KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 27 – Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and individuals in the Global South have called out the Donald Trump administration for reinstating the ‘global gag rule’, which prohibits US foreign assistance to NGOs that promote, support or advocate for abortion.
A statement endorsed by 72 NGOs including Malaysia based Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW), the Reproductive Rights Advocacy Alliance Malaysia (RRAAM), and Sisters in Islam (SIS), as well as 88 individuals including citizenship rights activist, Suriani Kempe, and Dr Hannah Nazri, founding director of Malaysian Doctors for Women and Girls, said that the consequences of reinstating the policy will be mostly felt by marginalised women, girls, and persons who can get pregnant.
“These include: those who are facing sexual violence in conflict situations; those carrying a wanted but unviable pregnancy; persons experiencing an unintended pregnancy; and those who are survivors of rape and incest,” said the statement.
“For all of them, reimposition of the ‘global gag rule’ means forsaking their basic right to health, and reproductive autonomy, or risking their lives and facing violence by seeking an unsafe abortion.
“The brunt will be borne most acutely by the poor, vulnerable, and already marginalised communities who have no economic means of accessing quality abortion services other than state-funded services.”
‘Global Gag Rule’ – Prohibition On Foreign NGOs
Officially termed the Mexico City Policy, the ‘global gag rule’, which was introduced during the Reagan administration in 1984, requires foreign NGOs that receive US global family planning assistance to certify that they will not “perform or actively promote abortion as a method of family planning or provide financial support to any other organisation that conducts such activities”, including through other non-US sources of funding.
During his previous administration, US president Trump expanded the scope of the policy so that this condition also applied to recipients of all other US global health funding – not just family planning – and renamed it “Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance (PLGHA)”.
The purpose of the PLGHA is to prevent American taxpayers from subsidising abortion through global health assistance provided for populations in need.
The policy is disapprovingly referred to as the ‘global gag rule’ due to its prohibition on foreign NGOs from using any funds to advise on and discuss abortion as a family planning option, or to advocate for the legalisation of abortion.
Since it was announced in the 1980s, each Democratic administration has rescinded the policy, only for it to be reinstated by every Republican president. Most recently, former president Joe Biden repealed the policy after Trump’s first tenure as president ended in 2021.
“Chilling Effect” On SRHR Access and Delivery
In their statement, NGOs and individuals from the Global South said the policy will have a “chilling effect” on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) access and delivery in their countries.
“Many countries across the Global South, despite higher levels of poverty and lower rates of development, have made significant progress within their legal and policy frameworks, and programme implementation to ensure reduction in maternal mortality,” said the statement.
“This is because we value the lives of women, girls, and other persons who can get pregnant, and our policy choices are based on scientific evidence that show a direct correlation between prohibition of abortion and increase in unsafe abortions.”
The signatories of the statement argued that these countries should not be held hostage by the reversal of abortion access and unscientific, anti-abortion propaganda.
“How fair is it that the US foreign policy commands sacrifice of women’s rights and women’s lives as a condition for the inflow of foreign aid?”
The signatories of the statement called for:
- Donors including bilaterals and multilaterals, donor governments and private philanthropies must step up and recognise this as an attack on the most marginalised and vulnerable of women, girls, and those who can get pregnant, and fund organisations to protect, promote and fulfil sexual and reproductive health and rights.
- Governments need to step up and protect the reproductive health and rights of women, girls, and those who can get pregnant in accordance with international human rights standards and commitments that they have acceded to as sovereign nations.
- Governments need to ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health care services including information and education, especially for the most marginalised as a measure of social justice in keeping with commitments made towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, the Programme of Action of the ICPD, the Beijing Platform for Action, Cedaw, and Pact for the Future.
- United Nations agencies must continue to defend abortion rights and ensure that the highest standards for health and rights are being upheld by member States in keeping with commitments made towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, the Programme of Action of the ICPD, the Beijing Platform for Action, Cedaw, and Pact for the Future.
- Human rights advocates have to stand behind the issue of access to safe abortion and we must not lose focus of the activism, advocacy, and systemic changes happening on the ground in the Global South as we speak.
- Human rights and SRHR advocates must mobilise and galvanise grassroots movements to uphold health and rights.
- Call on all State and non-State actors to resist the politicisation of foreign aid and neo-colonisation of the Global South that jeopardise the rights of women and the most vulnerable.
