Mexico City Policy
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Woohookitty
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{{AbortionLaw}}
The so-called '''Mexico City Policy''' (also known as the "Global Gag Rule"<ref>http://www.pathfind.org/site/PageServer?pagename=Advocacy_Resources_Fact_Sheets_Gag_Rule_Spanish</ref>) is a [[United States]] government [[policy]] which limits the eligibility for [[Administration of federal assistance in the United States|federal funding]] to [[non-governmental organization]]s (NGOs) which provide or promote services related to [[abortion]].
==Scope of the policy==
The policy requires non-governmental organizations to "agree as a condition of their receipt of [U.S.] federal funds" that they will "neither perform nor actively promote abortion as a method of family planning in other nations".<ref name="bush1">Bush, George. W. (January 22, 2001). [http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/20010123-5.html Restoration of the Mexico City Policy]. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref> The policy has exceptions for abortions done in response to [[rape]], [[incest]], or life-threatening conditions.<ref>Cincotta, R. P. & Crane, B. B. (2001). [http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/294/5542/525 The Mexico City Policy and U.S. Family Planning Assistance]. ''Science'', ''294''(5542), 525 - 526. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref>
== History of the policy==
Named for the [[Mexico City|venue]] of the [[United Nations]] International Conference on Population where it was announced, the Mexico City Policy was instituted by [[President of the United States|U.S. President]] [[Ronald Reagan]] in 1984.<ref> [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0098-7921(198409)10%3A3%3C574%3AUPSFTI%3E2.0.CO%3B2-V US Policy Statement for the International Conference on Population]. (1984). ''Population and Development Review'', ''10''(3), 574-579. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref><ref>Lewis, Neil A. (June 1, 1987). "[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DE7D8133DF932A35755C0A961948260 Abortions Abroad are Focus of Widening Battle Over Reagan's Policy]." ''The New York Times.'' Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref><ref>Robinson, B.A. (April 27, 2007). [http://www.religioustolerance.org/abo_wrld.htm U.S. "Mexico City" policy: Abortion funding in foreign countries]. ''[[ReligiousTolerance.org]].'' Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref> The final language of the 1984 policy was negotiated by the deputy chairman of the U.S. delegation, [[Alan Keyes]], then an [[United States Assistant Secretary of State|Assistant Secretary of State]].<ref>[http://www.keyesarchives.com/transcript.php?id=429 Values Voter Presidential Debate, September 17, 2007]</ref>
After the Mexico City Policy's institution, organizations were required to meet its specified conditions in order to be eligible for federal funding from the United States, and, as a result, several international health agencies no longer received a portion of their funds from this source. The [[International Planned Parenthood Federation]] (IPPF) did not alter its operation and lost more than 20% of its total funding. Other [[family planning]] organizations, such as the Family Guidance Association of [[Ethiopia]] and the Planned Parenthood Association of [[Zambia]], likewise did not make the changes required by the Mexico City Policy and had their fundings cut. NGOs in [[Romania]] and [[Colombia]] adapted to the new U.S. guidelines and continued to qualify for federal funding.<ref>Motluk, Alison. (October 6, 2004). "[http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn6485.html US abortion policy: A healthy strategy for whom?]." ''[[New Scientist]]''. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref>
President [[Bill Clinton]] rescinded the Mexico City Policy on January 22, 1993. He referred to the policy as being "excessively broad" and stated that it had "undermined efforts to promote safe and efficacious family planning programs in foreign nations".<ref>Clinton, William J. (January 22, 1993).[http://clinton6.nara.gov/1993/01/1993-01-22-aid-family-planning-grants-mexico-city-policy.html AID Family Planning Grants/Mexico City Policy]. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref> On January 22, 2001, President [[George W. Bush]] reinstated the policy by [[executive order]], stating, "It is my conviction that taxpayer funds should not be used to pay for abortions or advocate or actively promote abortion, either here or abroad. It is therefore my belief that the Mexico City Policy should be restored".<ref name="bush1"> In September 2007, [[Barbara Boxer]], a [[United States Senate|Senator]] from [[California]], created an amendment designed to lift the funding conditions put it place by the Mexico City Policy. It passed by a vote of 53-41. President Bush has said he will veto any legislation which would eliminate the Mexico City Policy.<ref>"[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20638087/ Senate lifts foreign family-planning funds ban]." (September 7, 2007). ''MSNBC News''. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref>
The nature of the policy has implications for organizations in certain countries such as [[Abortion in South Africa|South Africa]]. Even if these organizations support the policy itself, it is illegal for them not to inform a woman seeking an abortion of her rights, and/or refer her to a facility where she may have an abortion. The [[President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief]] is excluded from the Mexico City Policy.<ref>Population Action International. (August 15, 2001).[http://www.populationaction.org/Publications/Reports/Global_Gag_Rule_and_US_HIV_AIDS_Assistance/Summary.shtml What You Need to Know About the Global Gag Rule and U.S. HIV/AIDS Assistance: An Unofficial Guide]. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref>
==Debate over the policy ==
Critics of the Mexico City Policy refer to it as the "global [[gag rule]]", arguing that, in addition to reducing the overall funding provided to particular NGOs, it closes off their access to [[United States Agency for International Development|USAID]]-supplied [[condoms]] and other forms of [[contraception]].<ref name="pai">Population Action International. (June 1, 2004). "[http://www.populationaction.org/Publications/Fact_Sheets/FS5/Summary.shtml How the Global Gag Rule Undermines U.S. Foreign Policy and Harms Women's Health]." Retrieved October 1, 2007.</ref> This, they argue, negatively impacts the ability of these NGOs to distribute birth control, leading to a downfall in contraceptive use and from there to an increase in the rates of unintended [[pregnancy|pregnancies]] and abortion.<ref name="pai" /> Critics also argue that the ban promotes restrictions on [[free speech]] as well as restrictions on accurate medical information.<ref>Sierra Club. (n.d.) "[http://www.sierraclub.org/population/global_gag_rule/ Global Gag Rule]." Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref><ref>Center for Reproductive Rights. (July 2003). [http://www.reproductiverights.org/pub_fac_ggrbush.html The Bush Global Gag Rule: Endangering Women’s Health, Free Speech and Democracy]." Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref><ref>National Organization for Women. (July 19, 2007). "[http://www.now.org/issues/abortion/070719gagrule.html Six Years of the Global Gag Rule have Weakened Women's Access to Reproductive Health Care]." Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref><ref>Illingworth, Betsy. (January 18, 2005). "[http://www.plannedparenthood.org/news-articles-press/politics-policy-issues/international-issues/gag-rule-13105.htm The Global Gag Rule]." Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref>
The European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development presented a petition to the [[United States Congress]] signed by 233 members condemning the policy. The forum has stated that the policy "undermines internationally agreed consensus and goals".<ref>Intra European Forum on Population and Development. (2004). "[http://www.iepfpd.org/index.asp?ID=373&id_sous_menu=26 Funding cuts from the USA]." Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref>
Supporters of the policy have argued, using the example of the [[Philippines]], that the ban prevents overseas health organizations from using U.S. government funds to contravene the contraception and [[Abortion law#National law|abortion laws]] of the countries in which they operate.<ref>National Committee for a Human Life Amendment. (October 28, 2002). [http://www.nchla.org/factdisplay.asp?ID=20 Fact Sheet: The Mexico City Policy]. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref> Supporters also argue that the policy prevents the health agencies from promoting abortion at the expense of other birth control methods.<ref>[[Kathryn Jean Lopez|Lopez, Kathryn Jean]]. (June 21, 2007 ). "[http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=NWQyZTVjMjJhYTk0YzY4OWUyZDgxY2JmOGE1OGI3NzY= This Mexican Policy Is a Keeper]." ''[[National Review]].'' Retrieved September 29, 2007. </ref><ref>United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (n.d.). [http://www.usccb.org/prolife/issues/abortion/mcpfactsheet.shtml Fact Sheet: "The Mexico City Policy"]. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref>
Some [[pro-life]] [[commentator]]s have also criticized the policy and Bush's reinstitution of it as being only a nominal gesture toward the pro-life community. They argue that a stipulation in the policy means that it applies only to overseas NGOs which promote abortion "as a method of family planning", and, as such, that those organizations which promote abortion on other grounds are still able to receive full federal funding.<ref>
"[http://covenantnews.com/bortvote.htm "Family Planning - An Exercise in Doublespeak]." (September 09, 2004). ''CovenantNews.com''. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref>
== Related policies ==
The [[Sandbaek Report]] of the [[European Union]], which calls for the funding of the [[United Nations Population Fund]] (UNFPA), was seen by some [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]] commentators as a contrast to the Mexico City Policy.<ref>"[http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=19931 European Parliament Votes To Fund Abortions Overseas]." (February 14, 2003). ''Catholic World News.'' Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref> The European commissioner [[Poul Nielson]] said that the European Union wished to "fill the decency gap" left by the Mexican City Policy.<ref>European Parliament. (January 13, 2004). [http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+CRE+20040113+ITEM-014+DOC+XML+V0//EN Health issues and poverty reduction].</ref><ref>Castle, Stephen. (February 5, 2001). "[http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20010205/ai_n14365324 Europe to fund US abortion shortfall]." ''[[The Independent]].'' Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref>
The UNFPA states that it does not "provide support for abortion services".<ref name="unfpa1">United Nations Population Fund. (n.d.). [http://www.unfpa.org/support/friends/34million.htm#abortions 34 Million Friends Campaign: Frequently Asked Questions]. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref> Pro-life individuals and organizations have accused the UNFPA of supporting forced abortions by the [[Government of the People's Republic of China|Chinese government]].<ref>[[Chris Smith (US politician)|Smith, Chris]]. (n.d.). "[http://www.nrlc.org/news/2004/NRL08/united_nations_population_fund_h.htm "The United Nations Population Fund Helps China Persecute Women and Kill Children]." Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref><ref>National Committee for a Human Life Amendment. (January 18, 2005). [http://www.nchla.org/factdisplay.asp?ID=21 Funding UNFPA: China's Coercive Population Control Program]. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref> The [[George W. Bush administration|Bush administration]] has withheld funding from the agency due to concerns about its alleged involvement. A [[2002]] [[U.S. State Department]] investigation found "no evidence" that UNFPA knowingly took part in forced abortions.<ref>Marquis, Christopher. (July 17, 2004). "[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9502E1D6153AF934A25754C0A9629C8B63&n=Top%2fReference%2fTimes%20Topics%2fOrganizations%2fU%2fUnited%20Nations%20Population%20Fund U.S. Cuts Off Financing Of U.N. Unit For 3rd Year]." ''[[The New York Times]]''. Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref> The organization has stated that it "has never, and will never, be involved in coercion in China or any part of the world".<ref name="unfpa1" />
==References in popular culture==
An [[List of Boston Legal episodes|episode]] of the television series ''[[Boston Legal]]'', "Squid Pro Quo", which originally aired on May 9, 2006, featured a case involving USAID's withdrawal of funding to an overseas non-profit organization.<ref>"[http://www.boston-legal.org/25-squid/ep25-squid.shtml 'Squid Pro Quo' Episode Summary]." (n.d.) Retrieved September 29, 2007.</ref>
==See also==
* [[Abortion in the United States]]
* [[AIDS in Africa]]
==References==
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[[Category:United States federal abortion legislation]]
[[Category:United States Agency for International Development]]
[[Category:Mexico City|Policy]]
[[Category:Development]]
[[es:Política estadounidense respecto al aborto en la ciudad de México]]
[[he:מדיניות מקסיקו סיטי]]