The
United States Mission to the United Nations in Geneva confirmed the words of pro-life
U.S. UN Ambassador Nikki Haley that “there is a new sheriff in town” in a statement
of position that demonstrated beyond any doubt that this “new sheriff” is
wearing a shiny pro-life badge, to the dismay of pro-abortion governments and
activists.
Following
adoption by the Human Rights Council of a resolution
by Canada that focused on the elimination of violence against women, A/HRC/35/L.15 : Accelerating
efforts to eliminate violence against women: engaging men and boys in
preventing and responding to violence against all women and girls, an explanation of
position was read by U.S. First Secretary to the U.N. Jason Mack.
The statement confirmed U.S. support for “the spirit” of the anti-violence resolution
and that the U.S. joined other the members of the Human Rights Council “in condemning all acts of violence against
women and girls and in calling for the elimination of all forms of sexual and
other forms of gender-based violence, including sex trafficking of women and
girls”.
But then, the U.S.
took a giant pro-life step and declared “the U.S. ‘must dissociate from the
consensus’ specifically on access to safe abortions.”
The
U.S. opposed section 9 (d) which included “safe abortion where such services
are permitted by national law” in the list of “health care services” that are
needed to ensure “the promotion and protection of the human rights of all women
and their sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights”. The US explained that there is no
international right to abortion and that the US does not support access to
abortion in reproductive health assistance, affirming President Trump’s Protecting
Life in Global Health Assistance, the expansion of the Mexico City Policy.
The position
paper explained that the US remains committed “…to
the commitments laid out in the Beijing Declaration and International
Conference on Population and Development Programme of Action” but that it objected to pro-abortion
claims regarding a ‘right to abortion’.
The U.S. stated, “As has been made clear over many years, there was international
consensus that these documents do not create new international rights,
including any “right” to abortion. The United States fully supports the
principle of voluntary choice regarding maternal and child health and family
planning. We do not recognize abortion as a method of family planning,
nor do we support abortion in our reproductive health assistance. The United
States is the largest bilateral donor of reproductive health and family
planning assistance.”
The
US in opposing the pro-abortion language in the resolution undermines the pro-abortion
tactic that hijacks valid measures to protect women and girls from acts of
violence in order to promote the violent and deadly act of abortion that ends
the lives of countless unborn children and in the case of sex selection
abortion, targets the youngest of females for elimination.
PNCI
Director Marie Smith reacts to the US action, “The statement by the U.S. is welcomed by all those who respect life
from its very beginning and who object to the seemingly endless promotion of
abortion by activists at the U.N. It is our hope that the overwhelming majority
of countries at the U.N. that ban or restrict abortion will be encouraged and
inspired by the strong pro-life position taken by the Trump administration and
will join the U.S. in standing up for the world’s most at-risk
population—children in the womb.”