Trump administration seeks to build global coalition against abortion rights
Source: Washington Post
Health
Trump administration seeks to build global coalition against abortion rights
Critics accuse U.S. government of aligning with 'bad actors,' 'bullying' vulnerable nations
By Ariana Eunjung Cha and Lena H. Sun
March 15 at 6:30 AM
Valerie Huber, a top Health and Human Services Department official, was the special guest at a New York City event Tuesday that included representatives of dozens of nations in town for a key women's rights conference at the United Nations. ... The gathering featured a screening of the film "Strings Attached," which takes aim at the West's "ideological colonization" of Africa through interviews with women who experienced side effects from contraception or who regretted having abortions, according to two attendees. Huber used her spotlight to emphasize the Trump administration's commitment to "protecting life" in global health assistance.
Huber's appearance at the event -- sponsored by C-Fam, a think tank with Catholic ties whose mission is "to defend life and family at international institutions," and Nigeria, which generally supports comprehensive family planning -- is part of a bold new effort by the Trump administration to build an international coalition to restrict access to abortion and promote traditional values about the family globally.
Over the past few months, Huber and other U.S. officials have traveled the world inviting other nations to join the cause. In meetings, according to people privy to the discussions who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the negotiations, Huber, who previously founded an abstinence-only sex education group, has explained that "health and rights mean different things to different people."
The first test of the coalition comes this week at the U.N.'s Commission on the Status of Women meeting, where U.S. negotiators are seeking to excise references to "universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights" -- which they argue promotes abortion and normalizes sexual activity among youth -- in an annual document about empowering women. They also want to replace "gender-responsive" with "family-centered" in calls for more-inclusive public services. ... And they're pushing to add a section recognizing that "women's contribution to the home, including through unpaid care and domestic work, which is not adequately recognized, generates human and social capital."
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At a meeting of the World Health Organization at its headquarters in Geneva in late January that drew leaders from 34 countries to discuss pandemic influenza and how to protect refugees, observers said U.S. representatives were more focused on speaking about women and families. ... During one side meeting in a lounge adjacent to the main conference hall, Huber and Garrett Grigsby, director of HHS’s global affairs office who previously led Christian Connections for International Health, pitched their plan to representatives from an African country. The U.S. officials mentioned they had already spoken to South Africa’s Princess Nothemba Simelela, WHO’s assistant director-general for sexual and reproductive health and rights, and noted that Russia appeared to be engaged, according to a conference participant’s notes. ... Several times in the conversation, the pair emphasized how big a priority the conservative coalition is for the United States. ... “This is important to us,” Huber said. ... “This is important,” Grigsby echoed. ... “It does not matter who is in the White House. This will last,” Grigsby said at a different point. ... “So,” he asked, “do we have a deal?”
Ariana Eunjung Cha is a national reporter. She has previously served as The Post's bureau chief in Shanghai and San Francisco, and as a correspondent in Baghdad. Follow https://twitter.com/arianaeunjung
Lena H. Sun is a national reporter for The Washington Post covering health with a special focus on public health and infectious disease. A longtime reporter at The Post, she has covered the Metro transit system, immigration, education and was a Beijing bureau chief. Follow https://twitter.com/bylenasun
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2019/03/15/trump-administration-seeks-build-global-coalition-against-abortion-rights/
David Fahrenthold Retweeted
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Christian conservatives appointed to top HHS positions are traveling the world to restrict women's access to abortion and contraceptives, @arianaeunjung and @bylenasun report.
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