Parliamentary Network E-News

Volume 16
No. 8
November, 2022
 
Focus on the United States

President Biden Says “Every Person is Sacred” While Abortion is Top Priority

President Biden said in one of his final preelection speeches, “We believe we should leave no one behind, because each one of us is a child of God, and every person — every person is sacred. If that’s true, then every person’s rights must be sacred as well.”
 
“Individual dignity, individual worth, individual determination — that’s America. That’s democracy. And that’s what we have to defend.”

Tragically, Biden selectively dehumanizes an entire vulnerable group—children alive in the womb but not yet born. Biden does not consider unborn children to be children of God whose lives are sacred and innately worthy of dignity and sacred rights.

Instead, in a speech to his Democrat base President Biden pledged that if Democrats retain control of Congress, the first bill he will send to Congress will be one to establish the killing of unborn children in national law by codifying Roe v. Wade
 
Biden said, “Folks, if we do that, here’s the promise I make to you and the American people: The first bill that I will send to the Congress will be to codify Roe vs. Wade. And I’ll sign it in January, 50 years after Roe was first decided, the law of the land.”
 
The President has begged voters to elect Democrats in the midterm elections to retain control of the House and the Senate while calling Republicans in Congress “extremist” for their efforts to protect unborn children from abortion.
 
During a speech in Florida, Biden also defended a national right to abortion citing his Catholic faith saying, “I’m a practicing Catholic. I’ve supported Roe vs. Wade. And the reason I support Roe vs. Wade is the most rational basis upon which confessional faiths can agree: No one knows precisely when does human life begin.”
 
His confused statement conflicts with the core Catholic teaching that “human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception,” according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
 
Biden also denies scientific and medical facts found in textbooks and research papers, scientific magazines and medical websites, as can be read in a LifeNews article with 44 quotes from expert sources confirming a unique individual human life begins at conception.
 
In addition, the President expressed support for a federal abortion fund during a roundtable panel discussion which would conflict with the long-established Hyde Amendment. In response to a question about companies helping workers pay for abortions and whether Biden would support federal funding for the same services Biden responded, “The answer is absolutely.” Biden said: “I do support that, and I’ve publicly urged companies to do that. I’ve urged them publicly as president of the United States saying, ‘This is what you should be doing’.” 
 
"I urge you to do it because there's so many, and imagine the women who need that kind of assistance, but have no money at all to be able to do this. None. How, how — what do they do? They don't have the option," Biden said.
 
President Biden was asked to end his “single-minded” abortion extremism by Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore, chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities. The Archbishop, speaking on behalf of the U.S. bishops, said, “The president is gravely wrong to continue to seek every possible avenue to facilitate abortion, instead of using his power to increase support and care to mothers in challenging situations.”
 
“This single-minded extremism must end, and we implore President Biden to recognize the humanity in preborn children and the genuine life-giving care needed by women in this country,” he said. 
 
Lori’s statement included, “As pastors who deal daily with the tragic impacts of abortion, we know that abortion is a violent act which ends the life of preborn children and wounds untold numbers of women. The Catholic Church wishes to continue in our work with our government and leaders to protect the right to life of every human being and to ensure that pregnant and parenting mothers are fully supported in the care of their children before and after birth.”  

Vice President Harris Calls Pro-Life Lawmakers “Extremist So-Called Leaders”

Vice President Harris appeared in Los Angeles at a campaign event with U.S. Rep. Karen Bass, candidate for mayor of Los Angeles, and with the vice president of public affairs for Planned Parenthood Los Angeles for what the White House called a Conversation on Protecting Reproductive Rights.
 
The vice president spoke in favor of a national law supporting access to abortion defending the need for such a bill citing the actions of state pro-life lawmakers who she described as “extremist so-called leaders are attacking the freedom and liberty of millions of women”.
 
She called herself and other pro-abortion activists “role models” and expressed concern for the global implications of what happens in the United States in regard to laws and policies on abortion. Harris said, “And the point then is a realization that this issue is not only directly impacting the people of America, but when we think about autocratic governments around the world who can then look to their people and say, ‘Well, you want to hold up America and rights as an example of what we should do? Well, look at what they just did.’ So, by extension, what just happened will invariably impact women around the world.” 
 
Vice President Harris has been actively promoting abortion. According to the White House she “traveled to Connecticut and Texas to participate in conversations with reproductive rights leaders, and she chaired the Second Meeting of the Interagency Task Force on Reproductive Healthcare Access at the White House. Since May, she has held more than 20 convenings and met with 180+ state legislators from 18 states to discuss protecting reproductive rights. The Vice President has also convened health care providers, constitutional law experts, faith leaders, state attorneys general, disability rights leaders, higher education leaders, students, and advocates.”
 
During a meeting with student leaders, the White House reported that “the student leaders highlighted how young people are mobilizing to oppose restrictive abortion laws, and how these laws are creating confusion for individuals seeking reproductive health services. They discussed the intersection of attacks on abortion access and attacks on voting rights and LGBTQI+ rights – noting the importance of building coalitions to defend rights and freedoms.”
 
Harris often uses the connecting circles of the "Venn diagram" as a means of demonstrating her belief that states restricting abortion are also restricting access to voting and to the radical sexual agenda. In a Conversation on Reproductive Rights in Connecticut with Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Harris stated that “we should maximize bringing together all the folks who have historically and traditionally and are currently fighting for voting rights with all the folks that are fighting for LGBTQ+ rights and women’s health rights. Bring everybody together in a way that we build the coalition."

Five States to Vote on Abortion

Voters in five states will have the opportunity to express their views on abortion in the November 8 elections. California, Montana, Michigan, Vermont and Kentucky will hold abortion-related state ballot measures, all of the ballot measures, except Montana, are state constitutional amendments to determine if an abortion is a “right.” 
 
California, Michigan and Vermont would establish an unrestricted “right” to abortion. Voters in Montana will consider a measure to ensure babies who survive abortions receive medical care and create penalties for doctors who fail to provide care. It would declare that an embryo or fetus is a legal person if he or she survives an abortion or is born prematurely.
 
Kentucky will vote on Amendment 2, which would add language to the state’s constitution stating that it does not protect a right to abortion and taxpayers should not be forced to pay for abortions.
 
Polling in California, Michigan, and Vermont indicate strong support for pro-abortion constitutional amendments but pro-life campaigns see hope for a victory.
 
California: Proposition 1 would amend California’s constitution to explicitly protect abortion. Text reads: “The state shall not deny or interfere with an individual’s reproductive freedom in their most intimate decisions, which includes their fundamental right to choose to have an abortion and their fundamental right to choose or refuse contraceptives.”
 
Michigan: Proposal 3 promises to advance abortion in that state. On the ballot, the amendment is identified as a “proposal to amend the state constitution to establish new individual right to reproductive freedom, including right to make all decisions about pregnancy and abortion; allow state to regulate abortion in some cases; and forbid prosecution of individuals exercising established right.”
 
Vermont: Article 22, also known as Proposal 5, which promotes abortion reads: “That an individual’s right to personal reproductive autonomy is central to the liberty and dignity to determine one’s own life course and shall not be denied or infringed unless justified by a compelling State interest achieved by the least restrictive means.”
 
Abortion is legal up until birth in the state. Proposal 5 would enshrine unlimited, unregulated abortion throughout all nine months of pregnancy in the state’s constitution.

Democrat Members of Congress Claim State Pro-Life Laws Violate Human Rights

Representatives Joaquin Castro (TX) and Sara Jacobs (CA) led 67 of their fellow Democrat members of Congress in a letter to the State Department asking the Biden administration to “clarify the United States’ commitment to promoting and protecting sexual and reproductive health and rights, including access to abortion”.
 
The letter states, “In particular, we ask that the State Department confirm U.S. support for and understanding of international human rights protections for abortion to the relevant UN bodies, including and especially the UN Human Rights Committee.” 
 
The attempt by the lawmakers seeks to bypass the U.S. Supreme Court by looking to U.S. international human rights commitments, as interpreted by UN treaty monitoring bodies often composed by pro-abortion activists. The intent is also to try and invalidate state restrictions on abortion.
The letter also states, “In addition, we request that you assess the laws pertaining to abortion access in each state within the United States, conduct a review of if and how these laws comply with international human rights and treaty obligations, and share those reviews with us.”
 
“Finally, we ask that the Office of the Legal Adviser work with relevant agencies to inform U.S. states of the United States’ obligations and commitments to protect access to abortion under international human rights law and the role of state and local governments in complying with such obligations.” 
 
Arguments in the letter mimic those written by the pro-abortion group Global Justice Center as stated in its factsheet How International Law Protects Abortion Access in the US. The arguments distort international treaties to claim a right to abortion access where no such rights exist.
 
The letter was created with support from other pro-abortion groups including Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Center for Reproductive Rights, Ipas, Amnesty International, NARAL Pro-Choice America, International Center for Research on Women, and Guttmacher Institute.
 
International Pressure for Abortion

Georgetown’s O’Neill Institute Launches New Commission with Pro-Abortion UN Special Rapporteur on Right to Health

The O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health at Georgetown announced a new joint O’Neill-Lancet Commission on Racism, Structural Discrimination and Global Health. The three-year Commission will bring together 20 experts from around the world “to promote anti-racist strategies and actions that will reduce barriers to health and wellbeing facing communities on the basis of race, ethnicity, tribe, caste, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, ability, class, geography or religion.”
 
The pro-abortion bias of the commission is already evident as Dr. Tlaleng Mofokeng, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on right to health, known for her radical views on abortion and sexuality, has been selected to be the co-chair. Her bio on the O’Neill website states: “Mofokeng has expertise in global health equity, sexual and reproductive health rights, safe and legal abortion, comprehensive sexuality education, sex work decriminalization, advocacy training for health care professionals, and broadcasting… She is widely published in, but not limited to, Teen Vogue, the Guardian, the Lancet, Project Syndicate, and Essence. She is also a bestselling author of ‘Dr. T: A Guide to Sexual Health and Pleasure’.”
 
The O’Neill Institute held a recent event, The Racial Impact of the Dobbs Decision on Women’s Right to Health, with Dr. Mofokeng, described as a discussion “on the impact of the Dobbs v. Jackson decision on access to health services for racial minorities in the U.S. The speakers will also discuss how international human rights can be used to address the impacts of racism in health and to overcome the barriers to access.”
 
In her latest report to the UN General Assembly, A/77/197: Report by the Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health - Racism and the right to health, Dr. Mofokeng wrote about the Dobbs decision.
 
She stated that Dobbs will likely lead to an increase in “criminal sanctions for pregnancy outcomes” and for that reason she other UN mandate holders submitted an amici curia to the U.S. United Supreme Court in support of the defendant “given that the country’s criminal legal system already disproportionately polices women and girls of African descent, which is the population group that suffers the most from increased surveillance and criminalization.”
 
In the report, she also stated that “many former colonized countries still carry the legacy of the European colonial regimes through their present-day restrictive abortion laws. However, telemedicine and self managed abortion frameworks provide women and girls with the opportunity to manage their own access to abortion, which can have a significant impact, in particular on the lives of marginalized women.”
 
Dr. Mofokeng also participated in a recent pro-abortion protest in front of the U.S. Capitol and proudly tweeted @drtlaleng: “As an abortion provider, I stand in full solidarity with the doctors & medical professionals together in front of the U.S. Capitol today, asking to please let them do their jobs and allow them to provide essential abortion care in their states.” #doctorsforabortionaccess 
Legislative News

France: Senate Votes No to Making Abortion a Constitutional Right

The French Senate has rejected a bill to make abortion a constitutional right by a vote of 139-172. The proposed legislation would amend the country’s constitution to state: “No one may infringe the right to voluntary termination of pregnancy and contraception. The law guarantees to any person who so requests free and effective access to these rights.” Abortion advocates argued the change was necessary due to the decision overturning Roe v. Wade in the United States. President Emmanuel Macron echoed this sentiment, calling for the constitutional amendment protecting abortion. Earlier this year, President Macron told the European Parliament that France will push to add abortion to the European Charter of Fundamental Rights.

UK: Parliament Approves “Buffer Zones” Outside Abortion Clinics

A bill to prohibit peaceful protests outside abortion clinics has passed the UK’s House of Commons, instituting “buffer zones” in the country. The legislation was approved by a vote of 297 to 110. Pro-life members argued against the bill, calling it unnecessary. “We already have laws on the statute book to prevent harassment and maintain public order, including laws in place to ensure women are not harassed or intimidated outside abortion clinics,” said Carla Lockhart MP. Sir Edward Leigh MP questioned why “we are debating this again” for “[i]t was only in 2018 when the Home Office concluded there was no need to introduce so-called ‘buffer zones’”.  
 
In 2021, a similar bill was proposed and the Conservative Party whipped its members to vote no, defeating the proposal. This time, the party did not. “If the Government had done the same today, and whipped against this amendment, it is very unlikely that it would have passed,” said Right to Life UK spokesperson Catherine Robinson.

Uruguay: Archbishop Slams Vote to Legalize Euthanasia, Urges Focus on Dignity

The Archbishop of Montevideo Daniel Sturla criticized the vote to legalize euthanasia in the Uruguayan House of Representatives. “A clear setback in the recognition of the dignity of all human life has just won the votes of the majority of representatives. The throwaway culture and the culture of death advance,” tweeted the archbishop. The bill, which passed by a vote of 57 to 39, will “regulate and guarantee the right of persons to go through the process of dying with dignity in the circumstances determined by the person.” Archbishop Sturla urged the Senate to reject the bill and to instead approve a bill on palliative care that has already passed the lower house. “That’s how we can take care of people in critical situations. We can treat them to have their last days without pain, with dignity, accompanied. Don’t make people feel that they’re a burden, a weight. With love and respect until the last moment,” said Sturla. 

Executive News

Thailand: New Law Further Extends Abortion Access

The Kingdom of Thailand has extended its abortion law to permit abortion on demand for up to 20 weeks gestation. This past February, the country’s law was amended to legalize abortion during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, complying with a 2020 Constitutional Court ruling that struck down a law penalizing those who perform and receive abortions. Previously, abortion was only permitted in cases of rape of risk to the mother’s health. The new law, announced in the Royal Gazette, went into effect October 26th.
 
Thai Christians and Buddhists have spoken out against the law change, united in a shared value of the sanctity of human life. Since abortion is a taboo topic in the Thai society, pro-life efforts lack coordination and unity, but are focused on counseling women with unplanned pregnancies, post-abortive women, and providing sex education for adolescents. “We are quietly equipping and empowering women to know how to choose life in Thailand,” said Katie Miller, director of the Education, Life, Mothers (ELM) Team, a pregnancy center in northern Thailand.   
Judicial News

EU: Court of Human Rights Rules in Favor of Right to Life

The European Court of Human rights ruled that Belgium violated a woman’s right to life in euthanizing her. The case of Mortier v. Belgim centered around the death of Godelieva de Troyer, aged 64, who was euthanized on the diagnosis of “incurable depression.” Her son, Tom Mortier, only notified afterward, then sought justice for her untimely death. Belgium euthanasia law states that a person eligible for euthanasia must be in a “medically futile condition of constant and unbearable physical or mental suffering that cannot be alleviated, resulting from a serious and incurable disorder caused by illness or accident.” De Troyer’s depression diagnosis did not qualify, a fact noted by her physician. The court agreed that de Troyer’s right to life was violated, and the case highlights the fallibility of “safeguards” in euthanasia laws.
 

India: Supreme Court Expands Abortion to 24 Weeks

ruling by India’s Supreme Court has made abortion on demand available for single women up to 24 weeks of pregnancy. The law currently allows abortions up to 24 weeks for married women, divorced or separated, minors, rape victims, and the mentally ill. The decision raises concerns that increased access to abortion will worsen the practice of sex selection abortion and lead to the loss of even more girls in Indian society. It is believed India an estimated 63 million females have been aborted since prenatal sex determination testing began in the 1970s.

 
 
Parliamentary Network for Critical Issues
Advancing global respect and dignity for life through law and policy.

In this issue

 
Focus on the United States
President Biden: “Each of Us Is a Child of God” While Abortion is Top Priority
Vice President Harris Calls Pro-Life Lawmakers “Extremist So-Called Leaders”
Five States to Vote on Abortion
Democrat Members of Congress Claim State Pro-Life Laws Violate Human Rights
 
International Pressure for Abortion
Georgetown’s O’Neill Institute Launches New Commission with Pro-Abortion UN Special Rapporteur on Right to Health
 
Legislative News
France: Senate Votes No to Making Abortion a Constitutional Right 
UK: Parliament Approves “Buffer Zones” Outside Abortion Clinics
Uruguay: Archbishop Slams Vote to Legalize Euthanasia, Urges Focus on Dignity
 
Executive News
Thailand: New Law Further Extends Abortion Access
US: President Biden Vows to Codify Abortion Rights if Democrats Elected
 
Judicial News
EU: Court of Human Rights Rules in Favor of Right to Life
India: Supreme Court Expands Abortion to 24 Weeks

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