The Bishops’ Conference of Guatemala has sent a communiqué to the General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS), which is meeting from 4 to 6 June in the city of La Antigua, on the theme: “
Toward a Comprehensive Anti-Drug Policy in the Americas.” On this occasion, resolutions concerning public and personal ethics shall be submitted and approved, on which—the bishops have said— the Catholic Church must speak out. «
It is urgent that governments take measures to reduce the crime and loss of human lives due to drug trafficking», the Bishops write and they highlight the
«moral implications in production, trade, distribution and consumption [of drugs]». In particular, however, the Bishops of Guatemala, in communion with the Episcopate of America, show their «
concern» with regard to «
resolutions that promote the practice of abortion»; and they assert that regulations implemented by the 1994 Inter-American Convention of Belém do Pará, which provide for the legalization of abortion, constitute «
a violation of Guatemala’s Constitution». Not only that. «
Abortion is a violation of the natural right to life of the unborn». Abortion is «
a crime against the dignity and life of the totally innocent, helpless and dependent person». Therefore, «
the condemnation of abortion is not based on a religious belief, but on the inherent right of every person, including the unborn child, to life». The right to life is a fundamental and superior right, the most fundamental one, which precedes and takes precedence over the right of women not to remain pregnant.
Then, as regards the resolution about which the Bishops were informed by the presentation to the Assembly, a resolution against the violence on the grounds of sex discrimination, they wrote: «Those with a different sexual orientation are subject to rights and human dignity, and are entitled to protection against any form of violence. However, we affirm that the dignity of the person is not defended by approving legalization of diverse forms of sexual conduct or of the person's behavior in other areas. The inherent dignity of the human person does not transform just any kind of conduct that a person may have». Rather, «the dignity of a person is strongly defended when human behavior adheres to a code of ethics that comes from the natural order of life and property». Moreover, «human sexuality is naturally oriented to the complementarity between man and woman». Consequently, the Organization of American States is asked not to approve the resolution on “Human rights, sexual orientation and gender identity and expression”.
