Yesterday the House Foreign Affairs Committee voted along party lines to pass a bill to defund the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The vote was 23 to 17, with all 23 Republicans present voting to block US funding to UNFPA and all of the Democrats voting against the measure. Such cuts would be detrimental to programs for women and children. According to the Huffington Post, “If the U.S were to give $50 million to the UNFPA in 2012 [it] could prevent 7,000 maternal and newborn deaths, provide surgeries to 10,000 women afflicted by an obstetric fistula, and offer contraception to about 1 million couples who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford it.” Ranking Member Howard Berman (D-CA) stated, “Tragically, the bill takes aim at poor women and children in the developing world – women and children who all too often suffer from the effects of disease, war, rape, and a host of absolutely horrid conditions that few of us can even begin to imagine. Rather than helping these desperate people – as UNFPA seeks to do – the legislation makes them pawns in a debate over social issues that often seems divorced from reality.” Berman proposed 10 amendments to continue UNFPA funding for life-saving programs and programs in countries plagued by natural disasters or conflicts, including amendments that would provide funding for water and sanitation and to prevent gender based violence and female genital mutilation. House Republicans claim that their desire to defund the UNFPA stems from the organization’s support of China’s one-child policy, which requires women obtain abortions and sterilization. However, Sarah Craven, chief of the Washington branch of the UNFPA, denied these claims, stating, “Not a dime of U.S, money goes to China, and not one dime goes to abortion.” An investigation conducted by the State Department, which found “no evidence that UNFPA has knowingly supported or participated in the management of a program of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization,” supports Craven’s assertion.
Migration Category: Global Old Site
UNFPA Fights Gender- Based Sex Selection
On Wednesday, Nobuko Horibe, director of the Asia and Pacific Regional Office of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) issued a statement before the International Workshop on Prenatal Sex Selection describing the UNFPA’s renewed commitment to ending gender-based sex selection and discrimination against women and girls. Horibe pointed out that that gender imbalances contribute to increased sexual violence against women and trafficking.
According to Horibe, there are as many as 117 million “missing” women in Asia, a number which she argued calls for improved gender equality on an international scale. She stated, “We must accelerate our efforts and give priority to developing programs and policies that foster norms and an attitude of ‘zero tolerance’ for discrimination, harmful attitudes and unethical practices, such as prenatal sex selection. Gender equality is at the very heart of each country’s successful development.”
Gender-based sex selection remains a persistent problem in South, East, and Central Asian countries. As of June 2011, the sex ratio imbalances continue to grow and can be as skewed as 130 males per every 100 females. By contrast, the normal sex ratio is 102-106 males per every 100 females born. The UNFPA notes that patrilineal inheritance and the reliance on sons for economic support and the performance of death rites contributes to the preference for male children. Sex selection can be performed through “prenatal sex detection and selective abortion, or following birth through infanticide or child neglect.”
HIV Rate Doubled in Users of Injectable Contraception
According to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Washington, published in the Lancet Infections Diseases, women who used contraceptive injections were twice as likely to contract and spread HIV. The researchers studied 3,790 couples in which one partner was HIV positive in Botswana, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Ungada, and Zambia.
Isobel Coleman, director of the women and foreign policy program at the Council on Foreign Relations, stated, “The best contraception today is injectable hormonal contraception because you don’t need a doctor, it’s long-lasting, it enables women to control timing and spacing of birth without a lot of fuss and travel. If it is now proven that these contraceptions are helping spread the AIDS epidemic, we have a major health crisis on our hands.”
Contraceptive injections, which are administered every three months, are the most commonly used form of birth control in Africa. According to the New York Times, “About 12 million between the ages of 15 and 49 in sub-Saharan Africa, roughly 6 percent of all women in that age group, use them.” Throughout the world, over 140 million women use hormonal contraception, with includes both birth control pills an injections.
Abortion Rates Rise in Africa with Global Gag Rule Enforcement
A study conducted by Stanford researchers, Eran Bendavid and Grant Miller, revealed that when the Global Gag Rule was in effect, rates of abortion increased in Africa. The Global Gag Rule bans US funding for family planning programs in developing countries that provide information to women or advocate on a full range of options, including abortion. The researchers in this study, which is the first to evaluate the Global Gag Rule quantitatively, reviewed health statistics and demographic information in 20 African nations.
The researchers attribute the spike in abortion rates to the lack of available contraception during the years when the Global Gag Rule was in effect. Miller stated, “If women use abortion as a substitute for modern contraceptives, then reductions in birth control supply could lead to an increase in abortions. Regardless of one’s view about abortion, this result shows that the policy objectives of neither side are being met.” Bendavid and Miller’s findings were published in the World Health Organization Bulletin. Latanya Mapp Frett, vice president of Global, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, stated, “The global gag rule prohibits U.S. funding to many of the world’s most experienced family planning organizations, disrupts essential health care for poor and vulnerable communities, and restricts health care providers from counseling patients on their full range of options. Although proponents of the global gag rule seek to limit abortion, this study shows that in reality the policy leads to more unintended pregnancies, more unsafe abortions, and more women dying from completely preventable causes.”
In late September, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) reintroduced the Global Democracy Promotion Act (GDPA). If passed, the bill would overturn the Global Gag Rule. The bill states that “foreign nongovernmental organizations shall not be ineligible for such assistance solely on the basis of health or medical services, including counseling and referral services, provided by such organizations with non-United States Government funds if such services do not violate the laws of the country.”
President Ronald Reagan implemented the Global Gag Rule through an executive order; President Clinton rescinded the executive order; President George W. Bush reinstated the executive order; and President Obama rescinded it.
Afghan Women Concerned about Possibility of Taliban Rule
A survey of approximately 1,000 Afghan women, conducted by Action Aid and Oxfam, revealed that the majority of the women (86 percent) were concerned about the possibility of returning to a Taliban-style government. Seventy-two percent of the women surveyed had experienced improvements and increased rights since the war began in Afghanistan in 2001, and 37 percent expressed apprehension about the withdrawal of international troops, the study found.
According to Action Aid, “Women are [now] free to be educated and to work. They serve as government ministers and MPs and work as doctors, teachers, professors, entrepreneurs and lawyers. These are significant achievements. However, huge challenges remain, with many women still denied basic rights. Action Aid believes that including women in the peace, reconciliation and transition processes is the best means of safeguarding and furthering women’s hard-won civil freedoms and human rights.”
During Taliban control from 1996 to 2001, women and girls were not permitted to attend work or school and their mobility and access to healthcare were limited.
Hillary Clinton Calls for Ratification of CEDAW
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in a meeting with Catherine Ashton, the top diplomat for the European Union and Michelle Bachelet, executive director of UN Women and the former president of Chile, signed a document in support of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). “We call upon all States to ratify and fulfill their obligations under the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and to implement fully Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) on Women and Peace and Security and other relevant UN resolutions,” the women leaders wrote in their joint statement.
Melanne Verveer, ambassador-at-large for global women’s issues at the State Department, told the Huffington Post, “I’ve testified that around the world, the number one question I’m asked is why hasn’t the U.S. ratified CEDAW. We would be much stronger if we could be in the right place, but it’s up to the Senate.”
CEDAW was first signed by Jimmy Carter in 1980 and has been approved by the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations twice, but the United States has never ratified the treaty. The treaty has been ratified by 186 of the 193 member nations of the United Nations. The other six nations that have not signed the treaty are Iran, the Republic of the Sudan, and Syria, as well as the three small Pacific Island nations of Palau, Tonga and Nauru.
Woman in Saudi Arabia Receives 10 Lashes for Driving
On Tuesday, a Saudi court sentenced a woman to 10 lashes with a whip for driving a car. According to the Los Angeles Times, there is no formal law in place in Saudi Arabia that bans women from driving. However, there is a law that requires citizens to carry locally issued licenses. These licenses are not issued to women, effectively making it illegal for them to drive. Women are also prohibited from driving by a religious edict issued by Muslim clerics.
This is the first time that formal legal punishment has been issued to violators of the law. It is only recently that several women have been summoned to stand trial for driving. Two other women are also facing charges related to driving.
The ruling comes two days after Saudi King Abdullah granted women the right to vote and run in municipal elections. Phillip Luther, a regional deputy director for Amnesty International, maintains that while the new voting provisions for Saudi women are monumental, they do not compensate for the persistent infringements on human rights in Saudi Arabia. Luther stated, “Allowing women to vote in council elections is all well and good, but if they are still going to face being flogged for trying to exercise their right to freedom of movement, then the king’s much trumpeted ‘reforms’ actually amount to very little.”
Setback for Saudi Women’s Driving Rights
Despite gaining the right to vote in a recent speech delivered by King Abdullah, Saudi women are facing a setback in their struggle to achieve driving rights. The same day as the king’s announcement, the Authority of Prosecutors Committee brought Najla al-Hariri to the police department to question her about her involvement in a recent campaign to secure Saudi women’s driving rights. She was required to sign a pledge agreeing to not to drive again before being released. Al-Hariri was similarly detained by the police for driving in August; however, she was not forced to sign the pledge at that point.
Najla al-Hariri will also face trial, although she did not break the law since Saudi Arabia does not have written laws barring women from driving. Nevertheless, Saudi women have to rely on male relatives or paid drivers to get around by car due to a religious edict issued by Muslim clerics.
On June 17, some 40 Saudi women got behind the wheel to protest the driving ban. Female activists have continued to make forays onto the roads since then, often posting videos of themselves driving on social networks.
Africa’s First Woman Nobel Prize Winner Dies
Africa’s first woman Nobel Peace Prize winner, Wangari Maathai, died at age 71 of cancer on Sunday. In 2004, Maathi was awarded the Nobel Prize for “her contribution to sustainable development, democracy, and peace.” She stated in her acceptance speech, “My fellow Africans, as we embrace this recognition, let us use it to intensify our commitment to our people, to reduce conflicts and poverty, and thereby improve their quality of life. Let us embrace democratic governance, protect human rights and protect our environment.”
A renowned feminist and environmentalist, Maathi began the Green Belt Movement in 1977, which paid poor women to reforest her native country, Kenya. The movement is responsible for planting over 30 million trees in Africa and employing over 900,000 women, according to the New York Times.
June Zeitlin, former executive director of the Women’s Environment and Development Organization (WEDO), stated, “Wangari was a founder of WEDO and supporter throughout her life time. She was an inspiration to me and countless women and men throughout the world. I had the privilege of going to Oslo when she received the Nobel Peace Prize. She used this honor to tirelessly bring her message of advancing world peace through sustainability, democracy and human rights, particularly women’s rights.”
Women’s Rights Groups Praise New Afghan Shelter Regulations
In a victory for Afghan women’s rights groups, President Hamid Karzai’s Cabinet approved new draft regulations that will allow women’s shelters in Afghanistan to remain independent and not come under government control. The regulations will also allow the shelters to receive money from donors without government intermediation. The government has not published the changes to the regulations to avoid controversy; however, Georgette Gagnon, director of human rights for the UN mission in Afghanistan, called the regulations “a victory for women’s rights in Afghanistan.”
Gagnon stated that women’s groups were “able to convince the government and others that shelters were needed [and that] they needed to be independent to preserve women’s rights and dignity.”
In February, the Afghan government proposed other regulations, which were not passed, that would have allowed it to take over battered women and girls shelters, which were run by non-profit women’s organizations. The proposed regulation would have required women fleeing domestic violence situations to appear before an eight-person government panel before obtaining shelter. A government committee would then determine whether women could be admitted to a shelter or if they should be jailed or returned to their families. If admitted to the shelter, women would have been required to submit to physical examinations, which could include a virginity test. Moreover, women could be forced to leave the shelter if their families requested that they return.
Ten years ago there were no shelters for abused women in Afghanistan. Currently, there are approximately 14 shelters.
Saudi King Announces Women’s Right to Vote
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia announced in a recent address that Saudi women will now have voting rights and permitted to nominate candidates in the municipal elections to be held in 2015. Women will also be granted the right to participate in the Shura council, an advisory council appointed by the king. He stated, “Since we reject to marginalize the role of women in the Saudi society, in every field of works, according to the (Islamic) Sharia guidelines, and after consultations with many of our scholars, especially those in the senior scholars council, and others, who have expressed the preference for this orientation, and supported this trend.”
The White House issued a statement praising the King’s address: “We welcome Saudi King Abdullah’s announcement today that women will serve as full members of the Shura Council in the next session, and will have the right to participate in future elections. These reforms recognize the significant contributions women in Saudi Arabia make to their society and will offer them new ways to participate in the decisions that affect their lives and communities.”
Despite gaining the right to vote, Saudi women still have to rely on male relatives or paid drivers to get around by car due to a religious edict issued by Muslim clerics. In June, Women in Saudi Arabia took to the streets to demand the right to drive, posting videos of themselves behind the wheel.
Nigerian Women Organize March against Rape
On Thursday, Nigerian women announced plans to march in protest of rape and sexual violence. The proposed march, which has been tentatively scheduled for the International Day Against Violence Against Women on November 25, is in response to a recent online video in which a woman is gang-raped while pleading with her assailants to kill her. This incident is one of many that have recently gained rare public attention in the country.
One reason why rape cases receive low publicity in Nigeria is because rape is seen as rare in the country, due in part to a low rate of reporting. According to federal police statistics on the Nigeria Police Watch website, 952 rape cases were reported in 2009. In a country with a population of 140 million people, this number is considered inconsequential by the government.
Country officials believe that the low rate of reporting can be explained by the sense of shame that surrounds sexual violence cases in Nigeria. “Nothing has been put into action. Our laws are still not clear. The woman who wants to report rape does not have the confidence in the justice system in Nigeria. The police are not accountable to the people. There is a lot of impunity on the issue of rape and sexual violence in Nigeria,” said Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, executive director of the Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre.
The Nigerian police force is often subject to harsh criticism because of its own participation in incidents of sexual assault. According to BBC News, a 2010 study by the Open Society Justice Initiative, police officers in Nigeria routinely take part in sexual assault, with a particular focus on sex workers.
Clinton says Women are Key to Fueling Global Economic Growth
On Friday, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton cited women as an untapped resource for global economic recovery and growth in her speech before the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) during the inaugural High-Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy in San Francisco, CA. Clinton encouraged members of APEC, including China, Russia, Vietnam, Korea, Russia and the Philippines, to end discriminatory practices, for instance restricting women’s access to jobs, capital, and leadership roles, that serve as barriers to women in the global marketplace. The US and 20 APEC member-nations have agreed to participate in efforts to lower barriers against women in the global economy.
Clinton stated, “As information transcends borders and creates opportunities for farmers to bank on mobile phones and children in distant villages to learn remotely, I believe that here, at the beginning of the 21st century, we are entering the Participation Age, where every individual, regardless of gender or other characteristics, is poised to be a contributing and valued member of the global marketplace.”
In her speech, Clinton cited a study conducted by Goldman Sachs, which found that reducing barriers to female labor force participation would increase America’s GDP by 9 percent, the Euro area by 13 percent and Japan’s GDP by 16 percent. Moreover, Clinton cited a World Bank study that found by eliminating discrimination against women workers and managers, productivity per worker would grow by 25 to 40 percent.
Another APEC meeting will be held later this year, which President Barack Obama is scheduled to attend.
Congresswoman Advocates for International Family Planning
On Thursday, Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) wrote an article for Impact Magazine detailing the importance of international family planning as a means of US foreign assistance. The article sheds light on the ways in which Lowey has used her time in office as a platform for reproductive health issues, despite continued opposition from the Republican majority.
In the article, Lowey maintains that women in developing countries have benefited from reproductive health provisions and aid from the U.S. “Women and families across the developing world are healthier and stronger and societies more stable as a result of access to basic health services,” Lowey said.
According to statistics gathered by the Guttmacher Institute, 610,000 women and couples receive contraceptive services and supplies for every US$10 million invested in international family planning and reproductive health. These funds are also attributed to 190,000 fewer unintended pregnancies and 83,000 avoided abortions. The U.S. Council on Foreign Relations has stated that drastic cuts to international family planning were considered for the 2011 fiscal year, but ultimately avoided.
Study Shows Contraception Key in World of Seven Billion
A new Guttmacher study, entitled “The World at Seven Billion: Global Milestone a Reflection of Individual Needs,” found that empowering women and couples is imperative to addressing the economic, developmental, environmental, and social challenges that will be present when the world’s population reaches seven billion. The United Nations estimates that by the end of this year, the world’s population will be seven billion and by the middle of the century, it will grow to be over nine billion.
Susan Cohen, the author of the study, stated, “Especially in the developing world, millions of women and couples are still unable to control the timing, spacing, and total number of children they have because of the barriers they face to obtaining and using contraceptives. Recognizing this fact provides a road map for action that simultaneously addresses the needs of people and our planet.”
According to the Guttmacher Institute, approximately “215 million women in developing countries have an unmet need for contraception.” Enabling women, primarily those living in South Central Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Southeast Asia, to obtain contraceptive services, may help to ultimately slow population growth, Cohen indicated.
UN Women Committed to Investing in HIV-Positive Women
At the 10th International Congress on AIDS in Asia Pacific, UN Women indicated a need for a greater investment in HIV-positive women and advocated for the greater involvement of HIV-positive women leaders from countries including China, Indonesia, India, Vietnam, and the Philippines. Moni Pizani, Representative and Regional Program Director of UN Women for East and Southeast Asia stated, “Investing in the leadership of these women is essential if countries in the region are to meet the ambitious new targets set by their leaders at the UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting on AIDS in June.”
UN Women has partnered with the ASEAN Foundation and UNAIDS to train women leaders and establish a mentorship program. Michelle Bachelet, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Direct of UN Women, stated, “If we are to truly change the course of the epidemic and bring an end to this pandemic, we must take this opportunity to back our commitments with actions and resources and include the voices of HIV-positive women in the design of effective solutions.”
According to UN Women, 35 percent of women in Asia and the Pacific are currently living with HIV. Approximately 15.7 million women worldwide over age 15 were living with HIV and about 1.4 million of them became pregnant in 2009.
Burqa Ban Advances in Italian Parliament
Yesterday the Italian Parliamentary Constitutional Affairs Commission approved a draft of a law that would ban women from covering their faces with veils, including a burqa or a naqib, in public. If the law is passed, women in violation could face fines of up to 300 euro.
Souad Sbai, a Member of the conservative Freedom People party, stated, “Five years ago, no one wore a burqa [in Italy]. Today, there is always more. We have to help women get out of this segregation…to get out of this submission. I want to speak for those who don’t have a voice, who don’t have the strength to yell and say, ‘I am not doing well.'” She estimated that approximately 3,000 women cover their faces in public in Italy.
Currently France and Belgium, as well as Barcelona, have similar laws banning such facial coverings.
Free Sanitary Pads Distributed to Kenyan Schoolgirls
In Kenya, the Finance Minister has apportioned around 4 million dollars to the Women Enterprise Fund (WEF) to distribute free sanitary pads to Kenyan school girls. This cost represents about 3.6 percent of Kenya’s primary education budget. The distribution of free sanitary pads to schoolgirls aims to reduce girls’ absenteeism from school since some girls stay home during menstruation.
Dr. Wilfred Subbo, a university lecturer on Gender and Development in Nairobi, describes the need for gender-responsive budgeting, “poverty is gendered. Men and women experience poverty in very different ways. Research has shown that there are more women living in poverty than men because more women are illiterate, thus limiting their chances of exploiting employment opportunities that can afford them [a] decent living.”
Nevertheless, the 4 million dollars allocated is not sufficient to distribute sanitary pads to every Kenyan school girl, and the WEF has indicated a need for partnerships with the private sector in order to achieve greater access to sanitary pads for Kenyan girls.
House Bill Would Slash Foreign Family Planning, Reimpose Gag Rule
The House State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee voted to cut IFP funding by $154 million for FY2010 and expand the Global Gag Rule, banning funding for family planning programs in developing countries that counsel or provide information to women or advocate on a full range of options, including abortion. The ban would be an expansion of the policy, eliminating all funding for family planning programs that discuss abortion without making any exceptions for certain programs such as funds for HIV/AIDS.
The Global Gag Rule Rule “muzzles doctors and nurses throughout the world,” argued Ranking Member Nita Lowey (D-NY). “In real world terms, that means an expectant mother who has walked six hours while bleeding to reach the only health clinic in the region may not get the life-saving care she needs – or even a referral,” she added.
President Ronald Reagan implemented the Global Gag Rule through an executive order; President Clinton rescinded the executive order; President George W. Bush reinstated the executive order; and President Obama rescinded it.
The bill, which faces an uncertain future in the Democrat-controlled Senate, would slash international family planning by 25 percent. According to the Guttmacher Institute, the 25 percent cut would result in some 3 million more unintended pregnancies, 1.3 million more abortions – mostly unsafe – and 7,700 more maternal deaths.
Secretary of State Highlights Need for Reproductive Healthcare
In honor of World Population Day yesterday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton released a statement highlighting the importance of promoting reproductive healthcare for women. Clinton stated, “Programs that promote increased access to reproductive health care for women and girls in particular can lead the way to a healthier future for all. Investing in women and girls is cost-effective and essential to solving the world’s problems…we must redouble our efforts for the health and well-being of women and families around the world.”
By the end of October, the world population is expected to surpass 7 billion, just 12 years after it reached 6 billion. Over half the world’s population is under 25 years old, and the world population increases by 200,000 people daily. According to the 2011 Millennium Development Goals Report, despite improvements in education and maternity and infant mortality, “we still have a long way to go in empowering women and girls, promoting sustainable development, and protecting the most vulnerable from the devastating effects of multiple crises, be they conflicts, natural disasters or volatility in prices for food and energy.”
According to Robert Walker, Executive Vice President of the Population Institute, the price of rice has tripled since 2008 and the price of wheat doubled. Moreover, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reports that in order to sustain the growing population, food production must increase 70 percent over the course of the next 40 years.