PUSH JOURNAL MEDIA SUMMARY

SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND RIGHTS

Spain’s Abortion Clinics Go on Strike: On January 8 and 9, the Associated Press and The New York Times reported that about 50 clinics that perform 90 percent of Spain’s abortions went on a five-day strike to protest alleged government persecution. The government has staged recent raids nationwide aimed at clinics that perform illegal forms of abortion. The Association of Clinics Accredited for the Interruption of Pregnancies, the organization responsible for the strike, said in a statement it was “incomprehensible that while the option of abortion is provided for and recognized by the national health system and facilitated by accredited clinics, authorities allow the persecution of women and professionals involved,” Read: Associated Press, The New York Times

Spanish Police Offer Clinics Protection: On January 11, Deutsche Presse-Agentur reported that police in Madrid offered protection to striking clinics that claim they have been victims of attacks and harassment. The strike has prevented an estimated 2,000 women from obtaining abortion-related services. Read: Deutsche Presse-Agentur

Spanish PM Will Not Change Abortion Laws: On December 28, Agence France Presse reported that Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has ruled out altering Spanish abortion laws in the March parliamentary elections. Although Zapatero said his cabinet is “open to reflection” on the issue, he defended his four-year government record by stating, "There are no plans to modify the law in this area." On January 14, Deutsche Welle (Germany) said the strike and controversy between Catholic Church abortion opposition and public demand for liberalized laws will make abortion a major election issue. Read: Agence France Presse, Deutsche Welle

Australians Criticize Foreign Aid Restrictions: On January 9, the AAP and The Age (Melbourne) reported that Australian MPs want to lift a ban on use of the country’s foreign aid money for abortion advice and counseling. Australia also has restrictions on funding for contraception dating back to the 1990s. Family planning advocates say this causes unintended pregnancies, disease and death for many women in developing nations. West Australian Liberal MP Mal Washer said, "I don't like abortion, but it is ridiculous that we can't give any advice to women overseas about abortion at a time when the government funds abortion advice to women in this country. It smacks of misogyny and stupidity." Read: AAP, The Age

 

Vatican Calls for Banning Abortions Past 90 Days: On January 5, The New York Times reported that the Vatican is backing a proposed measure in Italy that would make obtaining an abortion more difficult. A measure proposed by Sandro Bondi, a lawmaker in Forza Italia, would ban all abortions past 90 days. Abortion was legalized in Italy in 1978 and abortion past 90 days is currently obtainable if the mother’s life is in danger. Read: The New York Times

Egypt Lawmakers Aim to Help Rape Survivors: On December 31 and January 1, Gulf News reported that Egyptian lawmakers want to give rape victims the right to have an abortion. An estimated 20,000 rapes occur in Egypt annually and abortion is illegal in all forms. The Strait Times reported that AL-Azhar, Sunni Islam's highest seat of learning, declared that any woman pregnant by rape must abort the baby immediately in order to maintain “social stability.” Read: Gulf News, The Straits Times

UK Teen Pregnancy Skyrockets: On December 30, the The Sunday Telegraph (United Kingdom) and the Press Association Newsfile reported that despite government spending of 150 million British pounds to combat teen pregnancy, Britain’s teen pregnancy rate is at its highest in a decade: almost 50,000 annually. The number is the highest in Europe. Critics blamed the government for making contraception easily accessible to teens without parental consent, thus encouraging sex, and called for funding cuts. Family planning advocates disagreed. "We are talking about girls who have had an abortion, who often live quite chaotic lives, and where this sort of contraceptive is the most appropriate. To deny the funding is short-term thinking at its worst,'' said Ann Furedi of the British Pregnancy Advisory Service. Read: The Sunday Telegraph, Press Association Newsfile

Mixed Messages on Sex for Hispanic Teens: On January 3, The New York Times reported on a coming-of-age ritual among Hispanics called Quinceanera Mass, used to promote faith and chastity on a girl’s 15th birthday. In Central and Latin America, the tradition is used to represent the opposite, a girl’s entry into the marriage market and sexual activity. Many believe that these messages may be in cultural conflict and cause unintended pregnancies. The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy said 51 percent of Hispanic teens get pregnant before age 20. Hispanics account for nearly 40 percent of the nation's 65 million Catholics, and the Vatican recently endorsed Quinceanera. Read: The New York Times

Swedish Law Cuts Street Prostitution: On January 5, The Guardian (London) reported on a Swedish law that outlaws buying sex and views prostitutes as victims of male violence. It was created to reduce the sale of sex nationwide in 1999, when some 2,500 native Swedes or permanent residents from abroad were working as prostitutes. In 2003, the number dropped to 1,500. Meanwhile, more than 500 men, among them four judges, have been convicted of purchasing or attempting to purchase sex in the past two years, and more than 77 prostitutes have been taken off the Stockholm streets. Read: The Guardian

Men’s Groups Opposing Abortion: On January 7, the Los Angeles Times reported that a growing number of organizations, many with religious affiliations, are trying to portray men as victims of abortion. Organizations like The Justice Foundation and the Silent No More Awareness Campaign encourage men to testify at rallies, protest in front of clinics and claim suffering from post-abortion trauma. Anti-abortion advocates say changing the focus of regret around abortion from women to men will increase the chance of overturning the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in 1973. "It's a rule of thumb that if you want to get a law passed, you have to tell anecdotes that grab people," said Dr. Nada Stotland, president-elect of the American Psychiatric Association. Antiabortion activists have done that very well, she said. "They've succeeded in convincing a lot of the American public" that abortion leaves women wounded. Read: Los Angeles Times

Rape Used as Weapon of War in Congo: On January 13, CBS News reported that rape is being used as a weapon in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s bloody civil war that has claimed the lives of 4 million people in ten years. Hundreds of thousands of women have been raped and often are victims of violence and torture. "I think what's different in Congo is the scale and the systematic nature of it; indeed, as well, the brutality,” said Anneka Van Woudenberg, senior Congo researcher at Human Rights Watch. “This is not rape because soldiers have got bored and have nothing to do. It is a way to ensure that communities accept the power and authority of that particular armed group. This is about showing terror. This is about using it as a weapon of war." Read: CBS News

 

HIV & AIDS

New Targets Found for HIV Drugs: On January 10 and 11, several media outlets reported that researchers from Harvard Medical School have used a new type of genetic screening to identify 273 proteins that the AIDS virus needs to survive in human cells. This discovery could lead the way for new drugs and treatment methods. “This is just terrific work,” said Dr. Robert C. Gallo, director of the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland and a co-discoverer of HIV. “I think it’s destined to be one of the top papers in this field for the decade.” Read: The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Washington Post

PEPFAR, Bush’s Flawed Legacy: On January 5, The New York Times reported that President Bush’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has been praised as the most bipartisan effort of his presidency. AIDS advocates worldwide have hailed it and credited it with providing millions with lifesaving treatment. But critics say Bush’s new request for a five-year US$30 billion extension is not enough and that PEPFAR needs structural revisions. Even supporters say $50 billion is needed, and many would remove the requirement that one-third of AIDS prevention funds in the program go for abstinence-only sex education. Dr. Alex Coutinho, a top AIDS expert in Uganda, said more funds and drug distribution are necessary if treatment is to reach more of those who need it. “Unless PEPFAR is reauthorized at a much higher level,” he said, “we are going to be in the business of playing God.” Read: The New York Times

 

SAVING WOMEN’S LIVES

Investing in Women Pays: On January 4, The Hindu reported on the outcomes of Women Deliver, a conference of over 2,000 advocates from around the world in London last October to combat maternal and newborn mortality. “Ann Starrs of Family Care International, writing in The Lancet, summed up the Women Deliver Conference this way,” The Hindu wrote: “‘The conference is a celebration and acknowledgement of the many ways in which women are the backbone of society — and a vigorous call for that role to be recognized and supported, not only because women deserve it, but also because societies need it.’” Read: The Hindu

Early Marriage Victimizes Young Girls: On January 4, Radio Free Europe reported that the practice of arranged child marriage in Afghanistan is victimizing young girls by subjecting them to a life of servitude and often to domestic violence. Child marriage, which affects an estimated 50 millions girls worldwide, often occurs in poverty-stricken areas and is done for financial reasons. In Afghanistan, 80 percent of marriages are forced or arranged and 57 percent involve girls younger than 16. Some child brides are as young as ten. Sami Hashemi, an expert at UNICEF's Kabul office, said it is a tragedy for Afghan society that "young girls who are supposed to be thinking about toys, books, and cartoons are being forced to become wives, to serve their husbands' families, and bear a child." Read: Radio Free Europe

Sauerbrey Loses Job: On December 21 and 31, the Associated Press and the Baltimore Sun reported that Ellen Sauerbrey, who was recently criticized by supporters of abortion rights for ignoring the reproductive rights and health of refugee women, was leaving her post as the Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees and Migration. "Mrs. Sauerbrey remains an opponent of reproductive health and family planning, which are often the most critically needed services for refugee women, the very population she was appointed to serve," read a letter in favor of Sauerbrey’s departure signed by the Center for Health and Gender Equity in Takoma Park, Catholics for Choice, Population Connection and the International Women's Health Coalition. Sauerbrey took office as a recess appointment by President Bush and can remain in the position only if re-nominated and confirmed. Read: Associated Press, Baltimore Sun

 

WOMEN’S EQUALITY

Afghan Women Slowly Gaining Equality: On January 2, the Times Colonist (Vancouver, British Colombia) reported that women in Afghanistan are slowly gaining equal rights, but much progress must still be made. An estimated 87 per cent of Afghan women are illiterate; one in four faces a forced marriage; only one in three girls has access to education. Advocates say the biggest obstacle to equal rights is war. "You need equality between men and women everywhere in the world," said Canada's Rights and Democracy Afghan director, Palwasha Hasan. "It is a question of removing the hurdles to that goal." Read: Times Colonist

Women Excel in Ireland and Italy: On January 9, Inter Press Service reported that the latest Gender Gap Index of the World Economic Forum put Italy, Ireland and Sri Lanka among the best of 128 nations in terms of gender equality and opportunities. Pakistan, Yemen and Chad ranked among the worst. Joanne Sandler, deputy executive director for programmes at the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) said "In places like Ireland and Finland it is becoming less extraordinary to see a woman in power…and it is this kind of female power that could bring more women into leadership.” Read: Inter Press Service (IPS)

 

POPULATION

Democratic President May Slow Population Growth: On January 14, the Christian Science Monitor reported that family planning advocates hope a new Democratic U.S. president will reduce world population growth by repealing the Mexico City Policy or “global gag rule” that prevents organizations from receiving U.S. aid if they provide or refer patients to abortion services. U.S. spending on population, reproductive health and family planning programs is 41 percent less (adjusted for inflation) than at its peak of US$577 million in 1995. Repealing the policy would decrease birthrates and population growth, easing tensions on the environment and competition for strained resources. Read: Christian Science Monitor

 

EDITORIALS and COLUMNS: On January 10, the Telegram & Gazette (Massachusetts) published an opinion piece by Ronal C. Madnick, director of the Worcester County Chapter of the ACLU of Massachusetts, highlighting advances in women’s equality as the 35th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade approaches on January 22, 2008. Although advances in reproductive health and rights, education and career expansion have been extensive, many women have not reaped all the benefits, he said. Politicians’ support or opposition to Roe vs. Wade will determine the next wave of women’s equality. “In this year’s presidential election, we should ask candidates where they stand on the issue of Roe v. Wade. One reason why the answer is important is because of the connection between reproductive rights and gender equality. Access to birth control and abortion plays an important role in opening up the classrooms, boardrooms and legislatures to women.” Read: Telegram & Gazette (Massachusetts)

On January 13, the Anchorage Daily News (Alaska) published an opinion piece by Geran Tarr, director of Alliance for Reproductive Justice, discussing the need to redefine the concept of reproductive rights to encompass a broader range of health issues affecting women. Tarr defined "reproductive justice" as recognizing reproductive rights as basic human rights and including access to reproductive health care, environmental health, family-friendly employment policies and supportive communities and laws, as well as abortion rights. “So we've been having this conversation for a very long time. These issues will not go away. As we move forward, I hope the reproductive justice model offers a new path and, hopefully, one that will lead to more collaboration between advocates and healthier women, children, families and communities.” Read: Anchorage Daily News

On January 15, the Globe and Mail (Canada) published an opinion piece by its own Judith Timson about Hollywood’s ignorance on abortion as demonstrated in two recent movies, “Knocked Up” and “Juno.” Both deal with unintended pregnancy, and the word “shmashmortion” is used in place of abortion in “Knocked Up,” where a successful early-career journalist doesn’t even consider the procedure. “Meanwhile, in real life, a great many teenage pregnancies end at the abortion clinic,” Timson said. “Which isn't to say that doesn't provide a somewhat happy ending too. Just not one that you'll see on a movie marquee these days.” Read: Globe and Mail

On January 2, the Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) published an op-ed by Cristina Page, spokesperson for BirthControlWatch.org,, discussing the mounting evidence against federally funded abstinence-only sex education, including the pregnancy of 16-year-old teen idol Jamie Lynn Spears. “Many states are realizing that instilling ignorance about sex and protection in our teens is the real moral violation,” Page said. “Teens need accurate information in order to make important life decisions. That is why, to date, 15 states have refused federal money for abstinence-only funding. Parents in the remaining 35 states must demand that their governors and legislatures reject federal grants for these ineffective and dangerous programs, too. It's the only time just saying no might actually work.” Read: Sun-Sentinel

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The above summary is produced by the Communications Consortium Media Center, 401 Ninth Street, NW, Suite 450, Washington, DC 20004, 202.326.8700. Redistribution is encouraged with credit to CCMC.

 

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