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 News Around the Republic of Mexico | July 2005 
Morning-After Pill Leads To Government Divisions
 Wire services
Mexico's decision to offer free "morning-after" birth-control pills at public hospitals has divided President Vicente Fox's government and enraged church leaders in the world's second-biggest Catholic country.
Health Secretary Julio Frenk on July 11 ordered public clinics to provide the pills. A week later, Interior Secretary Carlos Abascal asked Fox to reconsider after a meeting with Cardinal Norberto Rivera, the nation's highest ranking cleric and an opponent of birth control.
The debate within the cabinet shows how the issue has resonated in the country, where 92 percent of the population is Catholic and the birthrate of women aged 15 to 19 is the highest among the 30 countries within the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
"There has to be an effort to explain to society how this pill works," said Dr. Jacobo Finkelman, the representative for the World Health Organization based in Mexico. "It's an important tool to reduce unwanted pregnancy, particularly among teenagers, and can help reduce abortions." The government has given public hospitals three months to comply with the decree, which has dominated the front pages and opinion columns of the Reforma, El Universal and the country's other large newspapers for the past two weeks.
Abascal, 56, called on the government to stop the program on July 18. In comments made after leaving a conference he was attending in Mexico City, he said his "commitment to life is inalienable." Frenk, 51, said July 25 he would meet with Abascal and church leaders next week to explain his decision.
Mexico joins Brazil, the world's largest Catholic country, Chile and 70 other nations in allowing the pill to be sold or distributed at public clinics as an emergency contraceptive, according to the World Health Organization. China reduced abortions by 60 percent after introducing the pill, Frenk said.
The pill Mexico is making available contains levonorgestrel, which prevents ovulation and doesn't cause abortion, according to a March 2005 fact sheet released by the World Health Organization. That makes it different from another dayafter pill called RU486, which causes abortion. Levonorgestrel pills must be taken up to 72 hours after sex to prevent pregnancy.
Cardinal Rivera, who continues to campaign against the pill, urged Fox on July 26 to rethink the program, according to an interview broadcast by Radio Formula. Frenk's pill is a "weapon against innocent children," Cardinal Rivera said July 17 in comments broadcast on national television.
The program has also split opinion within Fox's National Action Party (PAN). Santiago Creel and Felipe Calderón, who plan to seek the party's nomination for president in 2006, said they were against the pill. Party spokesman Marco Adame urged Fox to reconsider the plan in a July 19 press conference.
"Girls find themselves facing unwanted pregnancy, often because of ignorance or promiscuity," said Sen. Cecilia Romero, a member of the PAN, in a telephone interview. "That shouldn't lead to the conclusion that this pill must be among the medicines offered at public hospitals."
First lady Marta Sagahún defended the government's decision in comments made after leaving mass July 17 in San Cristóbal, where the Foxes have a weekend ranch.
"This is a matter of public health," said Sahagún, according to a transcript released by her office. |
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