Oggi, in occasione del 62esimo anniversario della Convenzione di Ginevra, parte ufficialmente la Campagna 12 Agosto, organizzata dal Global Justice Center con la collaborazione di diverse associazioni in tutto il mondo per difendere i diritti di bambine e donne stuprate durante conflitti armati. Le associazioni che aderiscono alla campagna, tra cui l’UAAR, mandano oggi una lettera al Presidente degli Stati Uniti chiedendogli di rimuovere la clausola che vieta l’utilizzo degli aiuti umanitari degli USA per praticare aborti – anche in caso di stupro – in diretta violazione della Convenzione di Ginevra. Chi volesse unirsi alla richiesta al presidente Obama puo’ firmare la petizione online.
Massimo Redaelli, responsabile relazioni internazionali UAAR
President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20500
Dear President Obama:
I write on behalf of the Union of Rationalist Atheists and Agnostics (UAAR), Italy, regarding United States compliance with its international obligations under international humanitarian law to provide non-discriminatory medical care to women and girls raped and impregnated in armed conflict, including their right to receive abortion services. UAAR is the largest independent non-governmental Italian organization representing the rights of Italian non-believers and working to make of Italy a truly secular country. UAAR has more than 4000 members, and is in turn a full member of the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) and of the European Humanist Federation (EHF).
Rape has increasingly been recognized by the international community as a weapon in armed conflict, as evidenced by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1820, which acknowledges that “rape and other forms of sexual violence can constitute war crimes, crimes against humanity or a constitutive act with respect to genocide.” Rape is used in situations of armed conflict to destroy communities through terror and humiliation. Women who are raped and impregnated in situations of armed conflict suffer a wide range of significant physical, psychological and social consequences, including increased rates of maternal mortality, and risk of resorting to non-sterile or unsafe methods of abortion. It is critical that women and girls who are raped and impregnated in situations of armed conflict receive appropriate and non-discriminatory medical care. Tragically, women who become pregnant as a result of rape in situations of armed conflict are routinely denied access to abortion as part of their medical care. Consequently, women and girls who wish to end an unwanted pregnancy are denied such treatment and are consequently forced to carry an unwanted child to term, perpetuating the physical and psychological effects of their injury.
The United States is the world’s largest provider of humanitarian assistance to victims of armed conflict, the overwhelming majority of whom are civilians. Regrettably, U.S. policies which place restrictions on U.S. funds for abortion related services contribute to the routine denial of access to the full range of medically appropriate care for victims of rape, which includes access to abortion. The source for these restrictions is the Helms Amendment, originally enacted in 1973, which prohibits the use of federal funds for abortion services “as a method of family planning” and currently applies to all aid provided through the Foreign Assistance Act. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has interpreted the statute broadly in regulations and other guidance and statements and has in practice restricted funding for all abortion services. Restricting funding for abortion services where they are medically indicated, such as is the case for victims of rape in situations of armed conflict, goes beyond the statute since such services cannot be considered a method of family planning. USAID has also inserted such restrictions reflecting its interpretation in virtually all contracts with foreign governments, and humanitarian and non-governmental organizations. Concern over such restrictions was expressed in the recommendation that the US “remove its blanket abortion restrictions on humanitarian aid covering the medical care given women and girls who are raped and impregnated in situations of armed conflict” made by Norway as part of the Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review process. USAID’s current interpretation and implementation of the Helms Amendment goes beyond the statutory language, thus restricting the fundamental right of women who are victims of rape in a situation of armed conflict to non-discriminatory medical care and undermining U.S. efforts to meet its obligations under international law. UAAR therefore recommends that you issue an executive order removing any restrictions on abortion funding imposed through regulations or other guidance or policies of government agencies from humanitarian assistance that conflict with or undermine U.S. compliance with its obligations under the Geneva Conventions and customary international law.
States have an obligation to provide non-discriminatory medical care to the wounded and sick under common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions, Additional Protocols I and II and customary international law. Abortion services and counseling constitute medically appropriate treatment for survivors of rape who have been impregnated. In addition, rape in situations of armed conflict has been recognized as a method of torture, and the denial of abortion to women who become pregnant as a result of being raped has also been considered to constitute torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. Consequently, the denial of the full range of medically appropriate care to victims of rape in situations of armed conflict constitutes a violation of their rights under applicable international law.
The United States has an obligation under common Article 1 of the Geneva Conventions to “respect” and “ensure respect” for the Geneva Conventions. The obligation to respect and ensure respect means that the U.S. must not only ensure its own compliance with the requirements of the Geneva Conventions, it must also take action with respect to states that are perpetrating or supporting violations. Additional obligations arise under international law to the extent that rape and the denial of the medical option of abortion in a situation of armed conflict amount to torture, a serious breach of a peremptory norm, or a constitutive act of genocide.
The application of the Helms Amendment restrictions to humanitarian assistance contributes to the widespread denial of abortion as a treatment for women and girls who are raped and impregnated in situations of armed conflict. Ending such restrictions in the context of armed conflict would significantly improve care for the wounded and sick as required by the Geneva Conventions and help to alleviate suffering for some of the most vulnerable victims of war crimes, who might otherwise be forced to exacerbate their wounds through seeking an unsafe abortion or bearing an unwanted child. I therefore respectfully request on behalf of UAAR that you issue an executive order rescinding all restrictions on U.S. funds humanitarian assistance that would prevent abortion as medically indicated from being provided in situations of armed conflict.
Thank you for the opportunity to express our views on this important issue.
Raffaele Carcano, Secretary, UAAR
“la clausola che vieta l’utilizzo degli aiuti umanitari degli USA per praticare aborti – anche in caso di stupro”
O.o questa non la sapevo, ma essendo i principali esportatori di diritti umani rimedieranno subito.
Incredibile! Negano a quelle poverette il diritto di abortire pure in seguito a un orrendo stupro??
Non c’è da meravigliarsi. Sono le stesse bestiacce cristianiste che stanno fomentando i pogrom contro i gay in mezza Africa.
Peste li colga, insieme all’Ebola e alla stomatite cancrenosa.
Ecco, ho appena sottoscritto anche io la petizione. E’ inaudito che Obama – essendo il Premio Nobel della Pace e non si dimentichi di questo – non abbia ancora rimediato a tale violazione dei diritti mani. Pazianza, ricordiamoglielo oggi, “se non ora quando?”
è anche scandaloso che il Nobel per la Pace sia stato dato a Obama, ma dopo Kissinger, Sadat, Rabin, Peres, Arafat ci si deve attendere di tutto
la convenzione di ginevra impone che una parte degli aiuti umanitari venga utilizzata per finanziare gli aborti nei casi di stupro?
non saprei, tu sei mai stato una donna vittima di uno stupro di guerra? (quando di solito non è neanche una persona sola a farlo)
no?
ah ecco, volevo ben dire.
è vergognoso che donne che hanno già sofferto così duramente debbano scontare un’ulteriore pena (ti prego, ora non tirare in ballo il bambino innocente e tutta la tiritera del “chi se ne sbatte delle donne” solita, ne abbiamo già parlato più e più volte fino alla nausea e ti puoi comodamente rileggere tutto quel che è stato scritto a tonnellate)
non riesco a capire cosa c’entra quello che hai appena scritto con il mio post. Non ho detto che condivido la posizione degli USA, ho solo detto che mi sembra “strano” che la convenzione di Ginevra imponga la destinazione degli aiuti umanitari. tutto qua
http://globaljusticecenter.net/publications/Reports/GJCbrief-final.pdf
Mimmo perche’ ti sembra strano e’ giustissimo.
Le donne vanno aiutate ad amare Il frutto del loro seno,sempre,con l’amore si pu ottenere da unatto vile come lo stupro la cosapi bella che esiste ,l’amore per il proprio figlio.
Ognuno deve essere libero di fare le proprie scelte.Non puoi imporre le tue cazzate a tutti
Ti scoccia che la mamma ti abbia abbandonato, eh Aluccio?
@ Ale.
A te impianterei un ovulo fecondato nell’addome e ti obbligherei a portare a termine la “gravidanza”, a costo di scoppiare.
Ti passerebbero tutte le fisime da ominide cattolico che gioca con la sessualità altrui.
Ho firmato la petizione ma non riesco ad accedere all’elenco di tutti i firmatari. Voi ci riuscite?
Firmato!
Un atto dovuto e doveroso direi. 😉