Filipino Catholic Church Continues to Fight Family Planning

In 2012, the Philippines enacted the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act, providing for family planning. But implementing the law has not been easy with opposition from the Catholic Church. “The law polarized the Philippines, a predominantly Catholic country, with a growing 100 million population,” writes Marilen J. Danguilan for Asia Sentinel. Opponents have removed funding for contraceptives and other family programs. Polls suggest more than 90 percent of Filipinos oppose abortion, but 70 percent of unwanted pregnancies are terminated because families cannot afford the children. The country’s fertility rate is 3, reduced by half in recent decades. The unemployment rate for the Philippines averaged near 9 percent between 1994 and 2014, but has since fallen below 6 percent. More than 2 million Filipinos, many parents, work overseas. – YaleGlobal