It’s Time to Recognize Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare Providers as Human Rights Defenders

Around the world, frontline reproductive healthcare workers are facing physical and verbal abuse, public shaming and humiliation, harassment, legal threats, death threats, sexual assault and rapes—simply for doing their jobs.

Jan 9, 2024
by VICTORIA BOYDELL and KATE GILMORE

Around the world, frontline healthcare workers defending our right to sexual and reproductive healthcare services are under vicious attack from anti-rights actors.

In the horn of Africa, one district health official who has been providing sexual and reproductive health services for 15 years described the attacks he faces from local conservatives: “They tried to even shoot me because of the belief and the values that I had … I had provided family planning service[s] in my district. They said, ‘You are a genocider.’”

Continued: https://msmagazine.com/2024/01/09/sexual-health-abortion-healthcare-providers-violence-threats-abuse/

Sweden invests $42 million to improve sexual and reproductive health in East and Southern Africa

Sources: Govt. Sweden, UNFPA, UNICEF
22 Jun 2023

PRETORIA, South Africa -- Sweden today announced a further investment of $42 million for sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), in an effort to transform the lives of millions of people in East and Southern Africa. The funding is being made available through Sweden's Strategy for SRHR in Africa 2022-2026.

The investment will bolster existing efforts by four United Nations agencies -- UNAIDS, UNFPA, UNICEF and WHO -- to support countries and regional entities in East and Southern Africa to reduce maternal mortality including from unsafe abortion, HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), unmet need for contraceptives, and gender-based violence (GBV). The investment brings to $99 million the total amount committed by Sweden since 2018.

Continued: https://reliefweb.int/report/world/sweden-invests-42-million-improve-sexual-and-reproductive-health-east-and-southern-africa

Almost a year post-Roe, Canada must do more on ‘backsliding’ risk: report

By Sean Previl Global News
June 19, 2023

Almost one year after the fall of Roe v. Wade, the risk of more “backsliding” of sexual and reproductive rights around the world is real — and Canada needs to do more to “scale up” its support, a parliamentary committee is urging in a new report.

The House of Commons foreign affairs committee heard from more than 20 witnesses and pored over briefs from nine individuals and organizations before issuing its report.

Continued: https://globalnews.ca/news/9778648/canada-sexual-reproductive-rights-globally/

19.06.2023

News

Adreanne Larouche

feminist foreign policy

Rachel Bendayan

sexual and reproductive health and rights

Trump visit to the UK: How about working together on women’s rights?

Trump visit to the UK: How about working together on women’s rights?
by Katherine Nightingale
12th Jul 2018

When Theresa May welcomes Trump this week it seems like she won’t be short of conversation: there’s the World Cup, Brexit, and NATO before we even start. But with hundreds of thousands of people from all over the UK coming to join the Women’s March this Friday, a clear message is that women’s rights should be on the agenda.

Chances are, time will be short. So if that means there is only one issue Theresa May can champion with Donald Trump, we think it should be to look together at how the UK and US governments could support sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) for women and families worldwide, especially in emergencies. So whilst some might think there is no common ground, here is my take on the key messages:

Continued: https://insights.careinternational.org.uk/development-blog/trump-visit-to-the-uk-how-about-working-together-on-women-s-rights