Government of Argentina slams UN committee for promoting abortion as human right

(C-Fam) — The government of Argentina has taken a UN human rights treaty body to task because it promoted abortion as a human right, as well as other controversial elements not in the treaty under consideration.

Argentina was the focus of a periodic review meeting with the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW Committee), something all states parties to the treaty must undergo from time to time.  During many hours of “dialogue,” Argentina’s representative, Dr. Ursula Basset, firmly expressed her country’s position, improbably maintaining a cheerful and polite demeanor.

A committee member expressed concern that Argentina’s recent withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) might cause disruptions to health programs. She asked what Argentina was doing to ensure access to abortion drugs. Moreover, she wondered what Argentina would do to prevent conscientious objection to abortion by pro-life medical personnel.

READ: FACT CHECK: Do abortion restrictions cause unsafe abortions?

Basset said health care, including vaccination programs, is “the primary obligation of the national government, and, actually, the national state guarantees rights and not the WHO.”

Basset also said that Argentina “believes that there is no right to abortion. There is no obligation on the country to guarantee access to free of charge, safe abortion or on any other grounds.”

“What we have is the protection of life of persons during pregnancy, access to information on family planning,” she continued, “and this right to life in Argentina is guaranteed from conception and in its obligations and its international obligations.”  She also cited the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which addresses the rights of children before and after birth.

“There isn’t any right to abortion, nor is there right to expressions of sexual and reproductive health and sexual and reproductive rights,” she said.

The committee then asked her about comprehensive sexuality education...

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