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As part of an extensive itinerary of visits to foreign sovereign states, President Laura Chinchilla will arrive at the Vatican to meet with Pope Benedict XVI, who is currently visiting Mexico.
According to digital news daily El Pais, our President’s next visits include Guatemala, where she will meet with Central American leaders looking for a solution to reduce consumption of controlled substances in the region. She will then travel to Cartagena de Indias in Colombia, where she will participate in the Summit of the Americas.
In Europe, President Chinchilla will meet with the heads of state in France and Germany, as well as with the Holy See in the Vatican.
The President’s visit to the Vatican is bound to spark controversy among the different factions that support and oppose reproductive rights. In vitro fertilization has become a thorny issue in Costa Rica, a country that attempts to balance the juxtaposition of respecting civil liberties and human rights while recognizing the Roman Catholic faith in her Constitution.
Costa Rica is the only country in the Americas where in vitro fertilization is prohibited, and earlier this week a legislator from PASE -a political party that advocates equal access for the disabled– obtained the support of the Catholic Church to declare March 25th as a National Day of Observance for the Unborn.
Legislator Rita Chaves spoke to Spanish news agency EFE and further explained that the proposed day of observance has additional symbolism since it falls on Immaculate Conception day, a holy day of obligation for Catholics and other Christian denominations. The Archbishop of San Jose has expressed support for the proposal.
Costa Rica’s stance on in vitro fertilization is currently being challenged at the Inter American Court of Human Rights.
Source: Univision
