in defiance to the Philippines' Catholic Church stand against the Reproductive Health Bill or RH Bill being pushed in the Congress.Latest news have reported that the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines or CBCP's officials have already filed a case against Celdran for "offending religious feelings." They have also earlier threatened President Aquino with excommunication for backing up the RH Bill.
Carlos Celdran works as a tourists' guide in the Philippines and known among social circle as a staunch supporter of preserving cultural heritage and promoting tourism. The Reproductive Health (RH) Bill if passed will cover the following:
• information and access to natural and modern family planning;
• maternal, infant and child health and nutrition;
• promotion of breast feeding;
• prevention of abortion and management of post-abortion complications;
• adolescent and youth health; prevention and management of reproductive tract infections, HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases;
• elimination of violence against women; counseling on sexuality and sexual and reproductive health;
• treatment of breast and reproductive tract cancers;
• male involvement and participation in reproductive health;
• prevention and treatment of infertility; and
• reproductive health education for the youth.
There's nothing wrong with the bill, right? It merely provides the citizens with access to information about other alternatives to natural family planning, support from the government, and being educated on reproductive health. I really can't comprehend why the Philippines' Catholic bishops are making a big fuzz out of this one. And I hope they release Carlos because the bishops were the first one to threaten to initiate civil disobedience and excommunicating the President. How about cleaning their backyard first before making such a noise?
