UNFPA Condemns Natural Family Planning, Not Coercion

By C-FAM Staff | 2003

     (NEW YORK – C-FAM) As news of India’s reinstatement of coercive population control programs has spread, most notably through a November 7 front-page story in the New York Times, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), often described by its allies as the worldwide custodian of reproductive rights, has so far refused to publicly address the human rights violations of such programs. However, UNFPA has recently seen fit to criticize the Philippines for spending UN funds on the promotion of natural family planning, even claiming that shifting funds from artificial contraception to natural family planning will result in the death of women.

     Concerning India, the New York Times reported that a host of new population control laws were either being considered or had already been adopted. According to the Times, “At least six [Indian states] have laws mandating a two-child norm for members of village councils, and some are extending it to civil servants, as well. Some states have considered denying educational benefits to third children. States are also increasingly turning to incentives – pay raises, or access to land or housing – for government servants who choose sterilization after one or two children.” It is widely feared that the “two child laws” will result in a surge of abortions, as parents abort unborn children in order to avoid losing their jobs.

     The Indian Supreme Court has recently upheld the legality of such policies, deciding that “Complacency in controlling population in the name of democracy is too heavy a price to pay,” and that India cannot place “undue stress on fundamental rights and individual liberty.”

     These developments appear particularly unsettling in light of India’s history of coercion, most notably its massive forced sterilization campaign in the 1970s. In its current $75 million country program for India, UNFPA admits that it shares the government’s goal of achieving “population stabilization” in India, and that it will work in close conjunction with the Indian government. UNFPA also promises, however, that it will foster “policy dialogue” to ensure that population programs reflect “a legal, ethical and rights-based perspective.”

     Meanwhile, a UNFPA official in the Philippines has criticized the government of the Philippines for diverting $1.5 million in UNFPA funding supposedly earmarked for artificial contraception to natural family planning programs. Florence Tayzon, assistant representative of UNFPA Philippines, asserted that the government of President Gloria Arroyo “used the money for natural family planning instead of contraceptives” and because of this shift “we foresee a larger number of abortions forthcoming.” Furthermore, Tayzon warned that “If women go into abortion, you have a higher risk of women dying.”

     Reports on Tayzon’s comments have made sure to mention the fact that President Arroyo is a “devout Catholic.” An article from Agence France-Presse that was circulated by International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), UNFPA’s closest NGO ally, even claims that unnamed “critics have blamed the country’s population problem on the dominant Roman Catholic church which lobbies against the use of artificial contraceptives and allows only ‘natural family planning’ techniques like the rhythm method.”

     The Friday Fax is reported and written by Douglas Sylva, C-FAM Vice President.

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