The Catholic Church held an anti-RH Bill prayer rally at the Quirino Grandstand.
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(SPOT.ph) Reproductive Health (RH) Bill supporters shrugged off the Catholic Church’s anti-RH Bill prayer rally held at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila on Friday, reports ABS-CBN News.
Democratic Socialist Women of the Philippines chairperson Beth Angsioco said that despite the church’s efforts to promote the rally during masses and through the media, only 40,000 people attended the gathering-the same approximate of the Manila Police District, according to GMA News Online.
Angsioco told ABS-CBN News that they do not plan on holding their own rally to show their number of supporters. "Kumpiyansa ang aming grupo at iba ang advocate ng RH bill na maisasabatas sa lalong madaling panahon ang RH bill (We are confident that the RH Bill will be passed)."
Meanwhile, Ramon San Pascual, executive director of the Philippine Legislators Committee on Population and Development, said many attendees of the prayer rally do not understand what they are fighting for. He told ABS-CBN News that his group will continue their educational campaign on the RH Bill.
The Church’s prayer rally against the RH Bill coincided with the Roman Catholic Feast of the Annunciation or Day of the Unborn, according to GMA News Online. Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim, Lim’s predecessor Lito Atienza and other anti-RH Bill personalities spoke at the event, while Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao sent statements read at the gathering.
Following the prayer rally, anti-RH Bill gatherings were held in different areas in Mindanao and Laguna over the weekend. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said 50,000 pro-life advocates participated in the Mindanao rallies.
The CBCP also declared the cities of San Pablo, Calamba, Santa Rosa and Biñan in Laguna "pro-life" and "family-friendly" zones after approximately 7,000 residents joined the CBCP’s "Walk for Life" march on Sunday.
For more on this story, log on to ABS-CBN News and GMA News Online.
