Abortion is one of the issues that divides the ideas and opinions of the population whether it should be legalized of not . It is a long-standing issue that requires an educated opinion since this is a serious matter. Even in ancient and medieval times, people have engaged in such act. In ancient China and Egypt, different methods have been developed to induce abortion such as the use of herbs. Eventually, during the medieval period they developed different techniques such as the use of forceps and anesthesia. As expected, with the development of the methods of abortion also comes strong opposition, primarily from religious bodies. This issue is very controversial topic in the Philippines because of it being a Catholic country many religious groups are against the idea of abortion. It is not a nice thing to think about or discuss, and nobody wants to see more abortions. The idea of aborting an unborn fetus is decidedly unpleasant. However, women always have and always will continue to have unplanned and unwanted pregnancies and no government or group of men has the right to choose for women what they should do. Men are the ones who cause women to be pregnant, but it is the woman who alone bears the pregnancy and the child.
For centuries, unmarried women who became pregnant were jailed, humiliated, and in some cultures even killed. The unmarried pregnant woman brought shame on her family, and her child was labeled a bastard. No man would ever marry such a woman, and she would be turned out of her home and cut off. Such women had no ways to make a living, and had to live in shame on the streets. A bastard child in the old days was denied an education and property, and was socially avoided. The father of the child who the caused everything lost nothing. A woman does not want to be shamed by society and shame her family. In many cases, an unmarried woman risks her life, her family and their reputation if she gives birth. Even if abortion is illegal, it does not stop this woman from trying to abort, some women drink poison or illegal drugs to abort. Others throw themselves down the stairs and some try to hit their stomachs so hard just to abort the child. Thousands of women bled to death or died from infection after these dangerous, unprofessional abortions. The Philippines is one of the countries considered as a third-world country so poverty is the one of the main reason why abortion is a common problem. So why should abortion be legalized ?
Liberal ideas such as feminism reached our shores, I see that many women rights groups would push the legalization of the abortion in the Philippines . They point out that abortion is already rampant in the Philippines, although unbeknown to the general public. These abortions are usually done in make-shift clinics by people who often have no professional medical background which is really risky for the women. According to the research, this practice puts the mother in a dangerous and life-threatening situation, with 8 out of 10 of these women develop complications. With these findings, pro-choice groups believe that if abortion would be legalized, abortion will now take place in medical settings, ensuring the safety of the mother. They also emphasize that victims of rape, incest, and sexual trafficking who become pregnant because of the abuse should be given the right for abortion since they did not plan on having a baby in the first place. Not all mothers want to or are able to care for a child. Many young women have trouble with drugs or alcohol. Some are involved in crime. Some have no work or money. Some are too busy with their own life to think of their baby. So, they continue to have their babies, but they do not want them or take care of them On the other, it is clear that the Catholic Church, a big institution in the country, and pro-life groups abhor abortion since it is synonymous to murder, a mortal sin. For them, life starts in conception, and aborting the fetus even in its earliest stage, ends a life. Abortion deprives the unborn of the life and experiences it should have undergone if it were delivered alive. They suggest that if the baby is unwanted, why not give it up for adoption. In an emotional sense, every pregnancy is different from each other. Some women have planned it for years while others get pregnant by 'accident'. In sad cases though, pregnancy can occur from rape, incest and sexual trafficking. Since the perpetrator is the father of the fetus, it is hard for the mother to develop love and affection towards it. No, abortion should not be permitted and I defend my answer from the stand point of Immanuel Kant who say that every human being have the right to life. According to Kant’s moral philosophy, we cannot universalize the killing of the life of a child for social, eugenic or economic reasons for these do not warn in any way our own survival. Therapeutic abortion may only be permitted when or if the life of the mother and that of the child are in danger.
Abortion has health danger to the mother after going through with the procedure and it may also have the lifelong health risks that may remain and this should be also good enough reasons why abortion should be illegal or not allowed. It can also cause problems such as voluntary termination of pregnancy can have many bad effects such as it may leads to complications of future pregnancies, reproductive disease, and sadness. Understanding that abortion is murder can assist a woman in making healthy decisions for baby and mother. Though a mother may not want her baby, health for both remains and adoption remains a possible option for her to choose not to have abortion, she need to choose between death and life. Women need to do the right decision about their health both her and her child. It is considered as a murder no matter what aspect we see it. The seed that God plants should never be taken for granted or misused. These actions result in suffering for not only the pregnant woman, but also her family. Though she may not tell anyone, sooner or later the truths make known itself through situation, guilt, or mistake. One of the most important reasons abortion should be illegal beyond the fact that it end life is that most women have been disappointed and life problem due to this action. Voluntary pregnancy termination remains wrong no matter how a woman gets pregnant. Taking 9 months out of a woman life does not remotely compare to the elimination of 80 years of someone else. In addition, the responsibility a woman takes for deciding life or death of a baby remains unethical and mentally disturbing no matter what type of upbringing she had .The importance of meeting other women who have walked the same path remains important in order not to feel alone. Gaining insight, ideas, and support are all important in decision making as well as livelong support of any decision.
There are alternative choices instead of getting an abortion. The first and most effective option is not to have sex. The second option is to have the baby and let others care for it. There are companies designed to help find homes for children without proper parents. The third option is to have the baby and put him or her up for adoption. This can provide a solution to couples facing infertility. Abortion is unnecessary due to these alternatives and others. Second, mental and physical health risks are associated with abortions. A patient may experience hemorrhaging, infection, or death. The most common risk of getting an abortion is breast cancer. During a woman’s first pregnancy, the breast structure is permanently changed. It seems apparent that cancerous changes occur more frequently among these transitional cells of a woman who has terminated her pregnancy. If she aborts more than once before completing a pregnancy, her chance for cancer increases even more. There are 1.6 million abortions each year; 56% are first abortions and 44% are second or more. With these figures, one in ten women may develop breast cancer, and 25% of them may die. However, there are not only physical risks to abortion, but mental risks also. Some women feel relief after an abortion, but many suffer Post Abortion Stress. The symptoms of Post Abortion Stress include anger, guilt, flashbacks, sexual dysfunction, suicidal ideas, hallucination, and increased drug or alcohol use. These facts alone are evidence that abortions are too dangerous for a woman and her child. Third, abortion is murder because the fetus is a well-developed organism before the abortion takes place. Within the first three weeks, the heart is pumping blood, arms and legs bud, and brain is present. Within a month, the mouth, ears, and nose are present. Brainwaves can be recorded and heartbeat detected at forty days and the skeleton is formed. During this period, the brain is controlling the movement of muscles and organs and the unborn reflexively responds to stimuli. This all takes place before the earliest surgical abortions are performed. Many also believe that because the fetus is not living, it does not experience pain. The baby’s spinal reflexes are sufficiently developed to feel pain around week seven.
I think that abortion should not be legalized in the Philippines. In Article 11, Section 12 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution, the state must protect the life of the mother and unborn. Abortion, therefore, is unconstitutional. If ever, but unlikely, a new constitution will be drafted and will legalize abortion in the country, this will pave the way for new ethical issues to arise. People then will argue that if abortion is legal, then why not legalize this or that. In the years to come, the Philippines will be a country that only values the wants and comforts of its citizenry, and not the sanctity of life. I believe that the government should strengthen their campaign against abortion. It should put sharper teeth to the law in order to eliminate such practice in the country. It should also provide comprehensive assistance to victims of sexual abuse in order to help them overcome psychological stress to avoid opting for abortion, and guide them on how to raise their children. Many believe that abortion should be legalized for the extreme cases of pregnancy due to rape and incest. If a child is a product of violence, there is no need to harm another person’s life trying to heal the pain of the woman. This only guarantees further emotional stress for the victimized woman in the future. The disgusting descriptions and pictures available showing the dead baby after the process can change one’s mind. The tiny, innocent looking little babies have suffered a great deal of pain in their last minutes of survival. Because a brain, heart, and nerves have been developed, a baby is able to feel death just as any other human would. A mother whose child is killed is always devastated with her loss. It is natural for a mother to feel the same way after having her child aborted before having a chance to care for and nurture her son or daughter who is a part of her.
Therefore, abortion is morally wrong and destructive in all circumstances. God, the ultimate creator who decides the fate of all humans who come into existence, is the only One with the ability to choose life or death for His people. For us to make this decision ourselves, we are taking dominion over God and disregarding the fate that He intends for each living person.
Citations
- Niebuhr, Reinhold. Moral Man and Immoral Society: A Study in Ethics and Politics. Charles Scribner's Sons. 1932.
- Thompson, Judith Jarvis. “A Defense of Abortion.” Philosophy and Public Affairs, 1, (1). 1971
- Legalization of Abortion in the Philippines. (2016, May 08). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/legalization-of-abortion-in-the-philippines-essay
