Friday Fax
Volume 9, Number 15 | March 31, 2006
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Dear Colleague, We report today on charges recently leveled by the anti-life and anti-family Center for Reproductive Rights against the US government. The charges are that the US has violated its treaty obligations for promoting abstinence. Spread the word. Yours sincerely, Austin Ruse President |
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Center for Reproductive Rights
Charges US with Treaty Violations
By Samantha Singson
Lawyers for the pro-abortion legal group Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR) have testified before the United Nations' Human Rights Committee (HRC) that the US government has violated its treaty obligations under the International Covenant for Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) to provide adequate access to all forms of reproductive health care. Priscilla Smith, Director of the Domestic Legal Program at CRR, charged the US with failure to comply because the US has failed to provide adequate access to all forms of "reproductive health care." Smith took specific issue with US state laws that in anyway inhibit abortions, like parental notification. She also complained about the Food and Drug Administration's refusal to make emergency contraception available over the counter. Additionally, she said violations occurred under the US position on abstinence-based sexual education programs, and "Mexico City Policy," which prevents US foreign-aid money from being used to provide or advocate for abortion. One of the more notable accusations Smith makes is the claim that the US promotion of abstinence-based sex education programs leads to the continued promulgation of gender stereotypes and increases the likelihood of people engaging in unprotected sex, thus raising rates of sexually transmitted infection. The CRR reports "the US exports these harmful programs to countries . . . such as Uganda, with a high prevalence of HIV." The Ugandan government has touted its success in drastically reducing the HIV infection rate from 15 percent in 1991 to just over 4 percent at the end of 2003 through its promotion of abstinence-based sexual education programs. The ICCPR entered into force in 1976 and was ratified by the United States in 1992. The first line of Article 6 of the covenant states, "Every human being has the inherent right to life." Smith's charges are viewed as a bit of a stretch since not a single article of the ICCPR mentions "reproductive health." And while UN officials regularly assert the UN does not promote abortion, UN committees often use treaties and resolutions to try and force governments to legalize abortion. The Human Rights Committee, a group of 18 largely unknown experts meets three times a year to consider periodic reports submitted by Member States and monitors treaty compliance. Pro-abortion NGOs are allowed to make reports charging lack of compliance by Member States. In recent years, the HRC has become more vocal in promoting the liberalization of abortion laws in sovereign countries. For example, in November 2004, the United Nations' Human Rights Committee concluded a review on Poland's ICCPR compliance by stating, "The State Party should liberalize its legislation and practice on abortion." At that same session, the committee also chastised Morocco for its laws restricting abortion, stating, "The committee recommends Morocco should ensure that women are not obliged to carry their pregnancies to term when that is incompatible with the obligations rising from the Covenant and to liberalize the provisions relative to the interruption of pregnancy." |
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Copyright 2005 - C-FAM (Catholic
Family & Human Rights Institute). Permission granted for unlimited use. Credit required. Catholic Family & Human Rights Institute 866 United Nations Plaza, Suite 427 New York, New York 10017 Phone: (212) 754-5948 Fax: (212) 754-9291 E-mail: c-fam@c-fam.org Website: www.c-fam.org |