Brazil: Church Condemns Distribution of Morning-After Pills During Carnival

Plans by the Brazilian city of Recife to distribute morning-after birth control pills during Carnival have drawn a rebuke from the Catholic Church. Bishop Antonio Augusto Dias Duarte of the Life and Family Commission of the National Conference of Brazilian Bishops decried the proposal as representing "the banalization of human sexuality" and said it "will only serve to diminish inhibitions and encourage orgiastic behavior." Duarte also criticized the government's plan to distribute millions of condoms during the celebration. Joao Paulo Lima e Silva, Recife's mayor, called the church's response "extremely unhelpful" and said the pills would not be given out randomly but rather in response to instances of such emergencies as rape or condom breakage.

Back to other news for January 2008