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The Women's Rights Cause
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Loading...Stop the Political Hot Potato: Ditch the Global Gag Rule…For Good
In the first week of his presidency, President Obama repealed the Mexico City Policy—commonly referred to as the Global Gag Rule—something we in the reproductive health development community applauded. The Global Gag Rule is a US policy that restricted foreign NGOs that receive US funding for family planning from using their own, non-US funds to provide legal abortion services, advocate for abortion law reform in their own countries, or even provide accurate medical counseling or referrals regarding abortion.
President Obama’s repeal means that the gag rule is not currently in effect—but there is nothing to prevent a future president from reinstating it. In fact, if the last 30 years show us anything it’s that the Global Gag Rule has been a political hot potato from president to president. President Reagan first instated it, President Clinton repealed it, President Bush reinstated, President Obama repealed…and so could it continue.
Women’s lives shouldn’t be a game of political one-ups-manship. The constant battle over this policy has only hurt women around the world and has undermined US investments in global health and democracy. At Pathfinder, we’ve had to sever relationships with key partner groups on the ground because of the policy—many of whom had to curtail their services due to lost funding, or change the scope of their work. For instance, one of our partners in Ethiopia, the Family Guidance Association of Ethiopia (FGAE), sustained a 35 percent cut in funding because of its refusal to sign the gag rule. The first NGO in Ethiopia ever to provide family planning services, the FGAE was forced to drastically cut back on its distribution of supplies and vital services.
This week there is a unique opportunity to end this political hot potato. Representative Nita Lowey and Senator Barbara Boxer have introduced the Global Democracy Promotion Act to create a permanent, legislative barrier to attempts by a future administration to reinstate the Global Gag Rule. More than 20 reproductive health organizations including Pathfinder International, Planned Parenthood, CHANGE, International Women’s Health Coalition, and Population Connection among others, are doing a big push to encourage additional representatives and senators to sign on as co-sponsors to this important legislation.
You can help by contacting your representatives today and urging them to support the Global Democracy Promotion Act. Email your representatives now and tell them to stop playing games with women’s lives.
Read more: barbara boxer, global democracy promotion act, global gag rule, nita lowey, reproductive health, womens rights
Photo by Amy Coughlin, Pathfinder International (Nigeria)
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We must remember that access to prenatal care is limited and many more women in 3rd world countries die in child birth
I pray that the appropriate action is taken to ensure women have the right to decide their own destiny
To Carole Tokaruk: Do YOU realize, how many females (already born), die every day, due to malnutrition, are vaginally mutulated, sold into slavery, born to drug-addicted mothers and mistreated by male persons?
If you put, at least, some of your anger, concerning abortion, into saving females, who are in dire situations, I would have more understanding for your position.
When a woman is forced to continue an unwanted pregnancy, are YOU and/or any of your pro-life friends, there to care for that child that she didn't want? You can be certain, that YOUR tax dollars, will be used to help those unfortunate females, as statistically, those unwanted babies will become tomorrow's problems, through no fault of their own.
Signed and supported...
I pray that the bill passes and I've contacted my representatives.
Do you realize all you so called feminists that millions of female baby girls are aborted yearly?? So you don't care about the future of the females just yourself !! Not surprising really, but pathetic at best. And this is all under the guise of " women's rights" and "reproductive rights".
There should be nothing left unsaid when the health -and many times the life- of a patient is at stake. Women don't have abortions for the fun of it, but because they have no safe and manageable alternative in their situation.
I strongly believe that we are in no place to force our ways of thinking on other cultures. This is no different than a meat eater and vegan trying to convince the other that their way is the only way.
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