House Leadership Twists Arms on Funding for UNFPA

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Contact an expert: Sarah Craven, UNFPA Sally Ethelston, PAI Click here to read the latest coverage on UNFPA funding Click here to read facts about UNFPA's activities in China

After earmarking funds for UNFPA just last week, House Appropriations Committee passes conflicting amendment in the same bill

May 15 - Conservatives once again used strong-arm tactics, forcing a close vote in the House Appropriations Committee to overturn the will of Congress in an effort to deny US funding for the UN Population Fund. The series of flip flops leaves US funding for UNFPA in question.

In December, 2001, Congress and the Administration agreed on a fiscal 2002 Foreign Operations funding plan that provided $34 million to the UN Population Fund (UNFPA). President Bush signed the Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill (Public Law 107-115) on January 10, 2002. Despite the fact that the compromise was agreed to by White House negotiators and leaders of both parties in the Congress, President Bush has not released funds for UNFPA, the world’s international family planning leader.

Rebuking the Bush Administration’s decision to back out of the bipartisan compromise the House Appropriations committee approved language last week sponsored by Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) that would require the Administration to release the $34 million for UNFPA.

Today, frustrated that the family planning assistance may be delivered to developing countries around the world, the House leadership teamed up with White House lobbyists to pass a contradictory amendment to the very same bill. The amendment, offered by Rep. Todd Tiart (R-KS) leaves the release of last year’s funding for UNFPA up in the air. House leadership pressed three of their pro-UNFPA and pro-family planning members to change their votes, leaving today’s vote at 32-30.

Rep. Dick Armey (R-TX) yesterday claimed that if the Kolbe amendment stayed in the $29.4 billion supplemental appropriations bill, the bill would “sink”.

The supplemental appropriations bill is expected to go to the House floor next week. The Senate will then take up the bill, and is expected to support language to require the release of last year’s funds for UNFPA.

Meanwhile, the White House delegation sent to China to review UNFPA activities there has just begun its investigation. The team will report to the President whether or not it believes the UNFPA program supports coercive practices in China. UNFPA delegation and a recent British team, as well as every other funder of UNFPA, have concluded that the agency’s efforts in China do not involve any coercive practices and in fact are encouraging Chinese authorities to relax the rigid, one-child policy and to adopt programs built on voluntarism and informed consent.

UNFPA’s program in China, approved by the Fund's Executive Board of 36-member States, adheres strictly to the highest standards of voluntarism and human rights. At the insistence of UNFPA, Chinese authorities have agreed to abolish family planning quotas and targets in the 32 Chinese counties in which it operates. An independent fact-finding mission in October 2001 found that found that the Fund's program in China is playing an important catalytic role in the reform of reproductive health services from an administrative approach to a client-oriented approach that promotes informed choice of contraceptive methods through information, education and counseling.

The loss of U.S. funding is already having a significant impact on UNFPA activities. Recently, UNFPA said that the delay in US funding was causing cuts in personnel and programs. If the Bush Administration denies funding altogether, UNFPA estimates that it could lead to as many as “2 million unwanted pregnancies, 800,000 induced abortions, 4700 maternal deaths and 77000 infant and child deaths.”

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