U.S. Catholic Bishops Urge Amnesty Int'l to Repeal Pro-Abortion Stance

By Maria Mackay, Christian Today Reporter Saturday, July 07, 2007

U.S. Catholic bishops have appealed to human rights organization Amnesty International to turn back on its decision to support abortion.

Following an overhaul of its policy on sexual and reproductive rights earlier this year, Amnesty has been calling for the decriminalization of abortion in all cases and says that women should be free to choose abortion particularly in cases of incest, rape or other instances of human rights violations.

Bishop William Skylstad, president of the U.S. Bishops' Conference, said in a statement on Monday that Amnesty International's decision to back abortion was "deeply disappointing", according to the Catholic news agency Zenit.

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In the statement, Skylstad went on to urge the organization to restore its neutral position on the issue.

"The action of the executive council undermines Amnesty's longstanding moral credibility, diverts its mission, divides its own members – many of whom are Catholic or defend the rights of unborn children – and jeopardizes Amnesty's support by people in many nations, cultures and religion," he said.

Last month, Pope Benedict XVI called on Catholics and Catholic churches, organizations and schools worldwide to pull donations to Amnesty.

At the time of the pope's appeal, Amnesty denied that it was pushing for abortion as a universal right but re-affirmed its decision to support the right of women to choose, particularly in cases where the pregnant woman had been raped or become pregnant through incest.

The president of the Catholic Church's Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Cardinal Renato Martino, however, refused to accept the justification of abortion, even in exceptional circumstances, describing the procedure as "murder."

"And to justify it selectively, in the event of rape, that is to define an innocent child in the belly of its mother as an enemy, as 'something one can destroy,'" said Martino.

In the statement, Amnesty has explained that its new abortion policy came about as part of its global Stop Violence Against Women campaign.