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| Kenyan nurse-midwife Monica Oguttu protesting the Global Gag Rule in 2004 |
In one of his first official acts, President Barack Obama today rescinded the Global Gag Rule, a Reagan-era regulation that bars foreign organizations from using their own money for abortion care or advocacy if they accept U.S. aid for family planning. The move signals a much-anticipated shift in U.S. policies in support of reproductive health and rights both at home and overseas.
Ipas President and CEO Elizabeth Maguire praised the news. “The harms the Global Gag Rule has inflicted on women are well documented. From our work around the world with those most affected, we know that President Obama’s action will have profound positive effects on the lives of millions of people,” she said.
More than 250 health and human rights organizations from more than 54 countries also welcomed the elimination of the Gag Rule in a letter to President Obama. Signatories included such diverse organizations as Amnesty International, the Safe Motherhood Network Federation (Nepal), Girls’ Power Initiative (Nigeria) and the Black Women’s Health Imperative (USA).
“I sign on behalf of many women who would have wished to do so but they can neither read nor write,” said Monica Oguttu, a nurse-midwife and head of the Kisumu Medical and Education Trust in Kenya, writing before the announcement was made. “We are praying and fasting this week and will spend the night of the19th in a vigil at the Obama home in Kogelo praying for removal of the Global Gag Rule to allow all women to enjoy their rights.”
Ipas and its colleagues worldwide hope that repeal of the Gag Rule paves the way for other important steps by the U.S. government toward achieving universal access to reproductive health care and advancement of women’s sexual and reproductive rights worldwide. Foremost, Maguire said, is increasing U.S. funding for family planning services in poor countries – the surest way to reduce both unintended pregnancy and abortion. Reproductive health and rights organizations and researchers recommend doubling current U.S. spending to at least $1 billion per year. Including this funding in the budget should be a top priority for the Obama administration.
In addition, Ipas hopes that the Obama administration will work with Congress to end bans on U.S. funding for legal abortion care that discriminate against poor women. The Helms Amendment, which was attached to U.S. foreign-assistance legislation 35 years ago and remains in place, prohibits use of U.S. funds for abortion care in most circumstances. Its effect has been even broader, however, including blocking assistance to organizations providing emergency reproductive health care. “It is long past time to remove this restriction and similar domestic funding bans like the Hyde amendment,” Maguire said.
Worldwide, poor reproductive health remains the leading cause of death and illness for women of reproductive age, particularly in the poorest countries. Unwanted and mistimed pregnancies – due to restricted access to family planning services – result in approximately 40 million abortions each year. Half of these abortions are unsafe, performed by unskilled providers and/or in unhygienic conditions. Complications from unsafe abortion result in approximately 67,000 deaths and at least 5 million serious injuries annually, all of which are preventable.
For more information, contact media@ipas.org