Brazilian bishops call on government not to expand legality of abortion

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Dec 13, 2004 / 22:00 pm

The Bishops Conference of Brazil has published a statement calling on the government not to expand the legal justifications for abortion in the country and to defend human life in all of its stages.

The bishops were responding to the federal government’s announcement it will seek to broaden the exceptions for abortion, which is currently allowed in cases of rape and the life of the mother.

“We reaffirm the ethical principle of complete respect for the dignity and
life of the human being, regardless of the stage of development or condition.  
This principle, upon which all other rights of the person is based, is the
foundation and condition for a noble, just and unified society,” the bishops
said.
 
Likewise, they called for a cultivation of “a culture of life and not death.  
Scorn for human life has lead people and governments of the past and the
present to commit the greatest absurdities and has resulted in an escalation
of violence, insecurity, vengeance, murders, assaults, robberies and an
increase of misery and hunger.”

“We need to be educated on how to live with each other in unity rather than
killing one another.  Respect for the defenseless and for fragile life is an
expression of true culture and humanity,” the bishops stated, recalling as
well that only respect for life “can guarantee true peace.”