Ruling by Chilean high court is application of existing law protecting life

Santiago, Chile, Apr 8, 2008 / 17:09 pm

In an interview with the Catholic News Agency, attorney Carmen Dominguez said the decision of the Chilean Constitutional Court to declare the distribution of the morning after pill unconstitutional is a logical application of existing law, which protects the life of the unborn.

“We can’t give a more informed opinion because the final ruling by the court has not yet been made official, but no doubt it entails an application of the essential principle in Chilean law to respect unborn life,” said Dominguez, who has led the effort to get the pill declared unconstitutional by the Court.

The ruling to protect the life of the unborn does not constitute an “exceptional decision” or “any kind of innovation” in the law, she stressed, as it simply “reaffirms a principle that has always been protected by Chilean law, which is that the embryo has complete protection.”

She also pointed out that the Court was only asked to rule on the constitutionality of an order by the Chilean government to distribute the drug, “and therefore it is absurd to divert the discussion to other issues such as whether or not the pill will be available to the poor.”

Dominguez noted that the ruling cannot be appealed and that the high court “has the final word” on the issue.