FRONT ROYAL, Virginia (Human Life International) — Human Life International’s Luis Martinez lobbies the United Nations to help life-affirming nations withstand external pressure to legalize abortion.
When one United Nations committee convened on September 11 and 12, 2024, they discussed nine different countries, including the Central American Republic of Honduras, which is being pressured by outside groups, including the United States-based Human Rights Watch, to abandon long-held protections for preborn children.
As director of Intergovernmental Organizations and Diplomatic Missions for Human Life International, Martinez notes that of the six listed submissions from civil service organizations, five of those will be asking the UN committee to put pressure on Honduras to legalize abortion.
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“Honduras, which has constitutional protection for preborn children, operates under a government which typically aligns with pro-life principles,” explained Martinez. “At the UN, Honduras has joined other nations in voting against or expressing reservations about resolutions that include language supporting abortion. Honduras’ overall stance has been to emphasize maternal and child health, prioritizing family-centered approaches that value the lives of both women and their children.”
“However, international pressure from organizations like Human Rights Watch is pushing for changes in Honduras’ life-affirming laws,” Martinez.
Notably, of the groups submitting agendas promoting abortion, only one of the organizations is actually from Honduras, where preborn children have been constitutionally protected from abortion since 1982. Along with Human Right Watch, which is headquartered in New York City, those pushing to normalize abortion in the second-largest country in Central America are from Canada, Switzerland, Spain, Venezuela, and Peru.
Martinez will continue to lobby at the United Nations, tackling the practices of those promoting an abortion agenda, including:
Unconscionable approach to victims of sexual violence: A reframing of the protocol of care for survivors of sexual violence, which is being manipulated to increase the implementation of abortion on underage girls
Attacking national sovereignty: Deliberate refusal to honor and respect the cultures, traditions, and domestic laws of countries that place great value on marriage, family, and childbearing
Duplicitous protections for children: The scandalous omission of abortion by the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children in its mission to protect children from violence, abuse, and exploitation across the world
Honduras is not alone
Abortion promoter Center for Reproductive Rights has lobbied the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women to call for Poland to remove its restrictions on abortion. Human Life International Poland’s Director Ewa Kowalewska said, “The Polish nation does not want to kill its children! They talk about freedom, about harm to women, about health. This is completely deceitful language.”
Martinez pointed out that these attacks on pro-family laws in Honduras and Poland are not unusual yet can be overcome. At the June 2024 Organization of American States General Assembly in Paraguay, Martinez’s coalition successfully neutralized manipulation of language terms to prevent censorship and persecution of pro-life and pro-family organizations, blocked attempts to mandate “sexual and reproductive health” into resolutions or elevate abortion promoters to privileged status, and strengthened religious freedom references to protect life and family advocates. Yet, Martinez pointed out, there is still much work for Human Life International to do at the global policy level.
In 1997, Human Life International founded C-Fam (Center for Family and Human Rights), in order to affect policy debate at the United Nations and other international institutions. Now Martinez carries out advocacy and engagement on a parallel track directly from Human Life International, via diplomatic missions that emphasize:
Acknowledgment of the rights of the preborn within broader discussions on child rights
Inclusion of prenatal development in discussions regarding child protection and violence
Coalition building and partnership with other pro-life and family-oriented organizations to present a collective voice, amplify messaging, and influence policy discussions
Educational campaigns that raise awareness about an organization’s viewpoint regarding abortion and its impact, backed by hard data and anecdotal testimony
Support and dissemination of research and documentation that aligns with a pro-life perspective, such as fetal development and negative impact of abortion
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Martinez’s mission at Human Life International focuses on participating in United Nations conferences and those of other international policy organizations – Organization of American States, UNICEF, UNESCO, Inter-American Development Bank, Inter-American Children’s Institute, and Summit of the Americas. Human Life International is credited with shaping the global discourse around family and life issues.
About Human Life International
Human Life International is the only U.S.-based authority on global life issues, including abortion, contraception, and end-of-life concerns. Human Life International is engaged in providing aid, training, and advocacy around the world and is the largest global pro-life and family organization, active in more than 100 countries on six continents. Human Life International provides resources and education on life issues from a Catholic perspective, while providing assistance around the globe, and prepares those training for and those active in ministry to address these matters in their vocation. For more information, visit hli.org.