News

World Youth Day – Miraculously awesome, changing the hearts of even the most extreme pro-abortion media. To review the coverage type “world youth day 2002” into the search engine at https://www.lifesitenews.com/search/search.html

By far, the most numerous good news stories in 2002 involved President George W. Bush.  With the hard work of pro-life groups both in the U.S. and internationally he:  – withdrew any notion of U.S. support for the International Criminal Court   – appointed pro-life U.S. representatives to United Nations conferences. This thwarted the pro-abortion agenda at the conference on human cloning where the U.S. insisted on a total cloning ban – defunded the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) for their collusion with China’s forced abortion regime – signed into law the born-alive infant protection act and gave a great pro-life speech while signing – supported the Ohio Partial Birth Abortion Ban legislation – attempted to halt the Oregon physician assisted suicide practice – gave outstanding pro-life speeches to the March for Life, at the declaration of Sanctity of Life Day – gave the “unborn child” health coverage thus giving the foetus recognition as a child in legislation – nominated pro-lifers to the higher courts   The bishops of the United States spoke out more and more forcefully on the sanctity of life and especially the responsibility of Catholics to vote pro-life during elections.  The province of Quebec in Canada banned research on embryonic humans.  Study after study confirmed beyond the shadow of a doubt that adult stem cell research is superior in every way to embryonic stem cell research.  Canada’s Cardinal Aloysius Ambrozic did not attend the Red Mass dinner keynoted by pro-abortion former Prime Minister Joe Clark. But at the Red Mass, the Cardinal – with Clark sitting in the front pew – targetted “people who are pro-abortion” saying he did not know how they could believe the unborn don’t feel pain when “life is gouged” out of them.  Peru declared March 25, Day of the Unborn Child.  In 2002 the Vatican delivered their strongest-ever statements against the United Nations’ pushing of abortion.  In addition, the Pope has used every available opportunity to plead for the right to life and against destructive research on embryonic humans.  Pope John Paul II also brought to an end the involvement of certain German bishops with abortion counselling which compromised the church since the counselling certificates could be used to obtain abortions.

Uganda’s incredible success in fighting HIV/AIDS based on abstinence before and fidelity during marriage has been recognized as the most successful attack on the deadly disease on the continent.  The courts in the Philippines, Argentina and Chile all ruled that the morning-after pill was illegal in their countries since it is an abortifacient.  The United Nations and various international bodies have begun to recognize the problem of population decline and the accompanying ageing crisis.

The U.S. Supreme Court rejected the appeal of euthanasia activist Jack Kevorkian who asked for a retrial.  The Canadian Supreme Court refused to quash the 10-year sentence of Robert Latimer who euthanized his disabled daughter.  Life Dynamics, the same group which exposed the aborted baby parts market, orchestrated a successful sting operation on Planned Parenthood across the United States demonstrating that the pro-abortion group commonly fails to report sexual abuse of minors and knowingly conceals evidence.  The head of the Catholic Church in Peru, Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani, called his priests to enforce the excommunication of all pro-abortion politicians, telling his priests those politicians were to be refused Holy Communion.  Hollywood stars Jennifer O’Neil, Patricia Heaton and former supermodel Kathy Ireland all went public with forceful pro-life defences in the media.  United Kingdom courts sided with a pro-lifer who challenged the human embryo authority which permitted fertility clinics to use pre-genetic diagnosis to screen and select embryos in order to treat older siblings with their umbilical cord blood.  Despite a media onslaught, Calgary Bishop Fred Henry supported the actions of his courageous priest Fr. John Maes who refused to allow the marriage in his church of a Planned Parenthood worker.  And recently, five of eight Catholic U.S. universities whose websites contained references to Planned Parenthood, removed the offensive materials after a LifeSite story caused faithful Catholics to admonish the institutions.  The conscience rights of medical personnel are receiving recognition.  A New Orleans nurse won a court case after being threatened with termination for refusing to hand out the abortifacient morning-after pill.  Also, the College of Physicians and Surgeons in the Canadian province of New Brunswick has affirmed that doctors have the right to refuse to administer or refer for abortions.  The U.S. Supreme Court has put an end to the bickering over pro-life licence plates – allowing them.  The U.S. Senate elections saw major victories for the pro-life movement.