Roundup: Colorado and Montana Abortion Opponents Try for State Amendment

Colorado and Montana Abortion Opponents Try for State Amendment; Condoms Over Abstinence in Rwanda;
Illegal Adoptions and Human Trafficking

Colorado and Montana Abortion Opponents Try for State Amendment
Anti-abortion
groups in Colorado and Montana are trying to pass "personhood"
amendments, which would give human rights to embryos, on the 2010
ballot by passing initiatives this week. According to CBS,
anti-abortion advocates in Oregon, North Dakota and Georgia failed to
put similar "personhood" amendments on ballots. The groups think they
will do better in Colorado with new strategies and more funding.


Gualberto
Garcia Jones, director of Personhood Colorado, told a local newspaper,
"The fact that we got over half a million Coloradans to vote for
personhood in 2008 shows us that people care about ensuring that all
humans are protected under the law."


The article said:

Last year’s Colorado campaign was largely limited to church visits and
talk-show radio appearances. Meanwhile, opponents, including
abortion-rights groups, raised about three times more money, held
rallies at college campuses and put out yard signs across the state.
Garcia Jones says the initiatives supporters will run a smarter campaign this time.
The language of the Colorado initiative has also been tweaked. Rather
than defining a person as "any human being from the moment of
fertilization," the new initiative will establish personhood in "every
human being from the beginning of the biological development of that
human being."

 

Pro-choice advocates are not concerned about the campaign. Lynn Paltrow, executive director of National Advocates for Pregnant Women in
New York, said, "It gives us another opportunity to explain how personhood amendments
threaten all pregnant women, including those going to term."

Condoms Over Abstinence in Rwanda
Rwanda’s
Deputy Speaker of Parliament Dr Jean Damascene Ntawukuriryayo said
increased access to condoms is the best family planning measure,
according to The New Times.
He also argued that promoting abstinence is not practical, and added
that if condoms were easily accessible to everyone, condom use would
lose its "stigma."

He told the Times:

 

"Condoms are used for family planning. They
help the users to avoid
unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. Unfortunately
most people still think that they are manufactured for sex workers…"I
personally advocate for condom use as a practical measure for the
youth availing them to the public will completely break the stigma that
is attached to their use and those who do not wish to use them can opt
for other modern family planning methods available."


Illegal Adoptions and Human Trafficking

World
Vision came out with a new report highlighting contributions to human
trafficking, one of which is illegal adoption. The Report, called 10 Things You Need To Know About Human Trafficking, said
situations of desperation and vulnerability may overlook the law and
child rights during the adoption process, according to World Vision UK


World
Vision UK’s Child Rights Advisor Philippa Lei said the agency has
extensive experience in the Asia Pacific Region, where children are
commonly trafficked.


"Child trafficking is a violation of the most basic human rights and
every step should be taken to reduce its occurrence and impact on
children all over the world," she said.

OTHER NEWS TO NOTE:
June 30: Catholic News Agency:Canadian bishops’ report: Mexican aid partners ‘imprudent’ but not pro-abortion    

June 30: AllAfrica: Rwanda: Ntawukuriryayo Advocates Condoms Over Abstinence   

July 1: Examiner: Two is enough or how an Islamic republic made contraceptives a regular part of daily life  

July 1: Visalia Times-Delta:Planned Parenthood is worthwhile agency  

July 1: Catholic Culture: CARDINAL, ARCHDIOCESE BLAST PUBLIC FUNDING OF ABORTIONS IN NATION’S CAPITAL   

July 1: World Vision UK: Illegal adoptions contribute to child trafficking 

July 1: NECN: Praise, criticism for O’Malley’s Caritas handling      

July 1: StandardNET: Planned Parenthood official: ‘Truth’ prompts abstinence  

July 1: Jackson News: Spotlight: Nurse from Jackson helps girls avoid unwanted pregnancies     

July 1: Town Hall: Taxpayer-Funded Abortions Coming Soon   

June 30: Washington Monthly: EVERY SPERM IS SACRED  

June 30: HealthPoint PA: Rep Shapiro Meets with Women’s Health Groups to Talk about National Healthcare 

June 30: StarNews Online: Editorial: A sensible choice on sex education instruction 

June 30: Feminist Majority Foundation: Keeping Violence Away from Clinics    

June 30: Brussels Journal:Spain Deconstructs the Traditional Family   

June 30: Talking Points Memo: Philosophy Post: A New Approach to the Abortion Debate

June 30: BeliefNet: Adoption Reform SHOULD Be Part of Abortion Common Ground  

June 30: LifeNews: Senate Democrats Get 60 Votes for Abortion, Sotomayor With Al Franken Aboard   

June 30: Catholic News Service: Cardinal, Washington official criticize move to fund D.C. abortions

July 1: Brisbane Times: Gay parents welcomed. Just not for adoption   

June 30: CBS 4 Denver: Abortion Opponents Try Again On State Amendment       

June 30: Yglesias @ ThinkProgress: Bishops, Baptists Organizing Against Contraception    

July 1: China View: Family planning, reproductive health fall off global development radar: statement

June 30: LifeNews: Pro-Life Advocates Launch Abortion-Personhood Campaigns in Colorado, Montana  

June 30: Courthouse News Service: Judge Clears Proposal on Abortion, Cloning Funds   

June 30: Pro-Life Unity: Ultimate Pro-Life Resource List     

June 30: Campus Progress: Yet Another Conservative Hates on Feminism

June 30: U.S. News & World Report: White House Discerns ‘Need for Abortion,’ But Some Disagree

June 30: The Frisky: What’s The Link Between Abortion, Miscarriages And Premature Births?    

June 30: Spokesman Review: (Letter) Counseling options exist      

June 30: Spero News:Progressives work at redefining ‘prolife’    

June 30: Politico: Kirsten Gillibrand gets NARAL endorsement 

June 30: Cleveland Plain Dealer: Birth-control pills can benefit some women over 40    

June 29: AllAfrica: Uganda: Nutrition Used As Bait to Lure Women Into Using Birth Control    

June 30: El Paso Times: Clinics’ closing ends tumultuous era