Hundreds marched against abortion

Religious leaders in the Commonwealth challenged the community Monday night to stand up and openly oppose any abortion-related practices on the island to protect the rights of women and the unborn.

During the March for Life Rally, members of various religious groups and government agencies gathered in front of DFS Galleria and walked all the way to the American Memorial Park where a prayer rally was held.

The group was led by Christians for Life Rev. Reymond Kinsela and Fr. Joe Belloti, SJ who both asked the public to take a stand against abortion which claimed thousands of lives for the past years.

Based on the statistics provided by the organization, more than 14 million abortion cases since 1972 were reported in the United States alone, where 56 for every 1,000 women who had abortion are between 18 to 19 years old.

The March for Life Rally was staged in hopes to educate the community on the adverse effect of abortion practices not only on the moral side of the individual involved but the long term effects of the operation.

The call came after reports received that there is a continued increase in abortion-related practices in the Commonwealth and the proposed entry of abortion pill in the Northern Marianas.

Keynote speaker Sen. Pete P. Reyes discussed during the program the harms that abortion can bring to millions of women.

“There is nothing convenient about abortion, there is nothing safe about abortion, the millions of men who have participated in them have robbed themselves of their God-given responsibility to father these children”, the senator said.

Mr. Reyes further explained that abortion is not merely a woman’s right or a legal issue since millions of women who have had an abortion know that compared to trauma of an unplanned pregnancy, there is even greater emotional stress after an abortion.

The rally was the last activity for the celebration of life month this January where series of information dissemination, seminars and workshops participated by experts from various fields were conducted.

In support to this call, the Third CNMI Youth Congress also issued a resolution taking a pro-life stand on the issue of abortion.

Introduced by Youth Senator Joshua Blalock, the youngest policy-making body explained that youth senators recognize that life already exist at the time of conception and that in the process of abortion, a unique and individual life will be unwillfully taken.

In addition to this, youth senators acknowledged also that abortion can be harmful to the carrier of the child in either an emotional or physical way.

In a strong statement advocating pro-life, the House of Representatives earlier adopted a resolution supporting a month-long campaign by various church organizations on the islands against abortion.

The House leadership will be part of the efforts to raise awareness in the community on the need to safeguard the life on a mother’s womb, according to House Floor Leader Oscar M. Babauta.

Different church groups have joined hands to mark January as “Celebration of Life Month” with various activities, including a prayer vigil and a march.

“This is a strong statement for the community that we are one with them, that we are behind the group’s efforts in educating our people that abortion is not a way of life here,” he told in an interview.

It comes as lawmakers are being confronted with the controversial issue on abortion since some quarters in the island community have pressed the government to comply with the Roe vs. Wade ruling allowing abortion on the first trimester of pregnancy.

Last November, House members watched a showing of a video documentary tackling abortion as part of the campaign to drum up support against the issue.

Church leaders and pro-life advocates forming “Christians for Life” showed the documentary “Eclipse of Reason” in which a doctor, who used to performed abortions in his private clinic, spoke of his conversion.

The group organized last May amid the debate on the legality of abortion in the CNMI. The Constitution bans abortion on the islands unless lawmakers pass a law to legalize it. The Legislature has yet to approve any bill despite two measures introduced in the last four years that failed to get its votes.

Abortion has become a thorny issue in this predominantly Roman Catholic island community. Religious leaders from various church denominations have launched the campaign in a bid to counter renewed debate on the controversial issue.

House Speaker Benigno R. Fitial has put his foot down to any proposal that will change the constitutional ban on abortion, saying the only legislation acceptable to the House leadership is one that will provide penalties against violation of that mandate.