After the United Nations included abortion in a humanitarian assistance agreement, the United States Mission issued a statement that rejected the resolution. Previously, the U.S. had voiced disagreement with the inclusion of “sexual and reproductive health care services” and “sexual and reproductive health” within the Humanitarian Affairs Segment’s proposed plan. Despite the objections, these terms were not removed, and the U.S. refused the agreement.
“The United States rejects any interpretation of international human rights to require any State Party to provide access to abortion,” the statement reads. “In short, there is no international right to abortion, nor is there any duty on the part of States to finance or facilitate abortion.”
Continuing, the rest of the statement affirmed that the U.S. “strongly condemns violence against or exploitation of women and girls at all times, including during humanitarian crises.” It also said that the U.S. will keep supporting “high-quality health care for women and girls across the lifespan.”
“We emphasize that health care should focus on health promotion and prevention, consistent with national legislation and policies,” the statement goes on to say. “At the UN and elsewhere, the United States will continue its work to build consensus on clear terminology that would better promote women’s health without also promoting abortion.”
434 human rights organizations in 16 countries published the “International Manifesto for the Right to Life.” In it, they urged the UN to “focus on public policies based on human dignity” instead of pushing abortions in pro-life countries. The report also alleged that the UN is forcing Ecuador to support “safe, legal abortion” in exchange for coronavirus relief funds.
Though the UN Working Group on Discrimination has asserted that abortions are “essential health care,” more than 30,000 doctors has attested that abortion is never medically necessary, and, they have deemed the continued performance of them during a pandemic to be “irresponsible.”
