Amnesty international Suffers ‘Self-Inflicted Wound’

An editorial in the Australian daily newspaper The Age said Amnesty International’s decision to include abortion rights in its charter will irreparably stain its global reputation in favor of human rights.

“Supporters of abortion rights might reasonably choose to characterize it as a religious issue and point to the part of the Amnesty charter that maintains it is inappropriate to support or oppose any particular political, economic or religious ideology,” the editorial stated.

“The simple fact is that this move will imperil Amnesty’s activities in Third World countries, where the Church is one of the few champions of the oppressed.

Mozambique Considers Legalizing Abortion

The Mozambique health ministry has introduced legislation to make abortion legal in an effort to decrease its maternal mortality rate, Reuters reported.

Leaders of the Church in Mozambique have decried the fact that their voice has been shut out of what they consider to be a closed process. Apart from being a sin, Church leaders argue, abortion is also a foreign import contrary to African cultural norms. In Mozambique, abortion is illegal except in cases where the mother’s life or health is endangered.

“We affirm that abortion is not the solution for these situations,” a pastoral letter from the bishops stated. “Its liberalization/legalization on the one hand vulgarizes and objectifies women, and on the other hand corrupts youth and trivializes the sacred power of procreation.”

Orthodox-Catholic Summit in Moscow

Cardinal Peter Erdo, president of the European bishops’ conference, will participate in the newest round of Catholic-Orthodox negotiations, which will begin June 11 in Moscow, reported Interfax.

The subject of the consultations is “anthropological and ethical foundations of the ecclesiastical teaching on social organization, human rights and personal dignity.”

The Russian Orthodox Church will be represented by Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, and representatives of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith will also represent the Holy See. Cardinal Erdo said, “Cooperation between Orthodox believers and Catholics in Europe is necessary to defend Christian values in Europe.”