By Matthew Cullinan Hoffman
SANTO DOMINGO, October 25, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Cardinal Nicolás de Jesús López Rodríguez, the Archbishop of the Dominican Republic’s capital of Santo Domingo, will deliver a nationwide address on prime-time television on Thursday denouncing a recent legislative initiative to decriminalize abortion.
The pre-recorded address, which will also be transmitted by radio at 5 pm, is part of a massive campaign being waged by the Catholic Church against the proposed legal changes, which would decriminalize the practice of “therapeutic abortion”, a vague concept likely to establish abortion on demand.
Currently, the Dominican Republic is one of several countries that specifies criminal penalties for all abortions, although life-saving measures that endanger the life of the fetus are not prosecuted. The possibility of decriminalizing abortion was raised recently during hearings on the ongoing overhaul of the nation’s penal code.
The pro-life campaign will continue tomorrow with a mass by the Cardinal and other bishops given at the Congress, which will be surrounded by a “human chain” of pro-lifers. Catholics throughout the island will turn on their headlights during the day to signify their rejection of abortion. On Sunday, October 28th, the campaign will culminate with a “March for Life” through the nation’s capital (see recent LifeSiteNews coverage at https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/oct/07100301.html).
The campaign, which began in early October, has shaken the island and has led to assurances given to the Cardinal by politicians that “therapeutic abortion” will not be decriminalized, according to the Catholic news agency ACI Prensa.
Previous LifeSiteNews.com Coverage:
Mexican “Priest” Wages Campaign to Legalize Abortion in Dominican Republic
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/oct/07101202.html
Catholics in Dominican Republic Plan Offensive Against Abortion
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/oct/07100301.html
Cardinal Denounces Proposal to Legalize Abortion in the Dominican Republic
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/sep/07091002.html
Dominican Republic Protest Against Attempt to Legalize Abortion
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/aug/07082409.html