Of Politics, Religion And Abandoned Babies

"What priorities amount to being more important than a grumbling stomach? Which is more important? Contraceptives or food so that they live another day?"

It seems tossing  babies or fetuses off creeks or garbage bins has become a trend nowadays. This prompts us to ask where is the compassion of a mother for the life that came out of her? No matter what the circumstances are, mothers have no right to abandon their newborn to die and just get away with their crime. I don't know how these mothers could live with the fact they killed  innocent lives from their womb and still go on with their 'dignities' intact. One recent story about a newborn baby left in the plane by his mother that has gained the nation's condemnation is one strong example, that mothers can afford to abandon their babies in order to save their own reputation. Luckily for the Gulf Air baby, he survived the ordeal.

Fetuses wrapped in plastic and thrown in  creeks, newborns struggling to breathe beneath the piles of garbage and some left in the courtyard of churches are no breaking news that could jolt our senses, not anymore. They have become mundane scenarios in our daily browsing with national news, because they are everywhere. Despite NGOs and foundations coming up with programs to help mothers with their unwanted pregnancies, many choose to do the shortcut and the easiest. It is heartbreaking to see newborn babies left to die in the cold and from insect bites beneath smothering piles of garbage. Their only crime - they are accidental babies. Some are born out of wedlock, and others born to  families with  multiple children already saddled with poverty.

‎"Babies (some are dead) found near churches and garbage" too bad, using condoms and contraceptives is a sin. better to find dead babies?, says  Facebook shoutout of Atom Araullo, an ABS-CBN broadcast journalist. He knows it and every ordinary Filipino is aware of it, that the Philippine government has ceased giving out free contraceptives for couples because of the Catholic church's  'pro-life' stance, hence  the use of contraceptives is a 'sin'. Curiosity aside, what has the Catholic church something to do with the affairs of the state? It's pretty much obvious. The state and the Catholic church  are the twin powerful entities that conspire to keep the citizenry in submission by drowning them in absolute poverty.

Let's take solace to the fact that the Philippines is a secular society where almost everything is deemed permissible. But despite that bent on secularism, we banner to the world our 'supposed' reputation of being the only pre-dominant Christian nation in Asia. I think it's about time that Philippine History books should be revised and stop misleading our children that we are what we claim to be because we've never been what we believe we are. Unspeakable crimes have been the most tangible proof of this insanity, and that cannot be denied. These fetuses and dead babies wrapped in plastic ironically found in church premises are unconsciously being offered to the Catholic church as gifts in recognition for its 'pro-life' stance, that resulted to countless unwanted pregnancies and ultimately dead babies. And why fault the government as well? Let's not forget that the power-monger and influence-wielding Catholic church has many of the top politicians under its mercy in every election. This church is capable of playing king-maker and can even throw out members from its fold. And what politician would ever love this to be under his belt?

Poverty in most cases gets the blame. That is true. Married couples who wished not to add another burden to their already heavy loads resort to abortion or worst, leaving them to die in garbages or drown in rivers. In most cases, juveniles who engage in pre-marital sex and cannot contain their lusts and end up getting pregnant, are the most likely to commit such crime. So why not use condoms and other form of contraceptives to avoid the consequence?  Good thinking. And what priorities amount to being more important than a grumbling stomach? Which is more important? Contraceptives or food so that they live another day? Gone is the dispensation when contraceptives are readily available for free in every barangay health center throughout the country. In most documentaries done by media, most families with multiple children complain of inability to buy contraceptives because of poverty. This has been a vicious cycle that sees its existence perpetuated. And we all know what and who ordains this evil among us.

I pretty much don't see the logic behind the rationale that using contraceptives is a sin. If the Catholic church cannot enforce morality within its ranks, how in the world can they enforce the same to its members? They further contend that doling out contraceptives is an encouragement to promiscuity. I am not saying that the youth of today is totally bereft of morality and sound judgment. It is amenable that our world today is ruled by media and the internet. The ordinary adult and child has an easy access to lewd and explicit sites that are not government regulated. And there are popular celebrities who engage in casual pre-marital sex to emulate. Here, danger lies in the absence of moral values within the family unit. The responsibility always comes from the parents or guardians to instill moral values in their children. Because no matter how we scare them away from the pitfalls of promiscuity, they even tend to be gravitated into it because of lack of guidance and sense of fear. In the absence of role models in the family, the Catholic church should step in with its role of vigorously initiating values-formation programs that would impact our youth morally and spiritually, rather than vigorously campaigning against the use of contraceptives even for those who do not want to bear children.

By saying so, I do not concede that this has become a lost battle just yet. It's just the reality that is hard to swallow. If the Catholic church decides it is winning the battle against 'immorality' per se, then they should think again. It's only a matter of priorities. Bloating cases of abandoned babies (some are dead) plus mounting abortion cases as against easy access to contraceptives for every adult to avoid unwanted pregnancies. Because morality cannot be enforced in a democratic society at large, it is still a matter of personal conviction. Even if you are fed daily with free contraceptives and you stand firm on your resolve, you cannot be swayed by any of these temptations. But for those endowed with raging hormones and in no way cannot control their lust, they should have an option whether to be responsible or not. Because at every conclusion and consequence, the ones who suffer are the individuals who have acted irresponsibly. And the role of the Catholic church? They will be quicker than anyone else to condemn when babies are found dead or barely alive. They will care less whether innocent lives are being killed everyday as long as they remain unperturbed with their 'noble' cause of depriving responsible adults, the means to prevent unwanted pregnancies. Thanks to both our self-serving leaders in the government and the Catholic church, this evil conspiracy waged against the poor is clearly winning its own battle. It is ironic that the state that is avowed to protect the well-being of its people becomes complicit to the crime of perpetuating their woes.

In hindsight, the death of the Reproductive Health Bill in Congress has also signaled the death of the poor's freedom of choice. Apparently, the most marginalized sector will always be at the receiving end of the demise of 'morality' in the government. With the Catholic church's success in its lobby to kill RH Bill in Congress at the expense of greedy lawmakers who thwarted its passing into law, the trend of babies abandoned in garbages signals an era extended to infinity. And with the state unable to uplift the lives of its poor citizenry because of massive graft and corruption, the poor is left with nothing but their dignity. But where is dignity when you hear the cries of hungry little ones and unable to feed them? Ah, the hungry will always have his way. Maybe an impetus to criminality? By the way, the hungry knows no dignity for it does not exist in their vocabulary. Not anymore.