PO Box 20203, Washington, D.C. 20041
2008 May
International Pro-Life Actions
PNCI reports this month on two countries where parliamentarians used their strategic positions to protect pro-life laws and positions.
Brazil : Chamber of Deputies Committee Stops Bill to Decriminalize Abortion
Pro-life legislators who lead the three pro-life parliamentary fronts— Luiz Bassuma, President of the Parliamentary Front in Defense of Life and against Abortion; Leandro Sampaio, President of Parliamentary Front Against Abortion, and Henrique Afonso, President of the National Evangelical Front in Defense of Life and Family—demonstrated great skill and strategy in securing a victory when Brazil's Social Security and Family Committee unanimously rejected a bill to decriminalize abortion. The legislation, Bill 1135/91, which removes criminal penalties for abortion, was first introduced by abortion advocates in1991.
The President of the Committee, Jofran Frejat, Rapporteur for the bill, Jorge Tadeu Mudalen, and other pro-life deputies were also instrumental in ensuring that undecided members of the Social Security and Family Committee were approached during debate and their support secured resulting in a 33-0 vote. Pro-abortion deputies loudly challenged the rule of the committee chairman in a desperate attempt to stop or disrupt the proceedings once they realized that they did not have the votes to win. These antics convinced undecided deputies to side with the reasonable and articulate position of the pro-life members while the pro-abortion members left the room in protest sending in substitutes who voted against decriminalization. Details of the debate and vote were recounted by Professor Hermes Rodrigues Nery, Coordinator of the Diocesan Commission in Defense of Life and the Movement for Legislation and Life of the Diocese of Taubaté, Brazil.
The legislation will now be considered by the Chamber of Deputies' Constitution and Justice Committee, where it is also expected to fail. A recent opinion poll demonstrated 68% of Brazilians opposed further decriminalization of abortion, up from 63% in 2007.
US: House Pro-life Caucus Chairs: Abortion Does Not Combat Maternal Mortality
Bi-partisan pro-life chairs of the U.S. House of Representatives reached consensus with pro-abortion Members on a resolution to encourage efforts to reduce maternal and infant mortality while removing problematic language that promoted legalized abortion. Originally, H. Res. 1022 contained language that cloaked the advance of abortion under the use of the expression “global initiatives to reduce maternal mortality.” With no definition, “global initiatives” can include actions that seek to advance access to abortion as was evident in last October’s pro-abortion Women Deliver conference which included topics such as Advocacy for Safe Abortions: An Integral Component to Reducing Maternal Mortality.
The bill also contained questionable new language advancing maternal health as a human right. The amended resolution urges greater action to promote maternal health and child survival and recognizes the need for health programs to link both concerns in order to be truly effective in either area. Members of the House Pro-Life Caucus stressed the need to provide women and children with life-affirming solutions- not abortion. Pro-Life Caucus Chair Rep. Chris Smith stated, “ Helping mothers and helping their babies goes hand in hand. There is no dichotomy. When women receive proper prenatal care, they are less likely to die in childbirth and when unborn babies are healthy in the womb they emerge as healthier, stronger newborns. I am pleased that the resolution before us today does not endorse—in anyway whatsoever—the cruel ideology that pits women against babies by suggesting abortion as a means of combating maternal mortality.”
“Unfortunately, some abortion activists in recent years have attempted to exploit the tragedy of maternal mortality as a vehicle for their promotion of abortion. I am pleased that the resolution before us does not embrace abortion and instead properly links maternal health and child survival—the survival of all children including the fragile and vulnerable unborn child.”
International Pressure to Change Pro-Life Laws
Integration of Sexual and Reproductive “Rights” with Primary Health Care
Access to legal abortion is included in a pro-abortion strategy that seeks to integrate or mingle sexual and reproductive health care programs with primary health care in countries around the world. The World Health Organization’s (WHO) Implementing the Global Reproductive Health Strategy--Integrating sexual and reproductive health-care services defines five components of a sexual and reproductive health program including “prevention of unsafe abortion” (pro-abortion terminology for legalized abortion) that must be merged with primary health care delivery and services.
The policy brief refers to the Cairo conference which sought to expand abortion internationally:
“The Programme of Action of the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) calls on countries to provide a full range of sexual and reproductive health services in an integrated manner in the context of the primary health care system.”
The policy brief summarizes integration issues at various levels including at the level of service delivery, the health sector, and in national development planning processes. A recent example of the enactment of this strategy is Vietnam where the executive branch has required population and family organizations to merge with the Ministry of Health at all levels , but especially at the local level and in remote areas. This action begins as the number of third children being born per couple increases in violation of an unofficial but strongly encouraged two-child per family birth limitation.
Promotion of Misoprostol for Chemical Abortion to Replace Surgical Abortion
The promotion of chemical abortion through the use of the uterine contracting drug misoprostol continues in countries around the world as part of a global pro-abortion strategy to increase access to abortion. A recent news article in Cuba however, points out what pro-life advocates have always known: abortion— legal or illegal—can be dangerous to the woman’s life and often leads to infection, perforation of the uterus, sterility, and even death.
The state run newspaper, the Cuban Communist daily “Granma”, listed the complications from legal surgical abortion and expressed Cuban officials’ concerns about the high number of abortions. The Communist government intends to increase the availability of misoprostol for abortion induction in Cuban hospitals in an attempt to reduce health complications associated with surgical abortion methods. Source: CNA
Legislative News
UK Parliament OKs Legislation Creating Human-Animal Hybrids
This month the British Parliament considered and approved the highly anticipated and controversial Human Fertilisation and Embryology (HFE) Bill to regulate human reproductive technologies. Despite valiant efforts by the All Party Parliamentary Pro-Life Group and pro-life organizations, the House of Commons passed all controversial amendments while rejecting any attempts to curtain access to abortion or recognize the value of life.
The approved HFE bill permits the creation of animal-human hybrid embryos for use in destructive embryonic stem cell experimentation, as well as genetically modified human embryos, and includes the creation of "saviour siblings" or "spare part children". The legislation removes all references to the biological father for children resulting from IVF treatment, and the legal status of "parent" is instead given to the woman's partner, regardless of sex. Further, the House of Commons rejected amendments to lower the time limit for abortions from 24 weeks. Efforts to extend the UK Abortion Act to Northern Ireland were thwarted, largely due to pro-life opposition in the months leading up to the bill's consideration including a historic consensus letter from the leaders of the four political parties opposing the imposition of legal abortion on the people of Northern Ireland.
DUP MP Jeffrey Donaldson, also Chair of the All Party Pro-Life Group in the Northern Ireland Assembly said: "It is a very powerful message that we have four political leaders coming from very diverse political perspectives but united in their view that we do not want the 1967 act, with all its implications, imposed on Northern Ireland."
Executive News
Italy : Prime Minister Vows to Increase Birthrate and Help Families
In his initial speech to parliament, newly elected Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi vowed to take action to increase Italy's birthrate which has consistently decreased since the 1978 law legalizing abortion. He noted he plans to encourage families to have more children and to remove the "material reasons" women resort to abortion. The Italian National Statistics Institute (ISTAT) shows Italy as having the highest "ageing index" in the European Union, with increases in the birthrates between 1995 and 2005 largely attributed to immigration. Source: Agence France Presse
South Carolina: Governor Signs Law Providing Ultrasounds
South Carolina has become the 18 th U.S. state to provide women with the right to an ultrasound before receiving an abortion. Governor Mark Sanford recently signed the legislation, which provides women with valuable information when dealing with an unexpected pregnancy. The South Carolina law makes an ultrasound mandatory for pregnancies over 14 weeks gestation and optional for pregnancies less than 14 weeks. Source: Life News
Judicial News
Brazil: Supreme Court Approves Unethical Stem Cell Experimentation
Brazil's Supreme Court has ruled that destructive embryonic stem cell research is constitutional, following a challenge to the 2005 law which first permitted the ethically objectionable practice. The 6-5 decision will allow embryos frozen longer than three years in In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) clinics to be used for experimentation. The Court found that the use of embryos in laboratories for scientific purposes does not violate the constitutional clause that protects the right to life. The Constitution of Brazil states "All are equal before the law, without any distinction whatsoever, guaranteeing Brazilians and alien residents in the country the inviolable right to life, liberty, equality, security and priority."
This ruling is a disappointment to pro-life lawmakers, organizations, and religious groups who worked hard to inform the justices of the essential information surrounding the debate, including the fact that not one cure has resulted from embryonic stem cells while over 70 techniques from adult stem cells treat and cure patients everyday. The lawmakers enlisted the active support of the adoptive parents of children who began life as frozen embryos. Their dramatic testimony refuted the argument that embryos can be considered “spare” and discarded for experimentation after three years. Many children adopted as frozen embryos, referred to as “Snowflakes” in the US, were born after having been in a frozen state for well over three years
There is additional concern that the ruling may act as a precedent to allow the legalization of abortion.
Issues
Abortion Rate Increases in Scotland after Morning After Pill Sold Over the Counter
Experience in Scotland has demonstrated that the abortion rate increases with easy access to the morning after pill or Plan B despite pro-abortion claims that the number of abortions would be reduced. A report from the British National Health Service shows that the abortion rate increased by 3.8 percent and abortions now number 13,703—an all time high for abortions in Scotland since the United Kingdom legalized abortion in 1967. The report also depicts an increase in the number of girls under the age of 16 having abortions, also the highest level since legalization.
Another reported increase was in the number of women who had more than one abortion. These abortion increases occur despite repeated pro-abortion arguments that over the counter sales of Plan B would result in fewer abortions. Research has shown, however, that Plan B’s effectiveness is not as high as the 89 percent claimed by the drug company, Barr Laboratories.
Dr. Joseph Stanford of the University of Utah School of Medicine reports that he and his fellow researchers have discovered a lower effectiveness rate. "We did more a precise meta-analysis that shows it's effective only 72 percent of the time, and even that number is optimistic," he stated. He also explained that studies from Europe, China and the United States show that the morning after pill does not reduce abortions.
This research comes at a critical time as more countries are considering not only over the counter sales but also free distribution of Plan B which functions both as an abortifacient and contraceptive. Auckland, New Zealand is launching a pilot program distributing the morning-after pill (MAP) free of charge. This trial program will distribute the pill to women through pharmacists but there is no accountability or regulation of the program including no limit as to how many pills a woman can receive or how many pharmacies she can visit. Canada is also making the morning-after pill more available as it permits the sale of the pill without a doctor’s prescription or pharmacist’s oversight .
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The Parliamentary Network for Critical Issues (PNCI) is committed to networking members of democratically-elected legislatures in efforts to advance respect for the inherent value, worth, and inviolable dignity of every human being from the first moment of existence. PNCI issues the Parliamentary Network E-News to provide lawmakers, and those who work with them, news from various sources on the international threat to pro-life laws and current legislative and judicial actions on critical life issues challenging parliamentarians around the world. PNCI is a project of Life Issues Institute.
All news articles include links to original source. PNCI cannot verify that the information contained in the news articles is accurate. info@pncius.org
