Critics of Catholic Ban on Contraceptives Get Pope’s Attention ROME, July 26 – An unusual open letter to Pope Benedict asking him to lift the Church’s ban on contraception was so widely noticed yesterday that the Vatican felt compelled to respond.
The letter from more than 50 dissident Catholic groups was published July 25 as a half-page ad in Italy’s largest newspaper, Corriere della Sera, on the 40th anniversary of the “Humanae Vitae” encyclical in which Pope Paul VI established the ban.
The 1968 ban, the groups said in the ad, is still “a source of great conflict and division in the church” and “has had a catastrophic impact on the poor and powerless around the world, endangering women’s lives and leaving millions at risk of HIV.” It noted that as most Catholics use contraception and feel they are not sinning, the policy has been “an utter failure.”
In a sharp response, Fr. Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office, said the ad was “paid propaganda to promote the use of contraceptives.” Noting that the word “love” did not appear in the letter, he added, “It’s been 40 years, and the critics of Humanae Vitae still don’t get that it’s about love.”
Jon O’Brien, president of Catholics for Choice and organizer of the open letter, said he was “delighted” at the response. “Within hours of the ad appearing, we achieved our central objective of letting those who have continued with this fatally flawed policy know that Catholics the world over oppose the ban on contraception,” he said. The response “demonstrates that the church hierarchy is acutely aware that the ban on contraception has seriously harmed its relationship with Catholics in the pews.”
In a related development, the Times of London reported in its online editions on a survey of 1,500 Catholics in parishes across England and Wales that found half use contraceptives and more than half thought the ban should be revised. It was conducted by The Tablet, a weekly Catholic magazine.
Congress Takes First Step to Restore UNFPA Funding WASHINGTON, July 17 – Renewed U.S. funding for UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, moved forward in both the House and Senate this week, winning approval from two committees essential to further progress.
The Senate Appropriations Committee today allocated $45 million for UNFPA, an increase of $11 million over last year’s appropriation. On Wednesday, the influential House Appropriations subcommittee on foreign operations approved $60 million for UNFPA after a closed-door battle.
Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY), who sponsored the House measure, hailed the moves as “critical” for the agency’s family planning and reproductive health care programs in 140 countries. The bill, part of an overall $600 million spending measure for family planning and reproductive health care assistance programs worldwide, does not alter the existing Bush administration ban on use of the funds in China, restricting it use to specific programs with broad general support. The Senate bill mirrors the House bill in this regard.
These include providing contraceptives and safe motherhood medicine, equipment and supplies; treating obstetric fistula; and combating female genital cutting and child marriage.
The House funding, offered in a closed-door legislative markup session of the subcommittee, would ensure that UNFPA receives U.S. funds for non-China programs hereafter. The Bush administration last month withheld for the seventh straight year $40 million Congress previously appropriated for UNFPA, on grounds the agency is “complicit” in coerced abortions and sterilizations in China. UNFPA has repeatedly denied the charges and cited independent studies that found its work is “a force for good” in China.
“President Bush’s justification for withholding these funds does not hold water with his own State Department, let alone with the millions of women and children who need the vital care UNFPA provides,” said Lowey. “I will fight to protect these critical funds.”
Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney added “The U.S. should be leading the way in providing health care to the world’s most impoverished women, children, and families. Years of backward Bush Administration polices have put us far short of this goal time and again, but the Democratic Congress is working hard to pass critical investments in reproductive health care for women in the world’s developing nations.”
Amy Coen, president of Population Action International, called the House vote “a major step forward,” noting that “the importance of investing in family planning programs has never been greater.”
CLICK HERE to read a press release from Congresswoman Nita M. Lowey.
CLICK HERE to read a statement from Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney.
CLICK HERE to read a press release from Population Action International.
CLICK HERE to read a press release from Americans for UNFPA.
New Rules Would Threaten Right to Contraceptives
WASHINGTON, July 15 – Reproductive health advocates reacted with outrage today to a report in The New York Times that the Bush administration is proposing new rules that would discourage doctors and health-care clinics from providing birth control to women who need it. This proposed regulation deliberately confuses the definitions of contraception and abortion and could cause disarray in law, regulations, and policy.
The proposal would define “abortion” as "any of the various procedures — including the prescription, dispensing and administration of any drug or the performance of any procedure or any other action — that results in the termination of the life of a human being in utero between conception and natural birth, whether before or after implantation."
Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards said she was “gravely concerned” that such language would “radically redefine abortion to include some of the most common and effective methods of birth control.”
Marilyn Keefe, Director of Reproductive Health Programs of the National Partnership for Women & Families, called the proposal “an ill-conceived political ploy designed to win favor from those determined to deny women basic health services.” She said it would “put politics ahead of women’s health” and “shows callous disregard for low-income women facing unplanned pregnancies.” She pointed out that 90 percent of women in America use birth control, and that the proposal to appeal to the remaining 10 percent would be “political pandering at its very worst.”
Mary Jane Gallagher, president of the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, said the new rule would be “unprecedented” in “allowing individuals, institutions and programs receiving Health and Human Services funds to refuse to provide necessary health care services, including contraception.”
Recent research by the Women Donors Network has found that family planning opponents are only 9 percent of all likely voters, and that the rest overwhelmingly support policies and programs to expand access to safe and effective methods of birth control.
CLICK HERE to read a press statement from NARAL Pro-Choice America.
CLICK HERE to read a press statement from The National Partnership for Women & Families.
CLICK HERE to read a press statement from The Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
CLICK HERE to read a press statement from The National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association.
CLICK HERE to read a press release from The National Women’s Law Center.
CLICK HERE to read a press release from NARAL Pro-Choice America.
CLICK HERE to read a press release from Physicians for Reproductive Choice and Health.
G-8 Conference Addresses Maternal, Newborn Health RUSUTSU, Japan, July 9 – The Group of Eight conference of world leaders ended here today with a communique that for the first time included references to maternal, newborn and child health.
Major conference issues were climate change, the global food crisis and the Zimbabwe situation, but maternal health was high on the conference agenda and received special mention from United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, among others. "Considering the issues competing for his attention, this was monumental," said Jill Sheffield, former president of Family Care International, who attended.
The final G-8 communique statement was "just what we want the world to hear" about maternal health, Sheffield said: "Progress toward achieving MDGs 4 and 5 is seriously off track…the continuum of prevention and care…should include a greater focus on maternal, newborn and child health. Reproductive health should be made widely accessible."
She noted that the accompanying document, the Toya-ko Frame for Global Health, included even stronger language, and that influential allies including Sarah Brown, wife of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, had been prominent at the gathering in advocating action on behalf of mothers.
However, the final conference communique did not include either language calling for universal access to reproductive health services or the $10.2 billion annual commitment to maternal and child health that many activists had spent months promoting.
Before the three-day gathering, advocates led by the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health had argued that rising food and energy prices worldwide make the increased spending more urgent. Francisco Songane, director of the Partnership, which is a coalition of 250 organizations headquartered in Geneva, said, "We are afraid that unless help comes now, the situation will worsen and the Millennium Development Goals [MDGs] will continue to evade our grasp."
MDGs 4 and 5, which seek reductions in child and maternal deaths respectively, are considered the most unlikely of the eight MDGs to be achieved by the 2015 target date because of weak health systems in developing countries, a chronic shortage of health workers, and lack of investment and political commitment. Total world investment in 2006 totaled US$3.5 billion, a third of the needed amount, Songane said.
"To save the lives of six million mothers and children each year, we know what to do, we know how to do it, we know the cost, and sadly we know the cost of not doing it," Sheffield argued. "Clearly, this would be a sound economic investment."
G-8 host country Japan was instrumental in elevating maternal and child health on the conference agenda and has long been a strong contributor to the cause. "Japan knows from its own experience that by placing mothers and children first, a country can build strong health care and long-lasting development," said Makoto Yaguchi of the Japanese Organization for International Cooperation in Family Planning, a Partnership member.
In late June, 26 Democratic women members of the U.S. House of Representatives called on President Bush to "provide real leadership on this issue that is so fundamental to human existence around the world." In a letter, the women said U.S. funding against HIV/AIDS and other diseases would be futile without new funds to address the needs of mothers and newborns.
The White Ribbon Alliance mobilized 36 prominent women to petition the spouses of the G-8 leaders to "do what you can to make it happen" for mothers and newborns. Signers included former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, Random House CEO Gail Rebuck, World Bank Managing Director Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, journalist Christine Amanpour and celebrities Naomi Campbell, Dame Judi Dench, Annie Lennox, Yoko Ono, Gwyneth Paltrow, Claudia Schiffer and Emma Thompson, among others.
CLICK HERE to read a press release from The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health.
CLICK HERE to read Jill Sheffield's blog posts from throughout the summit.
World Population Day Focus Is On Family Planning NEW YORK, July 8 – This year World Population Day, observed on July 11, focuses on family planning as key to the well-being of future generations and achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), according to United Nations leaders.
Observations of the event that began in 1987, when Earth had 5 billion people, will involve seminars, celebrity appearances, concerts, dramatic presentations and many other events highlighting the essential role of family planning in reducing poverty, promoting development and saving the lives of mothers and newborns.
"Forty years ago, world leaders proclaimed that individuals have a basic right to determine freely and responsibly the number and timing of their children," noted UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon in a statement. "Millennium Development Goal 5, improving maternal health, affirms this right and yet shows the least progress to date." He called on all governments to honor commitments made since 1994 to provide universal access to reproductive health care, including family planning information and services.
"When a woman can plan her family, she can plan the rest of her life," said Thoraya Obaid, Executive Director of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund. "Family planning is also an effective means in the fight against poverty." A family can make sure it has resources to feed, clothe and fully educate each child, while women can be assured of the time they need to educate themselves and to earn a living. Access to family planning could also reduce women’s deaths and disabilities from pregnancy-related complications by about one-third, saving millions of lives, Obaid noted.
More than 200 million couples now have an unmet need for contraceptives, she said. The need is expected to rise 40 percent in the next 15 years as population rises, awareness grows and condom use increases against HIV/AIDS. Meanwhile, Earth’s population is now 6.4 billion people, and it will be 7 billion by 2012. It could be 12 billion by 2050 if contraceptive use does not increase, UNFPA estimates show.
Obaid called on world governments to ensure universal access to reproductive health care by 2015 and to "back up this promise with political commitment and financial investment. It is time to make reproductive health a priority," she said.
CLICK HERE to read the Press Release from UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund.
CLICK HERE to read the statement by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on World Population Day.
CLICK HERE to read remarks by Asih Puji Rahayu on World Population Day 2008.
CLICK HERE to read remarks by Marilyn Peri on World Population Day 2008.
Bush Administration Withholds UNFPA Funds for 7th Straight Year WASHINGTON, June 26 – The Bush administration today said it would withhold $39.7 million authorized by Congress for UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, for the seventh straight year.
Congressional critics immediately slammed the long-expected decision as once more based on spurious charges. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) said she was “deeply disappointed, but not surprised,” calling it proof the administration remains in a “retrograde rut” and is “blinded by political extremism.”
Since 2002, the administration has withheld a total of US$235 million from UNFPA, which supports voluntary family planning and reproductive health care programs in 154 countries worldwide. In his letter notifying Congress of the decision, Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte once again cited UNFPA’s program in China as the reason, saying that by providing “financial and technical resources” to the government, UNFPA “provides support for and participates in the management” of coercive abortions and sterilizations there.
A statement made by the United Kingdom on behalf of other UNFPA board members (including Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands, France, Belgium, Switzerland and Germany) when they approved the 6th country programme in 2006 said "A central objective of development cooperation is to improve policy and practise through dialogue and assistance. In this respect, we believe UNFPA is a 'force for good' by playing a crucial and catalytic role through its work in China, particularly in the selected counties."
The statement went on to read "let me state unequivocally that in our view, UNFPA's activities in China, as in the rest of the world, are in strict conformity with the unanimously adopted Programme of Action of the ICPD, and play a key role in supporting our common endeavour, the promotion and protection of all human rights and fundamental freedoms. Our delegations believe UNFPA deserves strong support to pursue these activities-thereby contributing to reaching the MDGs, particularly those related to HIV/AIDS, maternal health and child mortality."
UNFPA officials have repeatedly noted that nearly all other countries recognize the value of UNFPA’s work to support family planning and safe motherhood education and services. The agency, supported by voluntary contributions from UN member states, works in all the world’s poorest countries and in many where US aid agencies do not operate. A record 182 UN member states contributed US$419 million to the fund’s operating resources in 2007, the highest number of donor nations and the largest amount of contributions since the fund began operating in 1969. Donors included every country in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.
The top ten donors in 2007 were the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, the United Kingdom, Japan, Denmark, Germany, Finland, Spain and Canada, leaving the United States alone as the only country to withhold funding for political reasons.
The statement said the funds earmarked for UNFPA would be redirected to other US family planning assistance programs. In 2007, U.S. population assistance totaled $435.6 million, down 24 percent from the 1995 high of $576.6 million, and down 45 percent in terms of constant 1974 dollars, according to calculations by Population Action International (PAI). (Click here to see a chart of U.S. population spending.)
CLICK HERE to read statement by John D. Negroponte, U.S. Dept. of State
CLICK HERE to read the Press Release from Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY)
CLICK HERE to read the Press Release from Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY)
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