Slipping abortion under radar

Certain non-governmental organizations (NGOs) at the United Nations are always trying to craft the language of internationally binding documents on human rights with euphemisms that include abortion and contraception. Think “reproductive rights”, for one.

C-Fam recently put out an alert on the latest such effort by one of the usual suspects.

The chairman of the controversial compliance committee of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) told a group of UN NGOs this week that she was proud of the wide scope of the CEDAW treaty. She also said she looked forward to the day when international treaties were “self-executing”, that is that they become immediately enforceable law upon countries that ratify it.

Chairman Dubravka Siminovic characterizing the CEDAW convention as “flexible”, and said that NGOs have an important opportunity not only to push their national governments to implement the convention but also to influence the interpretation of the treaty’s terms. The CEDAW Committee has come under pressure in recent years for reinterpreting the document as including abortion.

Siminovic showed her hand in urging NGOs to interpret the treaty’s terms, and push national governments to implement it.

Siminovic also told NGOs that while 185 states have ratified the CEDAW convention there has been a lack of political will on behalf of states to fulfill their treaty obligations.

When you disagree with their agenda, you ‘lack political will.’

 Acknowledging a gap between international and national law, Siminovic expressed disappointment at the lack of systematic implementation by states parties. To combat this problem, Siminovic asserted that if international treaties were “self-executing”, then national legal systems would be able to cite the articles of the treaty directly as they would immediately become part of national law upon ratification.

Siminovic called for strengthening the impact of compliance committee recommendations saying she hoped that one day the various human rights treaty bodies could issue “joint general recommendations” on cross-cutting issues, such as women and children’s rights.

True human rights are cross-cut here with the smoke and mirrors of abortion activism.

In response to a query from the audience about CEDAW and abortion, Siminovic asserted that “[In CEDAW] there is nothing about abortion. The CEDAW Committee is very careful because there are 185 states parties and it really is up to the state parties to implement the convention.”  Her response is surprising since her committee has directed 37 countries to legalize their laws on abortion precisely because of the CEDAW document.

During the Commission on the Status of Women, CSW many radical feminist organizations from all over the world have vociferously criticized the United States for not ratifying the CEDAW convention. During the question and answer period following the panel presentation, an audience member asked Siminovic which seven nations had not ratified the convention. To the great amusement of the audience, Siminovic answered with a smile, “I don’t know all seven, but I can definitely name one.”

Not sure what was so amusing, but the United States will not ratify the CEDAW conventions’ efforts to export contraception and abortion across the world, especially to the Third World. Thanks to Austin Ruse and C-Fam for tirelessly staying on the forefront at the UN and exposing the truth.