Free Republic

WASHINGTON, D.C., April 29, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Two experts on maternal mortality spoke at a congressional briefing on Tuesday sponsored by U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), a pro-life and human rights leader, explaining the global decline in maternal deaths and why life-affirming maternal care, not abortion, is a practical solution. According to the World Health Organization, maternal conditions contributed to 1.9 percent of the world’s total deaths in 2004. While the death of the mother is already a tragedy, the tragedy is compounded many times over in societies where mothers take up much of the burden in care-giving for the...

A new report from the World Economic Forum (WEF) shows that countries with restrictive abortion laws are often the leaders in reducing maternal mortality, and those with permissive laws often lag. According to the report, the pro-life nation of Ireland has topped the global rankings once again with the best maternal health performance. Abortion advocates have attempted to push an international "right to abortion," claiming that restrictive laws force women to seek unsafe abortion, which in turn leads to high maternal mortality. In October, the Guttmacher Institute released a report on global abortion calling on states to "expand access to...

There are few things more distressing than aid intended to help the poorest actually causing them harm. For example, it is a sad irony that aid for HIV care is actually displacing far more valuable child immunization work in the wretched West African country of Sierra Leone. Rather than adding to capacity, the few competent staff are simply drawn away from these basic but vital services toward the high-profile, higher-paying HIV program. An integrated approach to aid giving must occur or more will die needlessly from good intentions. By varying estimates from the World Health Organisation (WHO), The World Bank...

The most frequently cited statistics claim that there are 46 million abortions performed in the world each year, with 20 million of those officially labeled "unsafe." Nearly all of these so-called "unsafe abortions" are attributed to countries and regions where abortion is largely illegal. The message, usually subtle when it comes from the statisticians, often aggressive and direct when voiced by abortion's advocates, is that the worldwide legalization of abortion would eliminate this dire threat to women's health. But is there any correlation between legality and safety? Does legalization of abortion make it safe? Will the addition of abortion to...

Dear Colleague, One of the old chestnuts of the pro-abortion movement has turned rotten. They say laws against abortion result in higher maternal mortality. New statistics direct from the UN indicate they couldn't be more wrong. In fact, it seems pro-life nations actually have lower maternal mortality rates. This information must be used immediately by everyone concerned about this issue but particularly by those in countries where abortion is against the law: Ireland and Poland especially. Spread the word far and wide. Yours sincerely, Austin Ruse President Action Item: Read the report here.UN Data Show Banning Abortion Doesn't Increase...