CONGRESS BOOSTS FUNDING FOR INTERNATIONAL FAMILY PLANNING: BUT GAG RULE REMAINS

The US House and Senate have approved increased funding for the 2002 Foreign Operations budget that included funding for international family planning and related foreign assistance programs. Overall international family planning efforts will be increased by almost 8 percent to $480 million, from $445 million last year. The Washington Times reported December 20 that the original House version called for $25 million, while the Senate version called for $40 million. The compromise sets a ceiling of $34 million, but the president will decide exactly how much to give. "We are pleased that the House and Senate has seen to provide a significant increase in funding for the UNFPA, which will be used to help save women's lives around the world," said Sarah Craven, Washington-based spokeswoman for the UNFPA. However, The Washington Post noted December 21 that the FY2002 budget affirmed Bush's ban on funding international family planning groups that perform or advocate abortions overseas. The FY2002 approval follows suit of a report commissioned by the World Health Organization. The Boston Globe reported December 21 that the report, chaired by Harvard economist, Jeffrey Sachs, recommended wealthy nations to more than quadruple what they spend on health aid, an investment that could save 8 million lives and generate $360 billion a year in growth. Read in: The Washington Times, The Washington Post and The Boston Globe

[NOTE: See PLANetWIRE’s latest feature story on: Congress Boosts Funding for International Family Planning, Related Development Efforts.]

SAVING WOMEN’S LIVES
Afghan Women

With the war in Afghanistan coming to a close, empowering women is critical to improving key indicators there like education and primary health. A December 17 story in Newsweek revealed that Afghan women will likely exert their greatest influence at the grass-roots level, where true reconstruction has to take place. "Women are the key to rebuilding the social fabric," said Noeleen Heyzer, executive director of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). "Men--especially Afghan men—are disconnected from the everyday realities of securing shelter, food, water and education." The Newsweek story noted that poverty, war and the Taliban have practically eradicated women's health care in many rural areas. Yet, said Dr. Olivier Brasseur of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), "it is very difficult to get women to come to health clinics." However, within six months, Brasseur said, women had begun gathering for tea and conversation at a small tent set up by the UNFPA in the camp. Eventually he wants to set up a bigger tent where women can learn crafts and skills to help them become self-supporting. Read in: Newsweek

On December 12, President Bush committed the United States to the long-term development of Afghanistan as he signed legislation targeting American aid to the education and health care of Afghan women and children. The Associated Press reported December 12 that the new law also targets aid to nongovernmental groups that are providing help to Afghanistan's women, and requires the secretary of state to submit a report to Congress describing the condition and status of women and children there. "The purpose now is to keep the focus on women," Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said in a December 14 story by The San Francisco Chronicle. One way, she said, is by insisting that women's groups receive some of the millions of dollars of U.S. and international aid promised to rebuild the country. Read in: The San Francisco Chronicle

[NOTE: See critical insight to women in Muslim society in: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution and The New York Times.]

South Africa Ordered to Provide Nevirapine

AIDS activists and pediatricians won a landmark lawsuit against the South African government on December 14, forcing it to make a key AIDS drug available to expectant mothers who are infected with HIV. The Associated Press reported December 14 that Judge Chris Botha gave the government until March 31 to institute and report back on a comprehensive program to reduce mother-to-child transmission of HIV nationwide – and that the program is to include counseling, HIV testing and follow-up treatment. CNN reported on December 14 that Dr. Haron Saloojee, one of the pediatricians who filed the lawsuit, called the verdict “a special Christmas present” that could potentially save the lives of 50,000 babies next year. On December 19, however, the Associated Press reported that Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang said in a statement, "We have instructed our legal counsel to appeal the judgment to the Constitutional Court as soon as practicable." Read in: The Associated Press, CNN and The New York Times.

Female Genital Mutilation in Kenya

Kenyan women this week won a 20-year battle to outlaw genital excision of young girls, but doubts remain over whether the government will vigorously enforce the ban. The Los Angeles Times reported December 15 that even after President Daniel Arap Moi promised to sign legislation criminalizing the practice, many parents defied him by subjecting their daughters to the procedure. "The coming months will tell whether the government is determined to educate people about this backward practice and prosecute those who break the law," said Beth Mugo, an opposition parliament member who fought for the law. Read in: The Los Angeles Times

WELFARE OF CHILDREN

From December 17–20 in Yokohama, Japan, the Second World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children was to discuss how to free some 250 million children trapped in smuggling and prostitution rings. Carol Bellamy, Chief of the U.N. Children's Fund, said governments bear the biggest responsibility, and urged nations to pass laws that harshly punish offenders. "The commercial sexual exploitation and abuse of children is nothing less than a form of terrorism - one whose wanton destruction of young lives and futures must not be tolerated for another year, another day, another hour," she told participants. Read in: The Associated Press

In Acarlar, Turkey, authorities concerned by the high rate of absenteeism in its three schools are cracking down on teen marriages by rounding up husbands and fathers and fining parents when their children miss school. The crackdown on teen marriages, illegal but tolerated for years, comes as Turkey vies for membership in the European Union. Turkey recently increased the legal age for marriage to 18 from the previous 15 for girls, and made it mandatory for children to attend school through eighth grade instead of just fifth grade. UNICEF also has called for an end to teen-age marriages, saying girls suffer physically and emotionally from early motherhood. Read in: The Associated Press

A growing body of research from around the world indicates that smog is exacting a much greater toll than previously known on infants and unborn babies. The Los Angeles Times reported December 16 on new research showing that the harmful effects of dirty air can extend even into the womb. More than a dozen studies in the United States, Brazil, Europe, Mexico, South Korea and Taiwan have linked smog to low birth weight, premature births, stillbirths and infant deaths. "Smog can harm the health of babies," said Beate Ritz, an epidemiologist at UCLA's Center for Occupational and Environmental Health. "This should make us pause. Air pollution doesn't just impact asthmatics and old people at the end of life, but it can affect people at the beginning of their life, and that can disadvantage people throughout their life.” Read in: The Los Angeles Times

GLOBAL POPULATION

The number of people age 65 and older more than tripled over the past half-century, to a record 420 million worldwide. Vast differences in quality of life exist between older people living in the United States or Japan, for example, and those in Malaysia, Costa Rica and other developing countries where the biggest increases in this population are expected, according to a December 13 story by the Associated Press. The report by the Census Bureau and the National Institute on Aging, titled "An Aging World: 2001" and released December 20, also shows that the predicted increase will test governments' ability to address health care, retirement benefits and other issues affecting seniors. "Global aging is occurring at a rate never seen before, and we will need to pay close attention to how countries respond to the challenges and opportunities of growing older," said Nancy Gordon, Associate Director for demographic programs at the U.S. Census Bureau. In addition, a December 16 story by The Los Angeles Times noted that couples in industrial nations are choosing to have fewer children. The New York Times ran a story on Japan’s late-birth trend on December 9. Read in: The Los Angeles Times and The New York Times.

A December 9 story in The New York Times opened with, “The demographics are stunning. Well over half the populations of Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq are under 25 years old, according to the International Programs Center at the Census Bureau.” The boom in young people coming of age where terrorists recruit might seem to pose one of the United States' most daunting national security threats. "I would describe demography as a challenge that the state needs to meet, whether it's developing countries with a youth bulge or developed countries with a graying population," said Jennifer S. Holmes, a political scientist. "In general, governments have the upper hand. If they reach out and make a half-hearted effort at placating the masses with economic and social programs, they can usually do it." Read in: The New York Times

OPINIONS AND EDITORIALS

The Boston Globe ran an editorial on December 19 that coincided with the Second World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in Japan. It urged ordinary citizens to “ask presidents and prime ministers, members of Congress and parliaments what they intend to do about the sex trade in children.” The editorial noted that “the child victims are exposed to AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Many girls give birth to babies they cannot care for.” Read in: The Boston Globe

The Washington Post’s December 19 editorial noted that “the bad news, from the point of view of fighting terrorism, is that the Islamic world faces a ‘youth bulge’ more extreme than any outside sub-Saharan Africa.” The editorial suggested that the United States should at least be examining the options of secondary schools or development programs that can expand opportunities for young men who might otherwise fight. It also suggested other options such as family planning programs to help reduce the rate of population growth and AIDS programs to help prevent the spread of a disease that overwhelms governments and creates thousands of desperate orphans. Read in: The Washington Post

Read the latest letters placed by Amy Coen, President of Population Action International, and Jill Sheffield, President of Family Care International, in The New York Times titled, “Preventing AIDS” and “Educate Asian Women” and by Barbara Zdravecky, President of Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida, in The St. Petersburg Times.

The above analysis was written by Elena Cabatu and Kathy Bonk at the Communications Consortium Media Center, 1200 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20005, 202/326-8700. Redistribution is encouraged with credit to CCMC.

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