C-FAM’s Top Five Events of 2013

By Stefano Gennarini, J.D. | 2014

NEW YORK, January 3 (C-FAM) There was an embarrassment of riches in the good news category for 2013. We have chosen the following.

1. European Parliament Rejects “Right” to Abortion

You could not be faulted for thinking Europe was a lost cause for protecting life and family. That is, until the dramatic failure of the Estrela resolution on sexual and reproductive health. The report called abortion a human right, refused medical practitioners conscience rights, and gave children sexual rights. Few thought the resolution would be rejected. But the European Parliament rejected it twice in little over a month after pro-lifers throughout Europe objected. A resolution that recognized the right of countries to legislate on these matters as they see fit was adopted instead. As we reported at the time, pro-abortion forces were livid when they discovered the European Parliament was not their exclusive playground.

2. Pro-life and Pro-family Renaissance in Europe

The Estrela episode was not an isolated incident. We are witnessing a pro-life and pro-family renaissance in Europe. A pro-life ballot initiative is only the second European ballot initiative to muster 1 million signatures. The European Commission is scheduled to take up the issue in the New Year. Croatia recently banned marriage for homosexuals in an overwhelming referendum. Millions of French citizens rose up against marriage and adoption for homosexuals in every major French city. Millions of Spanish citizens have marched for life and family in the streets of Madrid. And European parliamentarians at the Organizations for Security and Cooperation of Europe rejected a radical document about homosexuality and human rights.

3. Countries Reject Sexual Orientation as Protected Category

Homosexual groups were continually disappointed at the United Nations this year. They failed to pass resolutions that even mention sexual orientation in either Geneva or New York. Homosexual groups wanted to establish a special human rights office to deal with discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Instead, all they got was a publicity campaign from the UN bureaucracy funded by Nordic countries. Early in the year, the Commission on Social Development refused to expand the definition of family to include “various forms” of family — a term of art for homosexual unions. The final blow came when the General Assembly shot down a “youth declaration” prepared by the UN Population Fund about abortion, contraception and homosexuality.

4. Security Council Rejects Abortion as Right in Situations of Rape

The global abortion lobby came close to establishing abortion as a right for victims of rape in situations of conflict when the Security Council took up the issue in the summer. The Secretary General recommended it. But in the end countries did not stray from the UN consensus that each country should be left to decide for itself on abortion — as they did earlier in the year at the Commission on the Status of Women. This is a far cry from protecting every human life, but it is also a blow to abortion groups that want to create a “right” to abortion.

5. General Assembly Extends Treaty Body Reform Process

The process to reform UN committees that routinely tell states to liberalize abortion and change their laws protecting marriage will continue into the New Year. C-FAM led the NGO effort as pro-life organizations addressed the General Assembly to denounce these abuses in February and May. Western countries, afraid of damaging the credibility of treaty bodies, wanted to wrap up the process in May. But countries worried about the way unaccountable UN experts expand their own authority wanted to send a clear message that treaty bodies must change their ways. Russia proposed a code of conduct to increase accountability, and has spearheaded several resolutions in New York and Geneva to counter the liberal leanings of UN experts. The earliest date at which the process can be concluded is February 2014.

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