UNFPA Director Obaid Courts Controversy at Women’s Meeting

By C-FAM Staff

     (NEW YORK – C-FAM) The current executive director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Thoraya Obaid, has seemed determined to avoid the controversy often courted by her tough-talking predecessor, Nafis Sadik. However, at a Women's International Forum meeting held at UN headquarters on Monday, a gathering extremely sympathetic to UNFPA, Obaid apparently felt comfortable enough to offer her opinions on a broad range of sensitive topics, including the US decision to defund UNFPA and her strategy to deal with the Catholic Church.

     Not surprisingly, Obaid was highly critical of the Bush administration, which eliminated $34 million dollars earmarked for UNFPA after a US investigation determined that UNFPA still contributes to coerced abortions in China. Obaid said that the US "does not support the idea that women can make choices in their lives." Obaid also ridiculed the administration's emphasis on abortion, stating that the administration must believe that "women are very happy to have abortions and are running around to have them."

     Obaid voiced concern over the actions of the US delegation at a recent UN conference in Bangkok, in which the US stated that it would no longer reaffirm the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development because that document mentions the phrase "reproductive health services." Obaid accused the US of "breaking international consensus" because the US believes "we are hiding abortion in 'reproductive health services.'" However, the US suspicion concerning reproductive health services was vindicated during a preparatory meeting for the Special Session of the General Assembly on Children, in which the Canadian delegate conceded, "Of course it includes, and I hate to say the word, but it includes abortion." Moreover, the Cairo document was far from a consensus agreement since more than one-third of governments voiced formal objections.

     Obaid stated that the UNFPA agenda was most difficult to promote in Catholic countries but, since the Catholic Church spends so much money on health care around the globe, UNFPA cannot afford to ignore it. The strategy she has adopted, she said, is to seek out those members of the Church that are sympathetic to UNFPA. "The Catholic Church can only discuss abstinence, but we have some relationships with a few priests who will refer women for other family planning options. This is what I have done in Latin America," she said.

     A member of the audience began a question by stating, "We have a strong family planning program in India. It's not as successful as China's, but it is still very good." In her response, Obaid did not voice disagreement with this endorsement of the Chinese One-Child Policy, which a former US Census Bureau Official has calculated is responsible for over 100 million forced abortions and sterilizations.

     Obaid admitted that the US decision against UNFPA, which accounted for a loss of 12.5 per cent of the UNFPA budget, caused her "some cloudy days," but the increased support from private donors and nations like Canada and New Zealand has allowed her disposition to "remain sunny." Obaid reported that UNFPA has received $70,000 in private donations, as well as "priceless moral support."

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