Thursday March 11, 2010
‘Hands off Mexico!’ International Coalition tells United Nations
By Matthew Cullinan Hoffman, Latin America Correspondent
MEXICO CITY, March 11, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – An international coalition of pro-life organizations reminded the United Nations yesterday that it cannot dictate abortion policy to sovereign member states, specifically highlighting Mexico in its defense of the right to life.
“The UNO was created to defend human rights, and not death,” the coalition reportedly said during a floor debate, as quoted in a press release sent to the Mexican media, which gave wide coverage to the story.
The groups added that the decision by 18 Mexican states to protect the right to life in their state constitutions was their right to make.
The organizations include the Institute for the Formation, Investigation, and Study of Women and Family of Chile, the Family Policy Institute of Spain, European Dignity Watch, Family Watch, and the Project for Human Development of Nigeria.
Mexico has come under massive pressure from well-funded international pro-abortion organizations to legalize the killing of unborn children. Such groups often use the UN to pressure member states in the same way, claiming that abortion is a “human right” – a concept that has never been endorsed in any United Nations document.
Although the nation’s capital, Mexico City, legalized abortion for any reason during the first 14 weeks of pregnancy in 2007, 18 Mexican states have since responded with pro-life amendments securing protections for the unborn. More amendments are expected in the coming months.
The representative of the Spanish Institute of Family Policy observed that it is not the role of the United Nations to promote abortion, and that member states “are not obligated to comply” with its recommendations.
The coalition also announced a new campaign to warn women about the psychological and physical consequences of abortion, which will place advertisements in New York subways with the statement: “Abortion changes you.”
See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
United Nations Urges Nicaragua to Legalize Abortion
Amnesty International Demands that Mexico Force Doctors to Do Abortions