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Catholic Organization's Controversial Candidate Questionnaire

"Catholic" CCODP Caught Pushing for Abortion Again

TORONTO, Nov 22 (LSN.ca) - The Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace (CCODP), which was thrown into controversy recently over their $135,000 donation to the pro-abortion March of Women 2000, is in hot water again, this time for a controversial federal election candidate questionnaire. Sent to candidates, the CCODP questionnaire claims the authority of the Catholic Church, saying that it "is the official development organization of the Catholic Church in Canada established by the Canadian Bishops in 1967." The letter notes also that the organization's main work is attending to "unjust social, political and economic structures" in the Third World. The letter notes that a copy of candidate responses will be "circulated to those members of Development and Peace and other concerned Catholics in the riding in which you are running."

There is a glaring omission in the questions asked by the "Catholic" organization. No where does it mention the huge international injustice of the horrendous forcing of population control via abortion, sterilization and contraception on Third World countries by the developed west, including Canada. Third World nations are 'encouraged' or rather, practically blackmailed, into accepting these programs in exchange for funds from rich countries, agencies such as the IMF and the World Bank and individuals with a population control agenda.

A suggestion to increase the Canadian contribution to population control measures is indirectly requested in the CCODP questionnaire. The CCODP demands that candidates, once elected, will "push for the immediate allocation of 0.7% (now at a lower level) of GNP to Official Development Assistance (ODA) as committed to by successive governments since the 1970s." While ODA is involved in some projects to assist the poor in authentic development, it is marred with population control 'assistance'.

The 1996 Report of Canada to the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development says in Section VI - Demographic Dynamics and Sustainability, that "family planning" (read abortion, sterilization and contraception - all anathema to the Catholic Church) is a "core ODA priority". The document admits that ODA monies are given to the most extreme abortion promoting organizations on earth. It says, "Canada's direct support for population programming has been approximately $30 million annually during the last two years. Most of this support went to three complementary programs: the United Nations Fund for Population Activities, the Fourth Bangladesh Population Project, and the International Planned Parenthood Federation." (See this section of the report on the Canadian Government's website at:
http://www.ec.gc.ca/agenda21/96/part2-6.html)

The CCODP questionnaire is also troublesome as it asks, "Will you push the Government of Canada to take immediate steps as identified by the Canadian March of Women's Committee, to eliminate violence against women and to ensure equality between women and men?" Those "immediate steps" refer to the March of Women's "identified thirteen immediate demands" which include the demand for "funding a national meeting of lesbians to discuss and prioritize areas for legislative and public policy reform," hardly an issue for Catholic to "push" for. (See the March of Women 13 immediate demands at:
http://www.canada.marchofwomen.org/en/demands/demands_eng.html)

Other troublesome questions on the CCODP questionnaire included "Will you push the Government of Canada to immediately ratify the Kyoto Protocol?"

Peter Stock, a devout Christian and candidate for the Canadian Alliance in the Ontario riding of Simcoe North, received the questionnaire. Stock, the former National Affairs Director for the Canada Family Action Coalition, responded to the CCODP saying, "I will not be detailing a response to the questions posed for the simple reason that your organization fundamentally misrepresents itself as Catholic." In his letter he said, "As the questions make clear, your organization supports goals, activities and behaviour (such as abortion) which directly contradict clear Catholic teaching as found in the Catechism." Stock also had a suggestion for the CCODP, saying that since "the range of subjects broached indicate to me that your guiding philosophy seemingly has more to do with Marx than with Christ, ... I feel confident that the NDP may provide the type of support and encouragement you are seeking."

See the full CCODP federal candidate questionnaire at:
http://www.lifesite.net/interim/2000/election2000/ccodpquestions.html

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