The radical activism by some officials of the Organization of American States (OAS) was evident in Argentina as theRapporteur on the Rights of Women for the Inter American Commission of Human Rights, Luz Patricia Mejía (a former president of the Commission) spoke at a hearing before the Argentine National Congress on legislation to decriminalize abortion.

Mejía presented abortion as inclusive in women's health and as essential to a right to physical integrity, two consistent themes used to advance abortion by OAS entities and by pro-abortion organizations.

For example, during the June OAS General Assembly meeting in El Salvador, the Inter American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) presented its 2010 yearly report which included an accompanying Annex with a section entitled: Situation of the Rights of Women. Included is the following statement, with no basis in international law, yet presented as fact:

"The IACHR also reminds the States that therapeutic abortion is recognized internationally as a specialized, necessary health services for women intended to save the mother's life when it is at risk due to pregnancy, and that denying this service constitutes an attack on the life and physical and psychological integrity of women."

The distortion of foundational treaties and conventions of the Organization of American States by Mejía and others is a tactic to advance abortion despite the Inter American Convention on Human Rights-the strongest international treaty that recognizes a right to life from conception. It states in Article 4, Right to Life : "This right shall be protected by law and, in general, from the moment of conception. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his life." In like manner, the same article protects the lives of unborn children whose mothers are guilty of a death penalty crime: "Capital punishment shall not... be applied to pregnant women."

The Buenos Aires based Center for Bioethics, the Person, and the Family responded to Mejía's claims stating, "Argentina is a sovereign nation that has consistently recognized the right to life of the unborn child.  No treaty that Argentina has ratified awards a 'right' to abortion."  

The U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee has approved legislation to restore the Mexico City policy, prohibiting the funding of international organizations that promote or perform abortions overseas. Representative Chris Smith added language to H.R. 2583, the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, to reinstate the pro-life provision that President Obama reversed when he first took office. The policy has been effective in keeping American tax dollars out of the hands of international pro-abortion groups such as International Planned Parenthood Federation and Marie Stopes International, both which refused to performing and promoting abortion to qualify for funding during the Bush Administration. H.R. 2583 is expected to pass the House but fail in the Senate, and would face a presidential veto if it did pass the Senate.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has stated her opposition to H.R. 2583, in part due to the reinstatement of the pro-life policy, and a counter measure has been introduced by Rep. Nita Lowey in the House of Representatives. The Global Democracy Promotion Act, which is strongly supported by the Center for Reproductive Rights, would prohibit the denial of funding for organizations based on the type of medical or health services they provide, especially those that provide "abortion services".

Pro-life advocates in Colombia have gathered five million signatures calling for a constitutional amendment to prohibit abortion. The amendment states "Life in Colombia is inviolable, and will have the same protection from fertilization until natural death." The amendment will remove the exceptions to the abortion law imposed by the 2006 Supreme Court decision, the first pro-abortion advance in Latin America followed by legalization in Mexico City. The petition drive, led by the country's Conservative Party, enjoys broad support from political parties and religious groups. "These signatures clearly say that the population is against abortion," stated Conservative Party leader José Darío Salazar who will introduce the pro-life amendment in the Senate. (It should be noted that the Center for Reproductive Rights recently established an office in Bogota to advance its radical agenda in the region, especially in Colombia.)

The Parliament Health Committee in Bulgaria has rejected a bill to legalize euthanasia. With 12 members voting against and 1 abstention, the vote was nearly unanimous. Rival members united to oppose the measure, arguing that euthanasia is a violation of the principles of beneficence -to do good and avoid evil- in medicine.

The Italian Chamber of Deputies has passed a bill to prohibit euthanasia through starvation and dehydration. The legislation, known as "Dichiarazione anticipata di trattamento" (Dat), or Anticipated Declarations of Treatment, closes a loophole in current law. In 2008, Italy's high court interpreted the existing law to permit the dehydration death of a young brain damaged woman following her father's fight to euthanize her. This new legislation will ensure that artificial provision of food and hydration are not defined as "medical treatment" that can be withdrawn but "recognizes and protects human life as inviolable" and guarantees the right to life "in the terminal phase of life". The only exception would be patients in the extreme final stage of terminal illness who are no longer capable of assimilating food or water. The Senate is expected to consider the measure this fall.

Russia has enacted a new law that requires abortion advertisements include warnings about the possible health effects of abortion for women, including infertility. Legislators approved the legislation, citing its need to correct the current mistaken impression of abortion as a simple risk-free surgery. Under the new law, which was signed into law by Dmitry Medvedev, at least 10 percent of an abortion advertisement must be dedicated to the health warnings. The new law is an attempt to lower the country's high abortion rate- over 1 million each year- as it simultaneously struggles with a declining population and looming demographic crisis.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee approved an amendment by Representative Jeff Fortenberry to the Foreign Relations Authorization Act condemning sex selective abortion. The amendment states that it "shall be the policy of the United States to declare sex-selection abortion a human rights violation," and requires an assessment of the status of sex selection abortion be included in countries' annual human rights reports.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is targeting sanitation and water in a new initiative to save lives and improve the health of the 2.6 billion people living without access to basic sanitation. Diseases related to a lack of sanitation account for half of all illnesses in developing countries and contribute to the deaths of 1.5 million annually from diarrheal disease. No invention in the past 200 years has done more to save lives and prevent disease that the toilet and related improvements in sanitation. The Gates Foundation seeks to "reinvent the toilet". Research includes innovative waterless toilets that do not require sewer connections or outside electricity and cost less than five cents a day as well as sanitation advances to capture, treat, and recycle human waste. PNCI notes that if successful, this groundbreaking project of the Gates Foundation will result in healthier and happier lives and will contribute to greater security, privacy and dignity in their daily lives of billions of women and girls struggling to survive without adequate sanitation and water.