President of Peruvian Bishops Conference says “Morning after pill is unconstitutional”

Lima, Peru, Mar 25, 2004 / 22:00 pm

The president of the Peruvian Bishops Conference, Bishop Hugo Hugo Garaycoa Hawkins said the abortifacient contraceptive, known as the “morning after pill,” which is the focus of a legal debate in the country, should not be approved because it is unconstitutional.

During the celebration of the Day of the Unborn Child, Bishop Garaycoa said the government “would fall into a serious error if it promotes the spread of the contraceptive drug known as the ‘morning after pill,’ because since it causes the death of a fertilized ovum it is unconstitutional.”

Bishop Garaycoa said that the Peruvian Constitution defends life from the moment of conception and that the “morning after pill” attacks it by preventing the implantation of the embryo in the uterus.

Bishop Garaycoa made his statements during a press conference for the “Day of the Unborn Child,” which was instituted by the Bishops of Peru in 2001.

During the press conference, a new outreach called “Spiritual Adoption of a Child in Danger of Abortion” was unveiled as a confirmation of the Church’s position against abortion and in defense of the life of the unborn child.

The outreach program consists in recruiting individuals to commit to prayer during nine months for the life of an unborn child, and at the end of this period, perform an act of social service for children who are born into poverty or are abandoned.

After presenting the new outreach program, Bishop Garaycoa blessed a new center for the evangelization of families and society, which was created by a group of Catholic businessmen to provide spiritual and professional formation to young people and adults.