Amnesty International USA

WHEREAS, an estimated 515,000 women die every year - 98 percent of them in developing countries - as a result of pregnancy or childbirth; and

WHEREAS, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that for every maternal death that occurs worldwide, an additional 30 women - some 15 million women annually - experience pregnancy-related health problems that often are serious and result in long-term disability; and

WHEREAS, the 25th Article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) states that everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control; and

WHEREAS, every year nearly 80 million unintended pregnancies occur worldwide. More than half of these pregnancies end in abortion. An estimated 150 million women in developing countries say they would prefer to plan their families but are not using contraception, and another 350 million women lack access to effective family planning methods; and

WHEREAS, voluntary family planning and other reproductive health services can help couples avert high-risk pregnancies, prevent unwanted childbearing and abortion, and avoid diseases such as HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections, that can lead to death, disability, and infertility; and

WHEREAS, motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance according to the UDHR and at least 30 to 40 percent of infant deaths are the results of poor care during pregnancy and delivery. These deaths could be avoided with improved maternal heath, adequate nutrition and health care during pregnancy, and appropriate care during childbirth; and

WHEREAS, poor maternal health and nutrition contributes to low birth weight in 20 million babies each year - almost 20 percent of all births; and

WHEREAS, 42 million people worldwide are infected with HIV/AIDS, including 3.2 million children. The incurable disease has claimed 21.8 million lives since the epidemic began, 4.3 million of them children. In 2000, 5.3 million people became newly infected with HIV/AIDS and 3 million people died of AIDS; and

WHEREAS, nearly half of all adults living with HIV/AIDS are women, and mother-to-child infection accounts for 90 percent of HIV/AIDS infection in infants and children; and

WHEREAS, access to education is a fundamental human right and two-thirds of the 880 million illiterate adults around the world are women. Girls account for over 60 percent of the 113 million children not enrolled in primary school worldwide; and

WHEREAS, children of educated women are healthier. A child of a woman with four years of schooling is twice as likely to survive as a child of an uneducated woman; and

WHEREAS, the Cairo Programme of Action reflected an historic global consensus of 179 countries and presented a concrete plan to save women's lives, promote human dignity and preserve our planet through family planning and reproductive healthcare services; and

WHEREAS, to be implemented effectively, the Programme of Action must be a priority for the donor states, including the United States; and

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT WE:

(1) Express the sense of AIUSA that we reaffirm the global consensus embodied in the Cairo Programme of Action; and

(2) Express the sense of AIUSA that, in recognition that women?s rights are human rights, the United States should lead the global community in improving education, especially for girls; in reducing the rates of infant, child, and maternal mortality; and in striving for the full realization of the right to health, including reproductive and sexual health care and family planning.