New York City, N.Y., Apr 2, 2009 / 07:22 am
Archbishop Celestino Migliore, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, delivered a strongly worded speech yesterday, sharply criticizing the “population reduction” mentality defended by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at a Planned Parenthood gala last Friday.
The Papal Nuncio began his opening remarks—a time usually reserved for non-polemical issues—by denouncing the anti-life attitude he saw in the preparatory documents for the U.N. summit for the International Conference on Population and Development (known as Cairo +15).
“In reading the preparatory documents for this session of the Commission one cannot help but get the impression that populations are seen as the hindrance to greater social and economic development rather than vital contributors to the success of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and greater sustainable development,” Archbishop Migliore said.
The Permanent Observer of the Holy See slammed “the preparatory statements by some NGOs,” which “give the impression that the very institution which launched the MDGs fifteen years ago is giving priority to population control and getting the poor to accept these arrangements rather than primarily focusing upon its commitments to addressing education, basic health care, access to water, sanitation and employment.”