Udviklingsministeren talte tirsdag ved foreningen Sex og Samfunds konference i København med titlen ”Nul sex – Nul sex – Nul sex”. Her vendte hun sig bl.a. klart mod Bush-regeringens strikse betingelser for at give bistand til familieplanlægning i u-landene.
Af Ulla Tørnæs
Promotion of sexual and reproductive health and rights is of high importance for Danish development cooperation. It is essential if we want to promote development, fight poverty and reach the Millennium Development Goals. But as important, we look upon sexual and reproductive health and rights from a human rights perspective.
It is crucial that we support the implementation of the internationally agreed targets and strategies for the Cairo Agenda. We need to stem the strong forces that oppose them and undermine progress.
So, this conference is indeed a very welcome opportunity to take stock of the situation and discuss how we can strengthen our influence and impact.
As an appetizer to this conference, I will brief you on the new Danish Strategy on sexual and reproductive health and rights as well as on the outcome of the HIV/AIDS UNGASS meeting last week in New York.
The new Strategy: “The promotion of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights – Strategy for Denmarks support” was launched on the 24th of May. The Government decided to develop a new strategy in 2004 – at the 10th anniversary of the UN Conference on Population and Development. By doing so, the Danish Government underlined its strong commitment to realising the Cairo goal of sexual and reproductive health and rights.
The new strategy has a particular focus on women and the integration of HIV/AIDS efforts. The strategys thematic priorities are:
1. Promoting gender equality and empowering women;
2. Improving sexual and reproductive health;
3. Young peoples access to information and services; and
4. Linking HIV/AIDS with sexual and reproductive health efforts – and vice versa.
Our future efforts will be promoted within the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) framework. Thus, our focus will be on contributing towards achieving gender equality, reducing maternal mortality and combating HIV/AIDS.
Underscoring these priorities is the rights-based approach. For Denmark, the rights-based approach is key.
This we have emphasized in the new strategy. People should be able to take decisions about their own sexual and reproductive lives. They should also have the means to do so. This includes access to reproductive health services and information as well as access to safe and legal abortion.
Control of ones own body and fertility is a basic human right. Reproductive and sexual rights stem from rights recognised in international human rights treaties, declarations and similar instruments.
We have also emphasised “sexual” in our new strategy. Sexuality has more to it than reproduction. Human sexuality and sexual health care are indeed contributing to the quality of life and well-being – both mentally and physically.
Denmark has been – and will continue to be – at the forefront when it comes to promoting sexual and reproductive rights.
Unfortunately, we have witness growing international pressure and opposition to these rights. Therefore, we have spent much time and resources during the past many years defending the international commitments.
The growing international opposition has not only weakened political commitment it has also distorted financial support for sexual and reproductive health efforts. The opposition is first and foremost embedded in resistance to young peoples right to access information and services and the right to abortion.
To Denmark, these are important rights. Without these, people are not able to decide freely on matters related to their sexual and reproductive health.
Denmark opposes policies that neglect these rights. In our view, such policies do not promote womens sexual and reproductive health and rights. Neither do they promote development or combat poverty.
It is not from lack of will that girls or women in Africa are not able to abstain from sex and protect themselves against HIV/AIDS or unwanted pregnancy. It is because they are powerless and poor. They are not able to claim their rights. They do not have access to the relevant health services.
The solution to unwanted pregnancy and unsafe abortion is NOT the US gag-rule policy.
The number of abortions does not fall, because abortion is made illegal and criminalized. Abortions only become unsafe.
Neither is it the unbalanced ABC-approach, focussing on A for abstinence, a realistic method to protect young people against HIV/AIDS.
B for being faithful to your partner – does not make it much safer. Marriage has become one of the biggest HIV risk factors for young women. More than four fifths of new infections in women result from sex with their husband or primary partner.
Information and education as well as access to contraception including condoms and other relevant health services is the way forward – if we want to significantly reduce the high number of HIV-infections, unintended pregnancies and unsafe abortions.
In addition, we need to empower women so that they are able to fully control their own bodies.
To underline our strong commitment, Denmark has decided to give 9 million Danish Kroner to the newly established Global Safe Abortion Fund. It demonstrates our political support to the promotion of safe and legal abortion.
It also demonstrates our willingness to compensate NGOs that have lost funds because of the Global Gag-rule. We truly need their crucial work advocating for and providing sexual and reproductive health services.
Last week I participated in the UN Special Session on HIV/AIDS in New York.
I was impressed by the quality of many of the speeches and discussions. They showed a strong commitment to moving forward in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Many stressed the need to be much more open and direct when we talk about HIV/AIDS.
The political declaration that was adopted at the meeting, however, does not fully reflect this openness and directness. Denmark would have welcomed a more ambitious document.
Having said that, there are also many positive elements in the document. Many of Denmarks key priorities concerning the fight against HIV/AIDS are highlighted.
The urgent need to address the feminisation including through protecting womens rights is strongly reflected. And the need to strengthen the link between the fight against HIV/AIDS and promotion of womens sexual and reproductive health is also emphasized.
I hope the political declaration will be used to strengthen the international fight against HIV/AIDS.
In New York, I also met with my Nordic colleagues and a number of other likeminded countries to discuss how we can intensify work internationally on sexual and reproductive rights.
We need to make the most of the important UN Summit-momentum last year, when Heads of Government committed themselves to mainstream the Cairo goal into the global consensus on how to reach the MDGs.
We must urge all our partners to draw upon the Summit momentum both at international and national level. Especially, at country level, we must ensure that international goals on sexual and reproductive health and HIV/AIDS are satisfactory reflected in strategies, budgets and programmes.
We must pay more attention to the African Union. They are currently actively seeking to strengthen sexual and reproductive health and rights efforts in Africa.
The African region is faced with the biggest challenges. It is mainly African women and girls who suffer because they lack access to information and services. We must urge African leaders to develop ambitious national plans for the Cairo Agenda.
By involving us in this work, we might also be able of involving some of them more actively in the international dialogue. We need to hear their voice more clearly. We need their support and coopera-tion, if we want to move the Cairo Agenda.
In our partner countries, it is crucial that we encourage and support those willing to show political leadership vis-à-vis sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender equality and prevention of HIV/AIDS.
We need to increase our support to promote womens involvement in Africas development. At the same time, it is important that we encourage and support strong female leaders to pave the way for this important agenda, the Minister concluded.
Kilde: www.um.dk
