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Contraceptives are an infinitely lesser evil than maternal death and abortion

Press Statements

 

If condom use is the lesser evil than the spread of HIV/AIDS as clarified by Papal sources, then contraceptives are an infinitely lesser evil than maternal death and abortion.

 Family planning and contraception save lives by helping women avoid high risk pregnancies which often end in maternal and infant death or morbidity.

 According to the National Statistics Office, maternal deaths in the Philippines account for one out of every seven deaths in women of reproductive age, making maternal death a grave risk for women in this age group.

 Both the WHO and the UNFPA have asserted that “one in three deaths relating to pregnancy and childbirth could be avoided if women who wanted to use contraception could access it.”

 The WHO also concludes that if women have information and access to contraceptives and are taught to use them properly, “the fall in maternal mortality is likely to be even greater than the fall in the pregnancy rate.”

 Moreover, studies conducted by the WHO have also revealed that helping women plan their families through regular and proper use of modern contraceptives can help prevent one million infant and child deaths annually worldwide as too closely spaced and repetitive pregnancies impact negatively on child survival.

 There is an inverse relationship between contraception and abortion because unintended pregnancies are the ones being terminated through abortion. The regular and correct use of contraceptives reduces the incidence of abortion by as much as 85% according to the empirical studies of the Guttmacher Institute.

 Clearly, a pregnancy that is planned and wanted will not be aborted. It is therefore only logical to conclude that the more women can avoid unintended and mistimed pregnancies through effective family planning, the less the incidence of abortion will be.

 The UP Population Institute estimates that there are 300,000 to 500,000 induced abortions performed in the country annually or as many as 16 out of every 100 pregnancies ending in abortion.

 Bioethics theologians have also clarified that the Pope’s permission for the use of condoms for health reasons covers heterosexual relations, not only to “male prostitutes”.

 This is a very welcome development as it signals the liberalization of the stand of the Catholic Church when it comes to condom use to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS. The moderation of the Church’s position on condoms today to prevent the spread of a deadly disease may ultimately evolve to include the use of condoms and other contraceptives to prevent high risk pregnancies.

 The use of condoms to prevent HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections also effectively prevents pregnancy.