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| Lisa Russell |
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On April 7, World Health Day, Ipas released the documentary, Not Yet Rain. Not Yet Rain, a short film by Lisa Russell, brings the global problem of unsafe abortion to the attention of American audiences, in support of efforts to protect and promote women’s reproductive health worldwide.
Not Yet Rain tells the stories of women in Ethiopia whose lives are touched by abortion, both safe and unsafe, legal and illegal. In 2006, Ethiopia enacted a new abortion law – one of the most progressive in Africa – making abortion legal under a broad range of circumstances. Yet despite this fact, more than 7,000 women die each year from unsafe abortion, making it one of the leading causes of maternal mortality in the country.
“The power of the film,” said Elizabeth Maguire, Ipas president and CEO, “is that it shows what a difference safe abortion care makes in a woman’s life. We know how to address unsafe abortion. The solutions are available and affordable.”
Worldwide, unsafe abortion claims nearly 67,000 women’s lives each year, but the religious and political controversy surrounding abortion has kept this major public health issue relatively hidden. Not Yet Rain breaks through the rhetoric, addressing unsafe abortion both from a public health perspective and a woman’s perspective.
Ipas is working with the Ministry of Health in Ethiopia to improve comprehensive reproductive health services. This includes training and equipping health-care providers at all levels — especially at the community level — in providing safe legal induced abortion, treatment of the complications of unsafe abortion and provision of contraception to reduce repeat abortions.
Lisa Russell, the director of Not Yet Rain, is a documentary filmmaker with a background in international health. She has made a career of using film to advocate for greater public attention to global health. Russell brings the experiences of her subjects to the fore to tell their own stories, bringing emotional depth to challenging issues.
“We hope viewers will watch the film, share it with their friends, post it on their blogs or Web sites and support organizations like Ipas that work to end needless deaths and injuries from unsafe abortion,” said Maguire. “We think that after seeing this film, viewers will agree that no woman should have to die because she lacks access to safe reproductive choices.”
The film can be viewed online at www.notyetrain.org. For more information, contact notyetrain@ipas.org.
For more information, contact media@ipas.org