WASHINGTON, D.C., October 21, 2020, (LifeSiteNews) – A joint statement from delegations of the U.S., Brazil, Guatemala, Honduras, Paraguay, Colombia, Bolivia, Santa Lucia, and Venezuela (representatives of Juan Guaido, not the Maduro regime) told The Organization of American States (OAS) 2020 General Assembly today that “every human being has the right to life, liberty and the security of his person” and declared their commitment to defending “the sovereign right of nations to make their own laws related to the protection of life from the moment of conception.”
The OAS is a regional international organization, similar to the United Nations, which was founded in 1889 and at which all 35 independent states of the Americas are represented. This year its General Assembly was officially convened in Washington, D.C., albeit with attendees participating via web conference due to COVID-19.
Quoting from the Social Charter of the Americas, a 2012 OAS document, the delegations also emphasized that “the family is the natural and fundamental unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the state” and declared their commitment to working together to “protect the family as foundational to society and as a source of health, support, and care throughout the Americas.”
The delegations are expected to present the same joint statement tomorrow at the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, pre-sessional working group being convened in Geneva.
The Trump administration has consistently worked to defend life and oppose abortion at the United Nations, from resisting pro-abortion agenda items and resolution language to affirming that abortion isn’t a human right and promoting abstinence education. Earlier this year, Trump announced that the U.S. would cut ties with the pro-abortion World Health Organization (WHO) due to its handling of the coronavirus crisis.
Strengthening the Family and the Rights of Women of All Ages
(Presented by the Delegation of Brazil, Guatemala, Honduras, Paraguay, Colombia, Bolivia, Santa Lucia, Venezuela (representatives of Juan Guaido, not the Maduro regime), and the United States of America; in the context of the 2020 OAS General Assembly)
AWARE OF the importance the OAS has placed onfamily as foundational to a healthy society; on gender equality for women and girls, and the full exercise of their human rights regardless of age, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, we
REAFFIRM that “every human being has the right to life, liberty and the security of his person;”[i]and that “all persons are equal before the law;”[ii]
EMPHASIZE that “the family is the natural and fundamental unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the state. “[iii]that “all children have the right to special protection, care, and aid”[iv]
and that the family as an institution has functioned as a solid pillar on which to rely in confronting the pandemic and its consequences;
EMPHASIZE that “women and men enjoy the same status and have equal opportunities to realize their full human rights and their potential to contribute to political, economic, social, and cultural development and benefit from the results;”[v][vi] the human rights of women are “inalienable, integral, and indivisible part of universal human rights[vii]and that “education ought to enable everyone to participate effectively in a democratic and pluralistic society and achieve a decent existence;”[viii]
EMPHASIZE that women and men have different health-care needs, and an equal right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health.
DECLARES our commitment to work together during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond:
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To ensure the full enjoyment of optimal health, human rights, and equal opportunity for women at all levels of political, economic, and public life.
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To protect the family as foundational to society and as a source of health, support, and care throughout the Americas.
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To defend the sovereign right of nations to make their own laws related to the protection of life from the moment of conception. To work in solidarity until these goals are fully accomplished.
[i] American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, Article I.
[ii] American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, Chapter 1, Article 2
[iii] SOCIAL CHARTER OF THE AMERICAS, adopted at second plenary session, June 3, 2012
[iv] Chapter 1, AMERICAN DECLARATION OF THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MAN https://www.cidh.oas.org/Basicos/English/Basic2.american%20Declaration.htm
[vi] INTER-AMERICAN PROGRAM ON THE PROMOTION OF WOMEN'S HUMAN RIGHTS AND GENDER EQUITY AND EQUALITY, Article II, as referenced in Preamble and Art. 3 of the Protocol of San Salvador https://www.oas.org/juridico/english/treaties/a-52.html
[vii] INTER-AMERICAN PROGRAM ON THE PROMOTION OF WOMEN'S HUMAN RIGHTS AND GENDER EQUITY AND EQUALITY, Article I, Background. https://www.oas.org/en/CIM/docs/PIA[EN].pdf
[viii] Art 13 of the Protocol of San Salvador