Apostolic Nuncio calls for respect for human life in Dominican Republic

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Sep 19, 2007 / 08:54 am

Amidst a debate on the eventual legalization of abortion, the Apostolic Nuncio to the Dominican Republic, Archbishop Timothy Broglio called on the country’s leaders and citizens to protect all human life.

“My call as a man, a priest and a representative of the Holy Father is that human life be respected and that everything be done to respect that reality, and that the current law not be changed,” Archbishop Broglio said.  “To kill a baby before he is born is also a criminal act,” he said.

Jose Antonio Retamar, director of the international office of Fundacion Vida, said the “attempts to legalize abortion in the Dominican Republic are a test of how much corruption there is in the country’s political life.  If human feticide is allowed, then there is serious corruption among our legislators,” he added.

Retamar noted that in the Dominican Republic, which has a population of nine million, estimates are that 80,000 abortions take place per year, whereas in Spain, which has a population of 45 million and where in practice abortion on-demand is allowed, 100,000 abortions take place each year.  “This shows that the statistics on abortion are exaggerated when it is convenient to do so,” he pointed out.

Pelegrin Castillo of the National Progressive Force political party insisted that the country’s leaders “strengthen policies and programs that defend the family,” and he called on Dominicans to protect the family as “the main producer of human and social capital.”