The United Nations urged the government of the Philippines to pass a bill which stipulates free distribution of contraceptives among the citizens due to high mortality rates among pregnant women, Thailand's Bangkok Post newspaper reported on Sunday.
"The bill should be adopted as soon as possible because we have waited for a long time. Mortality rate among the pregnant grew to 14-15 cases a day from 11 and in most cases women and girls from poor families die," Ugochi Daniels, from the UN Population Fund, was quoted by the newspaper as saying.
Many of those who die are girls from 15 to 19 years old, Daniels added.
The bill was presented to President Benigno Aquino but met strong opposition from the Catholic Church, with priests leading protests against it on Saturday. The priests consider that introducing the law would hit moral values in the country.
According to international media reports, contraceptives are freely available in the Philippines, but very expensive. The medicine could cost as much as a weekly food bill for poor families.
