7/28/2019 The Turning Point: From the ST. THOMAS MORE LAW CENTER

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From the S T. THOMAS MORE LAW CENTER

by James M. Imbong, General Counsel

o our Allies in Life: Our efforts to present a unifiedfront before the Supreme Court against the RH Law

(Republic Act 10354) will culminate on July 9 when ourcounsels present our cases before the full Court:

1) JAMES M. IMBONG, et al., GR 204819,2) ALLIANCE FOR THE FAMILY

FOUNDATION PHILS., INC., et al., GR 204934 ,3) TASK FORCE FOR FAMILY

AND LIFE VISAYAS, INC., et al., GR 204957 ,4) SERVE LIFE CAGAYAN DE

ORO CITY, INC., et al., GR 204988 ,5) EXPEDITO A. BUGARIN, JR., et al., GR 205003 ,6) EDUARDO B. OLAGUER, et al., GR 205043 ,7) PHILIPPINE ALLIANCE OF

XSEMINARIANS, INC., et al., GR 205138 ,8) RENALDO J. ECHAVEZ, M.D., et al., GR 205478 ,9) FRANCISCO S. TATAD and

MARIA FENNY C. TATAD, et al., GR 205491 ,10) PRO-LIFE PHILS., et al., GR 205720 ,11) MILLENIUM SAINT FOUNDATION, GR 206355 ,12) JOHN WALTER B. JUAT, et al., GR 207111 ,13) COUPLES FOR CHRIST FOUND., GR 207172,

A fourteenth petition (TILLAH and KASHIM, GR 207563)was recently filed but has yet to be acted upon by theCourt for purposes of the oral arguments on July 9.Nonetheless, the Supreme Court is now faced with 14

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A message concerning the Reproductive Health Lawcases before the Supreme Court of the Philippines thatare set for oral arguments on July 9, 2013.

petitions to strike down the RH Law. For purposes of the oralarguments on July 9, the petitions will be duly represented bythe following speakers: Sen. Francisco S. Tatad, Atty. MariaConcepcion S. Noche, Atty. Luisito V. Liban, and Sen. AquilinoQ. Pimentel, Jr.

In the meantime, our other attorneys are anticipating theirfiling of a legal brief for their respective petitions to ensurethat all other issues are fully brought before the Court andfully argued in the Record for the complete deliberations of the 15 Justices. The other attorneys are:

Howard M. Calleja Cristina A. MontesBertini C. Causing Alan F. PaguiaRamon Andre F. Cedro Rufino L. Policarpio IIINelson A. Clemente Ricardo M. RiboEarl Anthony C. Gambe Luis Francis A. Rodrigo, Jr.Luis Ma. Gil L. Gana Marlon I. Yap

Jeremy I. Gatdula

For purposes of the oral arguments on July 9, the Court hasadvised all parties to limit their presentations to fifty (50)minutes with a maximum of four (4) speakers per side. Forthis reason, the Court directed the parties to submit a list of key issues to be discussed during the arguments. In responseto this directive, our counsels assessed the strength of ourarguments and requested the Court to allow discussion onseveral main issues, particularly:

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7/28/2019 The Turning Point: From the ST. THOMAS MORE LAW CENTER

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Right to life Involuntary servitudeRight to health Equal protectionFreedom of religion Local government autonomyFreedom of speech Jurisdiction and justiciabilityAcademic freedom Maintenance of the status quoNatural law

These issues were adopted by the Court (except for thenatural law issue). For those issues not included in the oral

arguments, the Court has advised the parties to presentthem in their respective post-oral argument briefs. Thesematters were provided by the Court in the Advisory it issuedlast week to all the parties.

What can we do on July 9 and onwards? We all know that theRH Law was passed through a process where a majorityvote determines if a law will be enacted or not. We alsoknow that when Congress enacts a law and the Presidentsigns it, it means the President is committed to implementthe law using all the powers of government and taxpayersmoney. But what exactly did President Aquino commit thegovernment to do when he signed the RH Law? What didPresident Aquino commit taxpayers money to fund eachyear under the RH Law?

That is what the petitions will be presenting to the Courton July 9 and beyond. The Supreme Court, being the finalinterpreter of the Constitution, has the duty to determinewhether the RH Law is good lawgood, in the sense thatit follows the Constitution as regards the constitutional dutyof the State to:

Protect life and health, particularly thelife and health of the unborn and of women;

Protect the sanctity of the family; Protect the moral-spiritual well-being of youth;

Support parents in the exercise of their right to guidethe moral development of their children and to raisetheir family based on their religious convictions;

Respect religious beliefs and conscience-objections.

These are the main issues to be confronted by the Court asit is called to raise the Constitution into its rightful place inour system of a republic government, being the highest lawof the land, under natural law and the laws of God, whichCongress cannot lightly disregard by a simple majority vote.

Our pro-life attorneys have been preparing for this legalbattlea battle that is not so much ours, but Gods, as it isthe God-given life and dignity of the human person that is atstake, as well as the moral foundations of the nation thatpromote and protect God-given life on earth.

With this, we pray that we stand together spiritually as weenter this stage where the future of the nations soul willdepend on the wisdom of fifteen Justices of the SupremeCourt who will decide the constitutionality of the RH Law.In the end, the virtue of hope should sustain us as we areguided by Gods word in Isaiah 40:8 Though the grasswithers, the flower wilts, but the word of our God stands forever. We know the Truth will prevail. Until then, we will notwaver in our efforts to bring our laws in unison with whatGod has planned for all eternity.

The ST. THOMAS MORE SOCIETY, INC ., is anorganization of attorneys committed topreserve the moral foundations of law andcivil government. The Law Center is itslegal research and litigation arm.

Do you have any questions and concerns about theRH Law which you would want to clarify? Do youknow of any ongoing programs related toreproductive health in your area or community thataffect your rights as parents and as Catholics? Simplyshare your requests and information to:

stthomasmoresociety.attorneys@gmail.com

There will be a Eucharistic Celebration scheduled on

July 9, 9:00 am at the Shrine of Nuestra Seora deGuia (Ermita) to be followed by a prayer vigil infront of the Supreme Court in Padre Faura. Whitewill be the color of the day as we constantly seek the intercession of Mary, our Blessed Mother andMediatrix of all Grace.

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