Tour guide Carlos Celdran detained for protesting inside churchPIA FAUSTINO, GMANews.TV09/30/2010 | 06:14 PMManila tour guide Carlos Celdran was detained by Manila police on Thursday for disrupting a mass at the Manila Cathedral, where he staged a protest action against the church's opposition to the reproductive health bill.
At around 4:50 p.m. Thursday, Celdran wrote on his Twitter account that he "is in police station of parian in intramuros in front of lyceum." Celdran is a reproductive health advocate.
During a mass attended by Mayor Alfredo Lim and several members of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, Celdran said he went to the front of the altar dressed as Dr. Jose Rizal and held up a placard that read "Damaso" -- a reference to the villainous friar from the novel "Noli Me Tangere."
He screamed "Stop getting involved in politics" before he was taken away by the police.
Dressed as Jose Rizal, Celdran stood in front of the Manila Cathedral altar during a mass, holding a sign bearing the words "Damaso."Photo courtesy of MARIZ UMALIAside from running popular walking tours of Manila's historical spots, Celdran is also a vocal advocate of the Reproductive Health Bill. He has used his blog, Facebook account, and Twitter account to criticize the Catholic church for its stance against artificial contraceptives and sex education.
Police said it was Mayor Lim who ordered that Celdran be taken into police custody.
"Nandoon si Mayor Lim sa misa eh. Nilapitan siya ng pari. Ang nagmimisa doon, sundalo at mga police. Kinuha (si Celdran) ng mga pulis na nakikinig ng misa," said SPO2 Ernesto Andres, desk officer of the PCP Intramuros.
Andres said they would hold Celdran for up to six hours, while waiting for the CBCP or the Manila Cathedral to decide whether it will press charges against Celdran.
"Sa ngayon, wala pang naisasampang kaso," said Andres.
In a telephone interview, Celdran told GMANews.TV that the police were treating him well. "I think I got them on my side, because I told them the reason why I did this," he added.
"The fact the police are in semi-agreement of my cause, although they cannot do anything about it, shows how much people want the RH bill to be passed and how much the church should stop getting involved in politics and stop threatening the president," he added.
At around 6:00 p.m., Andres said a representative of the Manila Cathedral called the police station. "Ire-reprimand siya. Patatawarin," he said.
Celdran was transferred to the police community precinct in Ermita later. "Doon sila maga-areglo," Andres said.
CBCP legal counsel Atty. Jo Imbong said she had not heard about the incident and could not yet comment on whether the CBCP planned to file charges.
Last Tuesday, President Aquino announced that he would continue to
support responsible parenthood and informed choice in family planning.
"Even during the [the presidential] campaign the president already stated his position on the matter. It's more of responsible parenthood. We believe that parents should be the one to decide on the size of their family, the manner and the method by which the planning should be done," said presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda.
In response, Catholic
bishops threatened to stage protests if the reproductive health bill is passed into law.
- YA, GMANews.TVSource: http://www.gmanews.tv/story/202328/tour ... ide-church
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