by Carrie N. Baker
July 22, 2026

It took until July 7, 2026, for the world’s leading human rights body to call forcing someone to be pregnant — or forcing them not to be — what it is: reproductive violence. In a landmark resolution adopted unanimously, the UN Human Rights Council formally recognized “reproductive violence” as a specific, systemic form of gender-based violence.

The resolution defines reproductive violence to include “forced pregnancy, forced abortion, forced sterilization, forced contraception, denial of contraception, and targeted attacks on reproductive healthcare facilities.” The resolution focuses on humanitarian situations, but the definition creates a new framework for protecting against “intentional acts or omissions that cause harm by interfering with reproductive autonomy,” defined as “the ability to make independent decisions about one’s reproduction free from coercion.”

Continued: https://gazettenet.com/2026/07/22/columnist-carrie-n-baker-a-groundbreaking-un-resolution-calls-forced-pregnancy-what-it-is-reproductive-violence/