International.(MONITORING COUNTRY ACTIVITIES)

Ipas, an international reproductive rights organisation based in the United States, organised 50 organisations worldwide (including ARROW, the Network of Asia-Pacific Youth and Sisters in Islam) to sign a letter expressing support for Amnesty International's (AI) adoption of a policy on abortion. The letter was sent in March 2007 to Larry Cox, Executive Director of Amnesty International U.S.A. The draft policy under consideration by AI would establish its position on access to health care for the management of complications arising from abortion; on access to abortion in cases of rape, incest or risk to a woman's life; and on the removal of criminal penalties for those who seek or provide abortions. Ipas supports AI's adoption of a policy on abortion but believes a stronger policy in line with human rights principles would promote a woman's right to abortion unconditionally and without restrictions.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, the African Union, and the United Nations Treaty Monitoring Committee have identified the human rights implications of unsafe abortion. Without access to safe services, nearly 70,000 women die and an estimated five million are hospitalised annually due to complications. The overwhelming burden of these deaths and injuries falls on poor women.

Source: Patty Skuster, Policy Associate. Ipas, USA. Tel.: +1-919-960-5589. Email: skusterp@ipas.org Website: www.ipas.org

NOTE FROM THE EDITORS: ARROW was likewise invited to provide a feminist and woman-centred analysis of the draft policy at the AI Malaysia Annual General Meeting on 15 April 2007 in Kuala Lumpur. AI has subsequently adopted the policy, incorporating selected aspects of abortion into its broader policy on sexual and reproductive rights. AI's 6/14/07 press release states that the policy "support(s) decriminalisation of abortion, to ensure women have access to health care when complications arise from abortion, and to defend women's access to abortion, within reasonable gestational limits, when their health or human rights are in danger."

Sex-selective abortion became one of the centrally-debated issues at the 51st session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), which was held from 26 February to 9 March 2007 in New York City and was attended by 91 member states, 2,000 civil society groups, and an estimated 4,000 people. This year's theme, "the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination and Violence against the Girl Child," ought to have been a perfectly "safe" issue, but rightwing groups used the forum to try to push for their anti-choice agenda. A resolution on sex-selective abortion was introduced by the United States and was supported by antichoice organisations. The resolution was seen by SRHR activists as a sly attempt to put language into international documents that can be used to limit ...