Manila: A Philippine woman has acknowledged
giving birth to a baby on a flight and then abandoning him in
the trash on board the plane, a lawmaker said on Thursday.
The baby was found by a security guard at Manila`s
airport last Sunday in a trash bag unloaded from a Gulf Air
flight from Bahrain. The trash apparently came from the
plane`s bathroom.
Rep Lani Mercado said the woman explained to her why she
had abandoned the baby. She said the story was heart-wrenching
and urged the public not to judge the woman harshly.
"She admitted it`s her child," Mercado told reporters
after meeting briefly with the woman at Manila`s National
Bureau of Investigation headquarters. "Let`s all pray that
there will be a happy ending to this story."
Mercado, who serves on legislative committees on children
and women, refused to provide other details of the meeting,
saying government investigators had asked her not to divulge
information about the woman. It was not clear why she was
allowed to meet with the woman, but lawmakers often get
involved in high-profile cases.
The 30-year-old woman was located yesterday in the remote
northern province of Apayao after investigators set out to
find the person who sat in a bloodstained seat on the plane.
Authorities brought her to Manila for questioning and
testing. They did not release her name.
PTI
