The 1995 Bejing Platform of Action Contains No Right to Abortion

THE 1995 BEIJING PLATFORM OF ACTION CONTAINS NO RIGHT TO ABORTION -- (Extensions of Remarks - March 02, 2005)

SPEECH OF
HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH
OF NEW JERSEY
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2, 2005

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, it is absolutely clear that the "Programme of Action" produced by both the 1994 Cairo Population Conference and the 1995 Beijing Women's Conference did not create, adopt, endorse, or promote a right to abortion.

I know. I was there in an official capacity at both conferences. The outcomes of both were a remarkable victory for the pro-life movement-those of us who recognize that all human life is sacred and that both legal and illegal abortion is violence against children and the exploitation of women. It was a victory for vulnerable unborn children who would be killed by dismemberment and chemical poisoning and for women who deserve better than the cruelty of abortion.
The outcome was a stunning defeat for the Clinton Administration, which sought to impose an international right to abortion on the entire world.

So why is the Bush Administration seeking to reaffirm that the Beijing consensus did not include a right to abortion? Because clarity, transparency and truthfulness is needed at this time to dispel a pernicious myth-the big lie-promoted by some that these U.N. documents now endorse abortion. Nothing, Mr. Speaker, could be further from the truth.

Over the past 10 years, pro-abortionists have sought to convey the impression that both Cairo and Beijing-by supporting reproductive health, for example-includes the slaughter of unborn children by abortion.
Instead of focusing on women's economic and political empowerment, an end to all forms and manifestations of discrimination, and an end to violence against women, some have sought to distort the Cairo and Beijing consensus to include the killing of girls and boys by abortion.

Yesterday I chaired a hearing on the horrific behavior of U.N. Peacekeepers in the Congo who have raped and sexually exploited girls and young women. As the prime sponsor of the "Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000" I take a backseat to no one in promoting women's human rights. Recent scandals, like the Congo or the oil for food scandal, begs the question of honesty and transparency at the U.N.

Despite having no mandate to promote abortion, the U.N. Compliance Committee for the Convention on All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) has recently scolded Mexico, Colombia, Chile, Peru, Zimbabwe, Myanmar, Luxembourg, Ireland, Italy, Croatia, Uruguay, Portugal, Nepal, Northern Ireland, Lichtenstein, Paraguay, and Samoa for their laws and policies on abortion.

In addition, at the end of 2004, the U.N. Human Rights Committee issued a report that absolutely overstepped its bounds and told Poland to repeal their pro-life laws. The report stated, "The State party should liberalize its legislation and practice on abortion." For a U.N. committee that purported to respect fundamental human rights to condemn Poland-and others-for protecting their unborn babies is scandalous. Unborn children deserve respect in law and in practice-these littlest of humans deserve to have their basic human rights protected.

A Center for Reproductive Rights internal document talks about reinterpreting terms and phrases in international declarations, like the Cairo and Beijing documents, to promote abortion and limit parental rights throughout the world. I posted in the December 8, 2003 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD the Center for Reproductive Rights internal documents where one of their trustees said, "We have to fight harder, be a little dirtier." These papers reveal a Trojan Horse of deceit. In their own words, these documents demonstrate how abortion promotion groups are pushing abortion here and abroad, not by direct argument, but by twisting words and definitions. In discussing legal strategies to legalize abortion internationally they go as far as to say, ". . . there is a stealth quality to the work: we are achieving incremental recognition of values without a huge amount of scrutiny from the opposition. These lower profile victories will gradually put us in a strong position to assert a broad consensus around our assertions." The abortion lobby admits they are using deceptive tactics to push abortion on countries that have laws protecting unborn boys and girls.

All the United States wants to do at this conference is to be truthful, nonambiguous and accurate about what the Beijing Programme of Action actually says about abortion and get on with the real work of helping women throughout the world.

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