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Population Report Summer 2002 Printer-friendly version of this page News From Capitol Hill: Bush cuts support for UN population work | Senate Supports CEDAW | Senate Committee Approves Funding Increases for Family Planning Bush Cuts Support for International Family Planning Programs President Bush cut all US support for the United Nations population work! Why? It all started with a letter Representative Chris Smith (R-NJ) sent to the President the day after Congress approved the FY 02 Foreign Operations Appropriations bill at the end of last year. In his familiar anti-family planning battle cry, he urged the President to "provide zero funding" for UNFPA, falsely claiming that UNFPA’s family planning efforts in China tacitly supported forced abortions and sterilization. The accusations are false. UNFPA defended its VOLUNTARY family planning program in China. UNFPA’s China programs are indeed a voluntary alternative and mirror its VOLUNTARY family planning efforts around the planet. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) works in developing countries to save women's lives and promote human rights through better reproductive health care, implementing only voluntary family planning programs. UNFPA's work is guided by the Program of Action adopted at the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), which states "Coercion has no part to play in population and development programs". UNFPA helps countries find an equitable, sustainable balance between population factors and development goals. UNFPA estimates that the loss of U.S. funding could undermine their capacity to prevent 800,000 abortions and the deaths of 4,700 mothers and 77,000 children under the age of 5. Now is not the time for the United States to turn its back on the United Nations and the international community by retracting its support of UNFPA based solely on undocumented accusations. To improve the lives of women, families and the environment, we need to keep our promises and invest in our shared future by supporting family planning. Senate Committee Supports Advancement of Women's Rights- CEDAW CEDAW is often referred to as the international "Bill of Rights" for women. As of May 2002, 169 countries have officially ratified CEDAW. The United States is the ONLY industrialized nation not to have ratified the treaty, stalling the process along with countries like Iran, Afghanistan and Somalia. On July 30th, the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved ratifying CEDAW with a vote of 12-7! Senators on the Foreign Relations Committee supporting CEDAW were: Senators Biden (D-DE); Boxer (D-CA); Chaffee (R-RI); Dodd (D-CT); Feingold (D-WI); Kerry (R-MA); Nelson (D-FL); Rockefeller (D-WV); Sarbanes (D-MD); Smith (R-OR); Torricelli (D-NJ); and Wellstone (D-MN). Senators voting against CEDAW were Senators Allen (R-VA); Brownback (R-KS); Enzi (R-WY); Frist (R-TN); Hagel (R-NE); Helms (R-NC); and Lugar (R-IN). Now we must work to insure that CEDAW is ratified by the full Senate before the end of the year!* The Global Population and Environment Program encourages both decision-makers and the public to support providing women and girls access to basic rights, including health care and education. When women and girls have access to basic rights, including health care, they are better able to choose the size and spacing of their families-improving their quality of life and taking steps toward a more sustainable environmental future. For more information about why the Sierra Club supports CEDAW, actions you can take and a sample letter to editor for you to send your local paper, go to our CEDAW page at http://www.sierraclub.org/population *International treaties require only Senate ratification. Senate Committee Approves Funding Increases for Family Planning-FY 2003 Appropriations Bill The full Senate Appropriations Committee approved their version of the FY 2003 Foreign Operations bill – the bill through which funding for international family planning programs are determined. Overall, the entire Senate version at this point reflects a significant increase above last year’s allocation and a positive direction for policies affecting family planning. This Senate committee approved an increase for USAID family planning programs of $4 million to a total of $450 million and approved $50 million for UNFPA - a $15 million increase from what last year's Foreign Operations bill proposed and $50 million dollar increase from the amount the US actually contributed this year. The Senate bill did not just address funding, but also crafted better and more supportive policies for family planning funding. Affecting USAID family planning programs, if passed, was an amendment that would overturn the ban the advocacy portion of the "global gag rule." In other words, the amendment states that non-US based organizations that receive foreign assistance funds should be held to the same restrictions on advocacy and lobbying as US-based organizations. If passed, this amendment would lift the funding ban on NGOs abroad working on family planning programs with US monies and advocating for changes in their abortion laws with their own monies. The bill also would revise what is known as the Kemp-Kasten amendment - the legislative loophole that permitted the President to withhold funding for UNFPA this year. The Senate’s proposed amendment clarifies that "Kemp-Kasten" can ONLY be invoked by the President if an organization "DIRECTLY participates in the practice of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization." The reason given for this year’s withdrawal of UNFPA funding was based on UNFPA’s partnership with the Chinese government’s family planning program. Even though UNFPA provided assistance for only voluntary family planning, the Administration determined that it could withdraw funding based on the fact that UNFPA was working with the Chinese government’s family planning program. It is expected that the full Senate will debate and approve these Appropriations bills in early September. The House of Representatives has begun working on their appropriations bills at the committee level and so far, the indications are that the House version will not include funding increases for international family planning programs, nor will it remove the Global Gag Rule and Kemp-Kasten restrictions currently imposed on family planning funding. Slowing population growth helps to build the foundation for a more sustainable environmental future. Unrestricted funding for family planning programs are the key! With the largest number of youth on the planet approaching their reproductive years, the decisions that young people make and the access they have to quality family planning will have a significant impact on our future. Back to Summer 2002 Population Report Photo courtesy of David and Lucile Packard Foundation Up to Top HOME | Email Signup | About Us | Contact Us | Terms of Use | © 2008 Sierra Club