UPDATE: Watch the video of the performance here.

On the morning of the 100th Annual International Women’s Day, the Filipino Freethinkers were busy making blood. They needed several batches of the stuff for  the Women’s Day March for RH that afternoon, where they would hold a special performance demonstrating the Catholic Church’s sins against women.

There were 22 bags of the stuff all in all, enough for a bloody good show. But what exactly were they for?

As 3 PM neared, the Freethinkers proceeded to the St. Peter Parish along Commonwealth Ave., where a group of supporters had started to assemble, and band Pinikpikan was keeping everyone stoked.

Soon enough, over a thousand demonstrators from various groups, who had assembled earlier at the Commission for Human Rights, marched in, chanting fervently for the passage of the RH Bill.

A new chant was then introduced to the crowd: “Tama na! ‘Di dapat makialam ang pari sa aming mga ari!” (“We’ve had enough! The priests have no right to meddle with our private parts!”)

At 3 PM, out came FF members Kenneth and Edgar, who were dressed as a bishop and his congressman-on-a-leash, respectively. Kenneth represented the CBCP, whose deceptive, anti-RH stance has been an utter detriment to the country, while Edgar represented the politicos who pander to these powerful bishops and actively delay the passage of the Bill itself.

The performance began with the bishop and congressman bullying five women around, only to have one of these women, played by FF member Margie, vehemently refuse to cooperate.

The four other women–played by FF members JM and Tania, and FF allies Tin from the Pink Rockers and Eliza from the Likhaan Center for Women’s Health–followed suit.

Margie then rebuked the bishop by listing down the Catholic Church’s many wrongdoings against women all over the world, from the outright lies it has been spreading about contraceptives, to its priests’ habit of raping nuns to avoid STDs. These sins were interspersed with cries of outrage from the crowd: “Tama na! ‘Di dapat makialam ang pari sa aming mga ari!”

The bishop then went into a tirade, spouting off even more lies about reproductive health…

…while his congressman-mongrel snapped at everything in sight.

One by one, as the bishop went on, the women started bleeding from their bellies. The blood packs from earlier were finally put to use!

First was JM…

…followed by Tania, then Tin…

…then Eliza…

…and finally, Margie.

The bishop and his mutt looked over the corpses in triumph. These women’s deaths represented the 11 deaths that occur day after day due to maternal complications, and which will continue to occur if the CBCP and the anti-RH politicians continue to throw their weight around irresponsibly.

To end the show, a few strong words on the plight of women and the need to uphold their rights were aired.

Headed by the FF performers, the entire group of demonstrators then proceeded to the Batasang Pambansa, where RH proponents were pushing for the Bill’s passage at the lower chamber’s plenary that same day.

The group soon arrived in front of Batasan and settled into their respective groups.

A very varied mix of supporters came from all over–FF’s fellow groups under the Reproductive Health Advocacy Network (RHAN), labor groups, youth groups, artists, musicians, educators, etc. By the end of that day, there would be over 7,000 supporters in attendance.

There were several supporters from overseas as well, such as Ida and Caroline, who hailed from Sweden.

There were many personalities who graced the stage that day, including Carlos Celdran, former Akbayan Rep. Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel (pictured), and Akbayan Rep. Walden Bello.

Rep. Bello delivered particularly thrilling news: despite anti-RH House members stalling the RH Bill’s deliberations for two whole hours, the deliberations still managed to push through!

As the night went on, more rousing speeches were given. FF President Red Tani was one of several group heads who went onstage to relay messages from fellow proponents.

The event also featured several musical performances, including sets from Aiza Seguerra, Nars Cabico, Bayang Barrios, Cookie Chua, and Imago.

It was an awesome day for reproductive health, and for women all over the world. It was also a landmark event for the Freethinkers; this rally was one of the biggest events they had attended thus far, and it was a thrill for them to work alongside so many passionate people for the very same cause.

(Photos courtesy of Jeiel Aranal)

On Sunday, February 27 2010, the Filipino Freethinkers were witness to more than a thousand women and their supporters marching up to the CBCP to let their grievances with the bishops be heard. Together, we marched in memory of the 11 women who die daily from lack of reproductive health services in the Philippines, services the bishops deny with their opposition to the Reproductive Health bill. In front of the gates of the CBCP, a stirring open letter was read and a die-in was staged to remind the bishops of the human cost of their opposition.

Full text of the Open Letter to the CBCP Regarding RH (letter in filipino)

27 February 2011

To the honorable bishops of CBCP,

Peace. We came to your office not to stir up trouble, nor to plead with you. We’re just here to give you a simple message.

Eleven women die every day from pregnancy and childbirth, a continuing tragedy that can be ended by the RH bill you are blocking.

We know that your opposition is based on a papal encyclical. We do not expect that you can change this encyclical.

We also do not expect you to stop speaking about social issues, even if many people do not agree with you.

But we do expect you to care as fellow Filipinos who preach about love, especially love for the poor. Despite your elevated social status, we expect you to respect the rights of others who do not agree with you. We expect that although all of you are men, you have learned affection and empathy from your mothers, your sisters and women friends.

Together with allies and friends, we are more than a thousand women, mostly from the crowded and tangled alleys of Metro Manila. If we could get you to live in our shanty homes; share with you the paltry meals that we have every day; have you witness the upright lives of neighbors who use contraceptives; let you listen to children longing for the mothers they lost to maternal complications—we would do so, to open your minds about our need for RH. But these are impossible wishes, so we have come to you.

It pains us to hear you downplay the deaths of mothers. You and your allies have dismissively said that many more die from other illnesses; that pregnancy is not a disease; that the government has more important things to fund; that the possible fusion of sperm and eggs is more important than a woman’s life.

How many more must die before you are touched?

There is a saying that perhaps you believe in as well: Whoever saves a single life, saves the world entire. Allow us to tell you the true story of a mother whose life could have been saved by programs in the RH bill.

Olivia was a quiet woman who kept to herself, and lived in the poor community of Barangay Tonsuya, Letre, Malabon. She was only eighteen when she got married, and after just a few years had nine children. Because she had no money, she delivered her tenth child at home, helped by a traditional birth attendant. Her youngest was delivered alive; but Olivia bled profusely afterwards.

Abigail, her thirteen-year old eldest child, was feeding her then. In between sobs, Abigail said that Olivia stopped eating, spilled her drink, and shortly bade her farewell with the words: “Abigail, take care of all your siblings.”

Olivia died on May 2, 2009. She was only 37 years old. After her death, Abigail and her two other siblings dropped out of school. The three youngest children, including the baby, are due to be given up for adoption.

How many stories of Olivias must we tell you before you believe? How many more Olivias need to die before you sympathize?

We bring eleven candles to symbolize the eleven women who have died or will die today. By lighting each candle, we remember and honor the life each woman had, which in unique ways, provided love and light to her children, to her partner, to her friends, to her siblings, to her parents, to her community, to her factory, and most probably, even to her church.

By letting each of the eleven candles stand in front of your office, we commit to memory the painful words you used to trivialize the deaths of mothers. We commit to memory the extreme actions that you took against the RH bill, and the reckless delay of a law that could have saved a majority of these mothers.

More than four thousand women die every year from maternal complications, deaths that could be prevented by RH education and services. The thousand or so of us who are here today will lie down in the street to show you a fraction of the scale of this tragedy: the lives lost, the children left behind, the hopes and relationships cut short, the contributions to society that have ceased.

We will leave your office in the same peaceful manner that we came. We only leave behind the eleven candles with their dying flames. May the memories of the eleven women who died today touch your hearts and minds.

Was reading The Portable Atheist and I came upon the chapter about Mark Twain which discussed an excerpt from his work, “Fables of Man”. This reminded me of a very apt picture taken in Pakistan some time ago.

“Depart into the uttermost corners of the earth, and diligently do your appointed work. Persecute the sick child; settle upon its eyes, its face, its hands, and gnaw and pester and sting… spare no creature, wild or tame; but wheresoever you find one, make his life a misery, treat him as the innocent deserve; and so please Me and increase My glory Who made the fly.”
Thoughts of God
from Fables of Man
by Mark Twain

Pakistani children who survived heavy flooding lie covered with flies as they are forced to live in miserable conditions on a roadside in Nowshera near Peshawar, Pakistan on Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2010. (AP Photo/Mohammad Sajjad)

Well folks, 2010 has been a great year for the Filipino Freethinkers and now we’re on the cusp of another great year to look forward to! Before the year is over though, we thought we’d try something new: vodcasts!

After luring Red and meetup regulars Frank, Margie and Dustin with promises of cake we sat them down on a couch and got them talking about their favorite FF memories of 2010 as well as what they’re looking forward to in the new year for the Filipino Freethinkers.

We’d like to do more vodcasts in the future, perhaps as a monthly thing. As this is our first vodcast, its still a little raw around the edges so we’d like to hear your feedback.

Happy new year, see you all in the first 2011 meetup!

Last Tuesday was the first day of Carlos Celdran‘s trial. The charge? Apparently, he hurt some people’s feelings toward their imaginary friend — a crime in the Philippines. His trial is one of the highlights of the fight for the Reproductive Health Bill, which is encountering a ton of opposition from the Catholic Church and other Catholic organizations, even though the people themselves seem to be all for it. When Carlos entered that church in Ibarra garb, held up a sign saying “Damaso” and shouted to the priests to stop interfering with politics, it was because the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) had been trying to use religion to influence the outcome of the RH Bill’s passing, such as making thinly veiled threats of excommunication towards the president of the country.

The court session was scheduled at 1.30 pm, so some of us from the Filipino Freethinkers met up with Carlos at Starbucks around noon. I was trying to hold up one of the posters from the people at Sex and Sensibilities, but turns out I was holding it upside down.

Carlos was in good spirits, even giving us a short demo of his current favorite gadget, the Samsung Galaxy Tab. (Which totally rocks, by the way.)

Inside the courthouse, we saw a bunch of people in anti-RH bill shirts. These shirts were unfortunately colored bright yellow — the exact same color as that of the detainees who were there for their criminal trials. (Note to self: when dressing for court or planning propaganda shirts to wear to court, make sure to not wear the same regulation prison colors as suspects in custody. Because when you leave, the judge will try to get security to stop you.) I was wearing the grey “excommunication” shirt, while the others were in white, “Damaso” printed on the front and “Pass the RH Bill Now!” on the back. (Speaking of suspects, it was interesting that there was no effort made to separate the detainees and the spectators. There were guys in prison outfits and handcuffs standing right next to me during the session.) The room was airconditioned but there were too many people inside so it was still hot, and I kept fanning myself with my poster. It looked like this. I was seated close to the anti-RH bill people, so I’m pretty sure they saw it. No one said or did anything confrontational, though, which was promising.

It was over under an hour, I think. The complainant presented their case, the defense denied everything. The judge advised them to settle out of court. I don’t blame him. There was a woman who was jailed because she stole clothes amounting to around 1 to 2 thousand pesos, which was bailable, but apparently she couldn’t afford bail, so she’s been in jail for months. I believe our judges have better things to do than entertain ridiculous cases like “offending religious feelings”. After all, who here thinks we should go to prison for mocking Xenu? Oh, and next trial date was set for March 10. (Or was it May? I’m getting old.)

When it was over, we trooped outside with the other pro-RH Bill advocates from the Democratic Socialist Women of the Philippines (DSWP) in the parking lot and waited for Carlos and his attorney to finish up the last details with the MTC. There were a few media people there with cameras and they took photos of us. When Carlos appeared, he posed for photos with us, holding up the posters.

The anti-RH Bill advocates had a banner. Don’t ask me why being the world’s greatest boxer should make your opinion on whether or not women should have access to reproductive health care weigh more than the rest of ours, because I’m stumped. Don’t ask me either why they spelled Pacquiao’s name wrong — I didn’t notice because I was too distracted by that colon. Later, a friend had to point out to me the missing ” ‘s “.

Oddly, the Anti-RH advocates wanted to have photos taken with Carlos, too. They did not appear hostile in any way. In fact they were quite nice, logical fallacy and typos notwithstanding.

The epic moment was when they shook hands with Carlos.

Oh, and someone asked for Carlos’s autograph on a poster.

There were some spectators watching us speak with the anti-RH Bill advocates and talk to the press. Lots of them wanted to have their photos taken with Carlos, and even one of them asked Carlos to kiss her baby (he obliged, laughingly). The funny thing was, some of them thought he was a priest. Most of them thought his name was Damaso. I’m not sure they knew what exactly was going on, it just seemed they wanted to have their photo taken with him.

“Magpapa-picture ako kasama si Father!” (I’m having my photo taken with Father.)

“Hindi siya pari! Tour guide siya.” (He’s not a priest, he’s a tour guide.)

“Oo, pangalan lang niya Damaso.” (Yes, he’s just named Damaso.)

(Ah, so they know Damaso was a priest, at least. Madame, I suggest you should put down your books once in a while and turn on the TV to watch the news. Haha.)

One of them asked me if I was the girl in the poster. Flattering, but no. For one, she clearly had better hair than I did.

The posters were a hit, though. Lots of women (the spectators were mostly women) asked us if they could have some. One of them asked me what they meant. Before going home, we gave Carlos the remaining posters so he could distribute them on his tours.

Some of us stopped by Makati for a late lunch before braving the traffic home. The trains were full and the lines at the taxi stand were ridiculously long, so we took the bus. It took me more than an hour to get home. The truth is, no matter what side of the condom debate you’re on, we all get screwed by rush hour.

This post was reposted by the author from her personal blog.

Justin was kind enough to get me the links to this week’s post.  Thanks Justin!

Go to the News Thread to send your links.

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Lesson No.1 kids – don’t publish a video blog endorsing beliefs that you’re not supposed to be supporting. E.g. Religion scholar who believes in evolution and blogs about it. Smart!  (via Huffington Post)

MIT conducts workshop on secularism in India. Read the program and some of the discussions here. (via twocircles.net)

Justin’s so freaked out by these planets that are orbiting backwards. (via MSNBC)

Catholics for Choice support DOH. (via Manila Bulletin) Sorry guys, the priests say you’re not real Catholics. You’re half-assed erring Catholics.  (via GMAnews.tv, Ryan’s post)

Church inadvertently campaigns for Ang Ladlad by reiterating once again their disapproval of the LGBT group.  (via GMAnews.tv)

RP lags neighbors in poverty reduction, according to the ADB (via Inquirer.net)

Here’s the church blaming gay priests for pedophilia.  They like making enemies, no? (via Inquirer)

Here’s the church blaming Jews and freemasons. Really. (via Salon.com)

Here’s the church effectively saying that lifting the statute of limitations on child molesters is a bigger damage to the church than actually having child molesters as church leaders. (via CNN.com)  Are they saying that once this is lifted, there will be no priests left?

The Catholic Church out of the blue decides to forgive the Beatles.  (via NME) The timing is so odd.  Do they think this will distract from the scandal?  I personally think it has something to do with the recent super-crappy Beatles Week on American Idol. The Church was all, “This is horrible!  Who are these talentless singers butchering these great songs?!  The Beatles have suffered enough! Let us forgive them.”

In my previous post about the HIV summit, I wrote about my unanswered question (What should the DOH do about the CBCP problem?) and the elephant in the room (Bishop Yniguez, public affairs director of the CBCP). The guys in the faith-based table (particularly the Catholic priest) probably told the bishop about my question, so I was a bit hesitant to do what I did next.

I interviewed the elephant. After some media representatives interviewed him, I thought I’d take advantage of inertia and cut in right after with my trusty camcorder. It paid off. He took a look at my ID and asked about my surname. I told him my grandfather was Turkish. If that’s what he asked me, he must have missed “Filipino Free Thinkers” written below my name.

Anyway, are some highlights:

He was vague about condom use being a mortal sin. Last I checked it still is a mortal sin. But instead of using those words, he said it was a grave matter, which is the same thing.

He said that the Catholic statements against the effectiveness of condoms were supported by scientific surveys and facts.

He said that even if condom use were proven to be effective (by the CBCP “scientists”), if it was opposed to the principles of the Catholic Church, it would still be wrong. Which will always be the case, since condoms are intrinsically evil. (I was surprised he had to think twice about whether this was the case.)

He said that condom use would be OK between a married couple and only if one of the spouses had HIV or AIDS. Now here he is going against the official Catholic stance that condom use is intrinsically evil. Maybe there is hope. (Jail the Pope? Sorry.)

He said that half-Catholics, those who disagree with the Church’s position on matters such as condom use, “are not Catholics.” Though this would probably be bad for publicity, and as public affairs director, he knew better. So…

He said that Catholics who do not agree with the Church can still call themselves Catholic. But they would be erring Catholics.

I didn’t get to prepare, so now I have a lot of tougher questions I wish I’d asked. But I guess it’s good enough when you get a bishop to say, “Nadali mo ako dun a.”

I asked the titular question at this morning’s HIV Summit hosted by the Philippine National AIDS Council (PNAC). The event started with several speakers discussing the state of HIV and AIDS in the country; and the measures that must be taken by the people in attendance — mostly leaders from different sectors of society who share HIV/AIDS as an advocacy.

After the talks the participants were allowed to ask questions and make comments. Several participants had their say, some raising issues not mentioned in the talks. These issues were addressed, often at length, sometimes by more than one person.

Yet with the hundreds in attendance, in none of the talks, questions, and comments did anyone raise the CBCP issue. The CBCP is and has been the strongest political opponent of the DOH or any other sexual health advocacy group since Ever. The recent death of the RH Bill is almost entirely thanks to them. More recently, Secretary Cabral, PNAC Chairperson and Secretary of Health, has received harsh criticism and has even been pressured to resign from her post.

The CBCP Problem was the elephant in the room, and I couldn’t wait to cry elephant.

I got my chance toward the end of the open forum. I’ve embedded the video below. (It’s not in the video, but I asked the question using the microphone at the table assigned for members of faith-based groups, which was only a few meters away from mine.)

In case you’re wondering what the answer to my question was, there was none. The reason for this could have been the lack of time (we were about to have lunch) or the lack of an answer. But I realized later why they had their tongues tied.

Shortly after I asked the question, at the faith-based table sat an elephant — Bishop Yniguez, CBCP public affairs director. Ceremoniously, the event host acknowledged the presence of His Eminence. And the participants, leaders in the fight against HIV and AIDS, advocates of artificial family planning and comprehensive sexual health education, applauded.

Poe’s law may have been originally coined for fundamentalism, but it actually works on any crackpot theory (like the whole shebang of conservative and right-wing ideology, as well as totalitarian leftism and any world-view with personality cults). This can be seen as well on the modus operandi of “Culture Jammers” like the Yes Men and Billionaires for Wealthcare.

Enjoy watching this while thinking of the Randroids.

The Sex Scandal is front and center of faith-related news this Holy Week as people come to grips about the extent of the crimes and the role of the Church in covering it up. Below are several op-ed pieces analyzing the issue, discussing who is to blame, the role of the Church structure and how it enabled the crimes to be left unresolved, and a criticism of public and atheist reactions to the news.

Submit your news links via The News Thread or the comments!

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Op-ed piece on the sex scandals – who is to blame? A call for contrition (via NY Times) link

Analysis on the Catholic Church bureaucracy and how its structure is affecting its response to current crises (via The Guardian) link

“The reaction to the pedophile priest scandal is as guilty of scaremongering, illiberalism and elitism as the Catholic Church has ever been.” – An eyebrow-raising opinion piece which chastises “the cult of victimhood” and “new atheism”.  DON’T BE VICTIMS PPL. IF YOU WERE A SEXUALLY ABUSED BOY, STFU AND LEAVE THE CHURCH ALONE. YOUR ALLEGATIONS ARE EXAGGERATED. (via Spiked!) link

Christian militia group leader arrested for a plot to kill a police officer and bomb his funeral procession (via Chicago Breaking News) link

Read about Christopher Hitchens’ early sex life, if you’re interested (via Gawker) link

Sinead O Conner talks about her history of abuse and her feelings about the Catholic Church (via Washington Post) link

Belgium bans the burqua (via The Guardian) link

April is Pray for an Atheist Month!!!! (via Christianpost.com) link

Kentucky church claims that the Pope should not be required to testify because he is a head of state. (via Portland Humanist Examiner) link

Bishops in Britain cry Discrimination! (via The Telegraph) link

Come on guys, let’s show our love for science and poetry. Let’s keep the creative juices flowing. Here’s my start on this mess. I’m sure you can think of other creative limericks, whether they be about science, math, or anything under the freethinking sun, no?

There was a guy named Schroedinger

who was quite an exceptional thinker

He posited that

there’d either be a dead or live cat

Even before you laid down a finger

And I don’t want to leave another favorite subject of mine (among others) without its own limerick.

Newton discovered calculus

So did Leibniz, plus its use

There was some dispute

on who’d bring the discoverer’s loot

But Isaac won over a ruse.

Today’s top ten offer some new perspectives on religion.  Is it me or is secularism gaining ground? Check out the analysis on UK’s Equality Bill and Gordon Brown’s secularist government. Because the majority of MPs are not politically aligned with any church, sex ed bills and equal rights for homosexuals were passed, and no church has major influence on legislation.  Amazing, isn’t it?

“The unique feature of Gordon Brown’s government is not its economic incompetence. Rather, it is doctrinaire secularism. For the first time in British history, no one sitting around the Cabinet table holds traditional Christian views that defy the liberal consensus on social issues or sexual morality.”

Send your stories via The News Thread or the comments.  Theme suggestions are also welcome.

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Gay church blessings and a crisis of faith (via The Telegraph) link – Brilliant analysis of secularism in the UK and how it has allowed for certain bills to pass

3D BIBLE MOVIE IN THE WORKS!!! (via Deadline New York, Gawker) link

Pope’s brother: sexual abuse at choir school not discussed (via inquirer.net) link

“Koran says – you’re free in your religion” – Muslim cleric (via RT) link – Cleric issues fatwa against terrorism; insists ‘fatwa’ was mistranslated and does not mean ‘holy war’

Which came first – religion or the brain? (via Eurekalert) link – Press release on new book proposing that the brain needs religion; here is a good interview of the author by Mcleans link

Pope’s path to sainthood delayed by miracle doubts (via The Telegraph) link – Pope John Paul II is not a faith healer after all!

Funeral flap: religion and free speech rights (via wired.com) link - Apparently some bigots want the government to uphold their (alleged) free-speech right to disrespect funerals of homosexuals

Violence in Nigeria – food not faith (via The Guardian) link - Analysis on the murders in Jos

6 questions for an atheist undercover in an evangelical church (via The Huffington Post) link

Oregon faith healers get 16 months for son’s death (via AP) link – Faith healing could lead to negligent homicide!