RU 34/2010 - ITALY, RUSSIA

ITALY (ru, Aug. 30th 2010) : The province Lombardy in northern Italy, a region with 10 million inhabitants and approximately 100 abortions per day, allocates to each woman who renounces to abortion planned for economic reasons, a premium of 4,500 Euro (USD 5,850), payable in 18 monthly instalments of 250 Euro. A credit of 5 million Euro (USD 6.5 million) has been made available for this social measure. The president of the region, Roberto Formigoni, introduced this 'first test" which was voted by the Regional Council of Lombardy in the end of May 2010. Formigoni is the president of the region since 1995 and obtained in the last elections (March 2010) 58.2 % of the ballots. Bravo to this initiative, even if it’s pusillanimous and even ridiculous by comparison to the huge economic wealth of this region, the richest one of Italy. Consider that this credit of 5 million Euro (USD 6.5 million) corresponds exactly to 888 women rescued, which is almost the number of abortions in Lombardy during a single week. But let’s not criticize, let’s rather applaud this mini-effort in the right direction, the only effort which this economic mastodon Lombardy seems to be able to achieve for the moment. By the way, what to say about the other European regions which do not even do that? Whatever it is, since June one doesn’t hear anything anymore about this measure, or about the number of women who have actually received this aid, or a possible increase in the ridiculous credit allocated by the Regional Council of Lombardy for this measure. If you want therefore, for this basic social step, which is globally ‘non-correct’, congratulate the president of Lombardy, Mr. Roberto Formigoni, especially by asking him to go courageously even further, you can use the following e-mail address: roberto.formigoni@consiglio.regione.lombardia.it . Thanks in advance, on behalf of many pregnant women!

RUSSIA (ru, August 30th 2010) : Russia is dying. Between 1992 and 2008 the population is said to have decreased by 12 million. President Putin is very conscious of this situation and reminds continuously the Russian people about this catastrophic drift. He has established in 2006 high premiums: 17,350 E (USD 22,555) for each 2nd child, and 18,825 E (USD 24,472)  for each 3rd child (see "Demography of Russia" in Wikipedia, French edition). The Orthodox Church recalls, on her side, the divine laws which govern this field of life and death which is abortion. The archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, vice-president of the department for exterior relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, just told Interfax press agency: ‘In Soviet times we got used to abortion and we got used to considering it an unavoidable part of our legal reality and that there is no way to turn back the page. But we see today that it is possible to turn back a great deal.” It must be remembered that it was Soviet Russia which was the first country in the world to introduce abortion in 1920. The archpriest was referring to a reversal of the public opinion in Russia about of the abortion issue, where, according to the Russian Ministry for Health, there were last year 1.2 million registered abortions and 1.7 million births. It must be added that about 250,000 Russian women remain sterile each year following complications during abortion, without mentioning the high number of women who die during abortion of their babies. Face to this bleak reality, a new investigation made by the agency Levada Analytical Center, has indicated that, on 1600 Russians consulted, 41% wanted restrictions of abortion at national level. More exactly, by comparison to a similar survey made twelve years ago, the percentage of those who want an absolute ban on abortion has doubled: 8 % in 1998, 16% in 2010. Another portion of 25 % do not admit any abortion except in the case of medical necessity; they were only 13 % twelve years earlier. At that time 59% didn’t want, in any case, to accept a ban, against 49 per cent today. Undecided are 11%, against 20 per cent in 1998. The Catholic Church does what she can to help in this situation, and to strengthen this anti-abortion reflex. A group of catholic priests and sisters run at Vladivostok in Siberia a centre for orphans, critical pregnancies, and post-abortion counselling, as well as programs for the elderly and for young people. A catholic sister, Sr. Julia Kubsista, stated that some Russian women aborted up to 30 times. The United Nations has published, for the year 2007, that there were in the Russian Federation 53.7 abortions on 1000 women aged 15 to 44 years,  33 in Estonia, 31 in Belarus and 24 in China. With Our Blessed Lady of Fatima we must pray God to save ‘Holy Russia’.