U.S. AIDS Program Does Not Support Abortion, Says Agency Chief

By | June 15, 2023

WASHINGTON, D.C., June 16 (C-Fam) The head of the U.S. government’s program to address HIV/AIDS internationally recently declared that the program, known as PEPFAR “has never, will not ever, use that platform in supporting abortion.”

John Nkengasong was responding to recent concerns raised by pro-life advocates, including Representative Chris Smith (R-NJ), and several African leaders.  As the law that created and funds PEPFAR approaches its deadline for reauthorization, pro-life leaders are asking Congress to include additional safeguards to ensure that abortion groups are ineligible to receive U.S. funding for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment.

The emergence of the abortion issue with regard to PEPFAR reauthorization was described as “unexpected” by Devex reporters who cite unnamed sources “behind the scenes” as saying the “attack” is motivated by opposition to President Joe Biden’s “progressive policies.”

If Nkengasong’s words were true at face value, the inclusion of language excluding abortion groups from PEPFAR funding would be redundant at worst.  At best, it could protect the program from entanglement in the fierce debates the abortion issue inevitably ignites.

Instead, Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA), who is outspoken in her support for abortion, characterized attempts to introduce pro-life language into the law as tantamount to “blow[ing] it up.”

Brian Honermann of amfAR, The Foundations for AIDS Research, told Devex the pro-life groups were engaging in “meritless types of attacks.”  amfAR also takes a strong pro-abortion stance, and has advocated against U.S. pro-life foreign assistance policies.  They also strongly denounced the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade and its interpretation of a constitutional right to abortion.

One of the groups specifically named in the pro-life letter to Congress as a pro-abortion recipient of PEPFAR funding is Pathfinder.  They issued a statement describing their use of U.S. funding in Mozambique to provide other services, such as HIV testing and antiretroviral therapy.  Elsewhere, Pathfinder highlights its work in reducing the stigma around abortion in Mozambique, including through “values clarification” sessions for health care providers.  These sessions are designed to break down pro-life objections to abortion.

Even if these sessions are not provided using specific PEPFAR funding, the presence of Pathfinder in Mozambique, supported by the U.S. government and its taxpayers, is fueling pro-abortion lobbying and advocacy in that country.

For many abortion groups, including those who are already working with the U.S. government as implementing partners under PEPFAR, the goal is simply to maintain the status quo.  For pro-life advocates, the message is that a so-called “clean” reauthorization of PEPFAR without new safeguards is not actually “clean” with regard to abortion.

In the two decades since PEPFAR was introduced under former President George W. Bush, the abortion advocates have expanded their reach to more and more areas of foreign assistance, moving beyond family planning into broader health assistance, women’s empowerment, education, and even water and sanitation.

Nkengasong’s comments downplaying PEPFAR’s connection to the abortion issue did annoy some abortion activists, such as the Safe Abortion Action Fund, which took to Twitter to accuse him of stigmatizing abortion and positioning it as “some kind of bad or shameful part of sexual and reproductive health care.”

“It would be nice if, when denying ‘accusations’ that they support abortion access, PEPFAR representatives could acknowledge that safe abortion is life-saving medical care, just like HIV prevention.”

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