IPPF Unveils Ten-Year Plan for Worldwide Abortion

By C-FAM Staff | 2004

     (NEW YORK – C-FAM) The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) recently released its ten-year blue-print to establish sweeping new reproductive rights, including a worldwide right to abortion on demand and a right to "have access to safe abortion." The blueprint, called "IPPF's Strategic Framework 2005-2015," is meant to guide the institution in its pursuit of what it calls the "unfinished business of sexual and reproductive health."

     The Framework establishes five "strategic priorities" for IPPF: adolescents, HIV/AIDS, abortion, access and advocacy. With regard to abortion, IPPF candidly states its goal as "A universal recognition of a woman's right to choose and have access to safe abortion." An international right to access abortion, which is apparently a new claim, could be an even more extensive right than the right to abortion, since it may imply that governments are obligated to pay for abortions, train doctors and set up abortion clinics.

     IPPF lists a number of "programme strategies" in order to achieve its abortion goal, including the need for "IPPF to play an active role in the global debate." IPPF already enjoys an influential presence at the United Nations, and works in close conjunction with the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) throughout the developing world. In the Framework, IPPF vows to continue its abortion "advocacy with governments, politicians, judiciary, health professionals and opinion-leaders to recognize, protect and fulfill these rights – either through legalization or decriminalization."

     IPPF, the world's largest apportion provider, intends to increase its own "provision of abortion services to the fullest extent permitted by law, with special attention to young women and under-served and marginalized groups." IPPF will also provide abortion to adolescent girls as part of its "comprehensive youth-friendly high quality services."

     Apparently fearful of losing international development money, the Framework announces IPPF's intention to tie the current United Nations development initiative, called the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), to reproductive rights, even though the MDGs do not explicitly mention reproductive rights. According to the Framework, IPPF "will build relationships with governments, NGOs and other key influential groups to demonstrate the linkage and importance of sexual and reproductive health rights to the wider development agenda (MDGs/Poverty Reduction Strategies) and by this achieve greater allocation of resources."

     In a speech given last week, IPPF Director-General bemoaned the fact that "the MDGs did not include a goal on sexual and reproductive health and rights," which he blamed on "the mostly male delegates at the United Nations [who] are apparently squeamish about sexuality."

     In the Framework, IPPF also promises to reduce the "religious…barriers" to its agenda, and to "analyze opposition messages and tactics and formulate messages and strategies that anticipate, respond and counteract them."

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