Monday, May 27, 2013

Dominican Republic court hands Catholic Church a stunning setback

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTZesu_ooIv6Hom6S3Mt_vMn1ADUpx-Q24UDtgNH4lzUTwJN0Ur_wA National District court on Monday handed down an unprecedented setback against Dominican Republic’s Catholic Church, denying it a restraining order against the family planning organization’s (ProFamilia) sex education campaign.
 
5th Chamber Civil Court judge Eunice Minaya ruled that the NGO’s sexual education campaign doesn’t violate the fundamental rights of the plaintiff, the Archdiocese of Santo Domingo.

She ruled that Pro Familia’s advertisement couldn’t be banned since it’s part of their right to freedom of expression bestowed on every person, without prior censorship, taking special care to protect the youth and family, and the law and public order, "which in this case we haven’t observed that it has been violated."

The Court ruling also notes that freedom of expression is a delicate ground along which the subjectivity of each person travels, "and it would be dangerous to venture to ban such demonstrations, and although hateful, originate essentially from opposing ideological positions that could lead to removal of our Republic’s freedoms reached with blood and fire."

The ruling is the first in recent memory against the power of the country’s Catholic Church, which has in the Concordat, a long standing pact with the Dominican Republic.