Cardinal Scherer’s comments are directed to the people of Brazil whose government is similar to the US government with a president and congress. Please see the original Portuguese for the roots of the most accurate translation-ed.
Sao Paulo, Brazil–The electoral campaign is taking shape and the electors are confronted with many seeking their vote. For now, the presidential hopefuls are put in the center and almost no one takes notice that also in play are the positions of governor, senator, federal and state representative.
. . . The candidates show their plans for the economy, health, education, security, transportation, the environment. . . Of all it is hoped that they will have a clean file, they may be honest and transparent in the exercise of power, they promote the common good and not just some sectors of society. For the elector to hear, and choose the candidates tested, capable of governing and legislating with wisdom and prudence.
But special projects of the party should merit special attention and the direction they intend to bring the county. We vote on candidates, but the party dictates the rules. What is the ideology of the party and its proposition for the exercise of power? The differences between the party and the candidates appear especially in the public policy they desire to develop.
The electors want to know, and have the right to know of what will be the social policies for the overcoming of glaring inequalities and achieve equity and social justice as befits a country that has intentions for great plans for the economy and an important role on the international scene. Taking one position: candidates and parties on the directions of fundamental human rights. It appears to be a peaceful question, but it is not, for not all is clear in human rights programs. The question cannot be left to the action of pressure groups or the calculation of convenience in international relations. Speaking of this what will be the position of the future government in the questions of external policy? And who will be the preferred friends of Brazil?
Few doubt the importance of the family for the person, the society and the nation. However, the family is not the theme of political debates. Sociological studies have demonstrated that the absence of the family, or the impossibility of completing the mission that is proper to it is in the origin of grave evils. When a government stops caring for and stops protecting the family, it allows a heavy legacy of problems to society and calls to itself many responsibilities that would have been better assumed by the family, which has a social role with no substitute; therefore, the family merits all the attention of those members of government and legislators. Would it not be the hour to have in the Brazilian government a ministry returning to the questions of the family?
The family needs the public policies for the access to worthy housing, food and quality education. The focused treatment of maternal and infant health would be an investment with high social returns; the adoption could be further encouraged; sexual education should not be divorced from formation of ethical attitudes and social responsibilities, in the values of marriage and of the well constructed family, conditions to welcome the new little Brazilians. Could it be that what is good for the future of the country is a higher percentage of children born outside of a constituted family? That the sustenance and education of the child remains the charge of one of one parent only? The programs of repression of birth rates in Brazil has brought down the number of children per couple and this was celebrated as an important advance. We will be in brief an elderly population as has already happened in other countries and the governments need to make incentibve policies for raising birth rates.
The thorny question for the candidates is the fullness of respect to the dignity of the person and to his life in all moments of existence. Question such as abortion, euthanasia, the manipulation of human being in the scientific investigation whose ends are avoided, or treated in an evasive manner: “We are going to treat this as a question of public health. . .” “We are going to submit this to a referendum”.The right to life cannot be submitted to the arbitrary of the majority. Abortion should be without being treated as a question of public health, but better to protect the live of those unborn against all agression, protect the women, giving them conditions to bring the pregnancy to term and to give birth with dignity to their babies. Pregnancy and maternity are not illnesses! But if, for public health, the facilitation or the legalization of abortion is indicated, we are not any longer within the health policy. It is useless to smooth over things with concepts such as the “decriminalization of abortion” or the “anticipation of childbirth”. The cruel reality does not change if abortion is voluntary, it is always the suppression of the right to life of a human being.
Serious Public policy is also the application of the law vigorously, shutting clandestine abortion clinics and penalizing those responsible! It will thus be the offering of effective support to those difficult pregnancies, The good call to responsibility of the biological father and the fulfilling of the law vigorously is what is referred to the protection and defense of the mother and of the child through birth. With frequency one sees statistics, in fact, never proven that in Brazil clandestine abortions will be more than a million per year. One million human being eliminated before birth! And with them many women die or suffer problems for the rest of their life. This should merit some political attention!
The candidates for the offices of federal representative and senator, if elected, will have the responsibility of making laws on these questions. Are their positions and that of their parties on these issues known? The electors have the right to know to vote conscientiously.
Cardinal Dom Odilo Pedro Scherer
Archbishop of São Paulo
Article published originally in Portuguese in O ESTADO DE SÃO PAULO (Newspaper for the Sao Paulo, Brazil), 08.14.2010 This version is taken from Cardinal Scherer’s blog
Translated from Portuguese Please consult original text for the most accurate translation