Philippines president signs reproductive health measure News
Philippines president signs reproductive health measure

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte [BBC profile] signed [press release] an executive order Wednesday advocating for reproductive health measures in the country. The order [text, PDF] is entitled “Attaining and Sustaining Zero Unmet Need for Modern Family Planning Through the Strict Implementation of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act, Providing Funds Therefor and for Other Purposes.” The aim of the act is to allow women greater access to contraceptives and other health measures, which will grant them better control over their reproductive health and family size. Durerte hopes the bill will guide families to best provide for their children. The press release mentioned hopes that the act will aid in the relief of poverty in the nation.

Abortion access and reproductive healthcare [JURIST backgrounder] remain contentious issues worldwide. In October Polish women participated in a nationwide strike [JURIST report] on in protest of a new law that would completely ban abortion. In July the Irish Parliament defeated a bill [JURIST report] that would have allowed abortion in Ireland where the child would not survive outside of the womb. The High Court of Justice in Northern Ireland in November ruled [judgment] that Northern Ireland’s abortion laws, which only allow abortion when the mother faces the risk of death or serious injury, are a violation of human rights [JURIST report]. According to an Amnesty International report released the same month, El Salvador’s complete ban on abortion negatively affects [JURIST report] not only women and girls, but also their families