For Immediate Release:	July 16, 2004
For More Information:	Anika Rahman, U.S. Committee for UNFPA, (917)-478-6272 cell
Sponsor Organization:	U.S. Committee for UNFPA
Statement by President of U.S. Committee for UNFPA, Anika Rahman
President Bush’s announcement today of his decision to withhold $34 million in funding previously allocated by Congress for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) will have dire consequences for women and their families in low-income countries. This action is akin to sacrificing women’s lives for political gain. The $34 million President Bush cut from UNFPA’s budget this year alone could have spared 4,700 women from dying due to preventable childbirth complications. It could have saved 77,000 infants and children under 5 who will now die from a loss of maternal nurturing. And, without adequate family planning and reproductive health services and education, 2 million unplanned and unwanted pregnancies and 800,000 resulting unsafe abortions will occur. Neglect and under funding of women’s reproductive health programs is perpetuating poverty, creating social inequality and contributing to global unrest and insecurity. If this Administration is genuinely interested in spreading democracy and political stability throughout the world, it must stop pandering to the Religious Right and start supporting those organizations, including UNFPA, which address the socials ills that bring about many of the problems facing low-income countries. ### The U.S. Committee for UNFPA builds political and financial support for UNFPA in the U.S. UNFPA operates in more than 140 countries to promote women’s reproductive health and education, reduce maternal and infant mortality, prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS, and end sexual trafficking of women. http://www.uscommittee.org