Religious movement protests against abortion rights

RIGA - Latvia's Catholic pro-life organization Par Dzivibu (For Life) last week submitted a petition with 7,000 signatures opposing reproductive health legislation that re-affirms the legality of abortion, arguing a woman can choose for herself but not her unborn baby.

Karlis Cerans, deputy chairman of Par Dzivibu, said he shares the Catholic Church's view that every abortion is murder.

"Every child that is conceived has a right to live, and if a child is conceived it is the parents' duty to see the pregnancy through," Cerans said.

Ilze Melgalve, executive director of Latvia's Association for Family Planning and Sexual Health, disagrees.

"Pro-life people who are against abortion have forgotten that people should be able to choose abortion," Melgalve said. "We don't say that it's a good thing, but we are saying it should be an option. There are circumstances which prove abortion should be an option, such as incest cases and other cases of sexual violance."

Cerans, however, waves off such arguments, saying those cases are so few they have no bearing.

"These cases are very rare," Cerans said. "It can be seen that these cases are very hard, but even in these cases abortion still means killing of an innocent life."

Cerans is adamant in his opinions that a woman may be in control of her own body but not in control of her unborn infant's body.

Since 1991 Latvia has seen more abortions than live child births. In 1999, there were 19,328 live births and 22,970 abortions.

Melgalve doesn't think the abortion numbers are high because abortion is simply an easier option, but rather that information on contraceptives and alternatives is lacking.

Latvia's population growth is also in the red. Latvia had the second steepest rate of population decline in 1999 among the 41 member states of the Council of Europe, second only to Belarus. The Latvian population decreased by seven persons per 1,000 inhabitants last year.

Recent surveys in Europe show that its population will be almost halved by the year 2050 if current trends continue.

Cerans blame this downward spiral on organizations fighting for abortion rights and contraception, saying they are responsible for the demographic crisis in Europe.

"In some years we will need millions of immigrants to help us with employment so we'll have money for pensions," he said.

Melgalve laughed off Cerans' accusations, certain that he is misinformed about what her organization is doing.

"It's a strange thing that people see a link between the demographic crisis and contraceptives," she said. "People should be informed about their sexual and reproductive life."

The Association for Family Planning and Sexual Health sees it as a fundamental human right to be able to make informed choices regarding sexual and reproductive health. The association is currently working together with the Latvian government to design and implement a national family planning strategy.

It is this issue that Par Dzivibu is opposing with its petition, which was handed to Latvian Parliament Speaker Janis Straume Feb. 24.

The Parliament speaker told the Baltic News Service he will send the petition to the State Chancellery. The Parliament's committee for human rights and social affairs will also examine the document in detail.

Straume refused to comment on his own position regarding permitting or prohibiting abortions.

The pro-life movement started collecting signatures for the petition last year, when Parliament started discussing the bill, which is due for a second reading in Parliament.

Par Dzivibu also opposes the use of contraceptives, echoing the official stance of the Vatican.

Cerans is convinced that the more people are encouraged to use contraceptives, the more reckless they will become.

"Contraception does not prevent anything," Cerans said. "Promotion of contraceptives leads to free sexual behavior which in itself helps spread diseases."

There is no shortage of contraceptives in Latvia, a clear difference from the Soviet era, Melgalve said.

"During Soviet times, there were not many options and abortion was a form of contraceptive, but today we are far from that society," she said.

Cerans believes the issue of protecting women from complicated pregnancies by aborting the fetus should be discuss within the medical community.

"What should not be allowed is any action directed toward killing an innocent child," he started, before adding "There are, however, cases when unborn children die during operations trying to save the mother's life, and this needs discussing."