World: States Must Step Up Protection for Abortion Care Providers

29 November 2024
Amnesty International

On international Women Human Rights Defenders Day, a coalition of human rights organizations are launching a new set of guidelines for governments to protect frontline abortion rights defenders, including healthcare providers.

Amnesty International, the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Ipas, MSI Reproductive Choices, the Organisation Pour Le Dialogue Pour L'Avortement Sécurisé (ODAS Centre) and the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) published the Key principles and actions to safeguard abortion care providers as human rights defenders.

Continued: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/11/world-states-must-step-up-protection-for-abortion-care-providers/

Why medical support for safe abortion is growing in a post-Roe world

While the right to safe abortion has been restricted in the United States, elsewhere, governments are liberalising abortion laws.

By Laura Gil and Sangeeta Mishra
Published On 28 Sep 2024

In June 2022, the United States Supreme Court overturned its own decision from 1973 in the landmark Roe v Wade case, which until then protected the right of American women to legal abortion. This resulted in a wave of state-level initiatives to ban abortion. Today, 21 US states partially or fully restrict access to abortion.

As a result, women in the US face significant barriers in obtaining safe abortions – with legal uncertainty and lengthy court cases to determine their access to reproductive healthcare. These restrictions have affected not only women seeking to terminate an unwanted pregnancy but also those who have suffered miscarriages, often limiting their access to emergency medical assistance.

Continued: https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2024/9/28/why-medical-support-for-safe-abortion-is-growing-in-a-post-roe-world

28.09.2024

International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

Laura Gil

safe abortion guidelines

Sangeeta Mishra

SheDecides Champions

World Health Organization

Uganda – Why gynaecologists and obstetricians became SRHR advocates

By Dr. Simon Peter Kayondo
July 27, 2023

KAMPALA – Under normal circumstances, gynecologists (doctors who specialize in female reproductive health) should be attending to mothers and prospective mothers with pregnancy or child birth complications in maternity wards; but as fate would have it, members of the Association of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in Uganda (AOGU) have also joined the Sexual, Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) advocacy movement for obvious reasons.

As a member of AOGU, I think this move was long overdue given the not so impressive maternal and child health statistics in our country. For a long time for instance, the teenage pregnancy rate has stagnated at a high of 25% with some regions and districts way above this national average. The situation became worse at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Continued: https://www.pmldaily.com/oped/2023/07/dr-simon-peter-kayondo-why-gynaecologists-and-obstetricians-became-srhr-advocates.html

27.07.2023

Opinion

Association of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in Uganda

Dr. Simon Peter Kayondo

International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

maternal mortality

sexual and reproductive health and rights

Polish abortion: Activist guilty of providing pills to end pregnancy

March 14, 2023
by Adam Easton, BBC News, Warsaw

A Polish woman has been sentenced to eight months of community service for illegally helping another woman to have an abortion.

Abortion has been almost completely banned in Poland and Justyna Wydrzynska is thought to be the first activist to be tried for aiding a pregnant woman.

Continued: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64950505

14.03.2023

#IAmJustyna

Abortion Dream Team

Amnesty International

International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

Justyna Wydrzynska

Ordo Iuris

Zbigniew Ziobro

Maternal Mortality: Nigerian experts applaud as IPPF launches free online medical abortion course

October 14, 2022
By Sola Ogundipe

Top Nigerian medical experts have applauded the launch of a free online medical abortion training course by the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), aimed at stemming the tide of unsafe abortion and its complications globally.

Welcoming the development, the experts said the course which is specifically designed to equip healthcare workers with the necessary skills to provide care for women seeking medical abortion up to 13 weeks gestation, would go a long way in correcting the misinterpretation and misconception about safe abortion, legal abortion, medical abortion, and allied issues.

Continued: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2022/10/maternal-mortality-nigerian-experts-applaud-as-ippf-launches-free-online-medical-abortion-course/

40 Journalists Across Cameroon Schooled on Reprodcutive Rights Reporting

Published on 30.09.2022
Nana Kamsu Kom

A two days workshop on Sexual Reproductive Health Reporting was held in Yaounde from September 28th to 29th 2022. An initiative spearheaded by Sisterspeak237 and the Canadian Embassy.

Reporting on sensitive topics like female health reproduction has being a hard task for many journalists over the years. That was the backbone of a workshop on Sexual Reproductive Health Reporting which aimed at creating a bond and possible collaboration between journalists and Doctors. The Society of Gynecologist and Obstetricians Cameroon, SOGOC, engages into a 6 months project of intense collaboration with journalists ; to facilitate access to information.

Continued: https://www.journalducameroun.com/en/40-journalists-across-cameroon-schooled-on-srhr/

30.09.2022

Featured

News

FIGO

International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

journalists and abortion

media and abortion

media guidelines on abortion

Sisterspeak237

Society of Gynecologist and Obstetricians Cameroon

Global reproductive and women’s rights groups react to overturn of Roe v. Wade

June 24, 2022
Malaka Gharib

How will the overturn of Roe v. Wade affect abortion rights and access outside the U.S.?

Groups that are opposed to abortion have welcomed the decision, including the Family Resource Council, which has called it "a major victory for life." But many global reproductive and women's rights groups are condemning the decision and warn that the U.S. overturning of the constitutional right to abortion will have far-reaching effects around the globe. Here's a sampling of reactions:

https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2022/06/24/1107370547/global-reproductive-and-womens-rights-groups-react-to-overturn-of-roe-v-wade

The shade of the baobab is no more — sleep well, beloved Prof Eddie Ronald Mhlanga

By Tlaleng Mofokeng
10 Feb 2022

There has been an outpouring of tributes and messages of gratitude from across the world and from the many colleagues and communities in South Africa and abroad for Professor Eddie Mhlanga’s life. He was a man of the people. Like a baobab tree, he offered shade from our harsh realities and rooted us in something way bigger than ourselves.

I experienced a deep loss on 5 February 2022,
when Professor Eddie Mhlanga, a friend, mentor and teacher, passed away. This
deep loss is felt by so many people: his family, whom we pray for, the medical
community and many patients who have interacted with him. I have had the
privilege of listening to him as a teacher, being comforted by him as a mentor
and laughing with him as a friend for many years.

Continued: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-02-10-the-shade-of-the-baobab-is-no-more-sleep-well-beloved-prof-eddie-ronald-mhlanga/

10.02.2022

Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act

Dr Eddie Mhlanga

Eddie Mhlanga

FIGO

International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

International Planned Parenthood Federation

Ipas

National Committee for Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths

Partners for Reproductive Justice

Tlaleng Mofokeng

Looking back on the successes of the International Safe Abortion Day 2021

10 December 2021
FIGO Advocating for Safe Abortion Project

For International Safe Abortion Day (ISAD), marked on 28 September, the 10 national member societies FIGO supports through its Advocating for Safe Abortion Project developed educational activities and awareness-raising campaigns in their countries and communities.

“International Safe Abortion Day is about making what is often ignored – the preventable pandemic of unsafe abortions - visible. As a committed health care community we come together to demonstrate what solutions must be implemented. Together with our partners, we raise our voices to dismantle abortion-related stigma which is the enemy of women/girls’ right to claim access to safe abortion – time-sensitive essential health care. This year from Latin America to Africa we are proud to share the efforts of our OBGYN member societies, and all that they are doing to stand up for women/girls’ health care and human rights.”
– Jessica Morris, Senior Project Manager, Advocating for Safe Abortion Project, FIGO

Continued: https://www.figo.org/news/looking-back-successes-international-safe-abortion-day-2021

Nepal accepts UN UPR report recommendation to decriminalise abortion

While Nepal had legalised abortion in 2002, it remains a matter under criminal law

August 07, 2021

Following the Universal Periodic Review of the United Nations Human Rights Council, Nepal has accepted a recommendation from France that the country decriminalise abortion and completely protect the rights and sexual and reproductive health of women and girls.

"This is a key milestone in our efforts to decriminalise abortion and advance reproductive rights as human rights around the globe," said Prabina Bajracharya, the Centre for Reproductive Rights’ Capacity Building Manager for Asia. "We look forward to working with our partners and government officials in Nepal to ensure these recommendations are fully and effectively implemented."

Continued: https://www.theweek.in/news/world/2021/08/07/nepal-accepts-un-upr-report-recommendation-to-decriminalise-abortion.html