Debate: US Supreme Court decision to overturn abortion rights in the United States and the need to safeguard abortion rights and Women’s health in the EU
Date: MONDAY, 4 JULY 2022
Speaker: Helena Dalli
Language: EN

President Biden has condemned the ruling. He has indicated a preference for Congress to codify federal privacy and abortion rights. His administration, including the Departments of State and Defense, are also exploring ways to ensure access to sexual and reproductive healthcare for service members, their families and their civilian workforce, as permitted by federal law. The ruling constitutes a rollback of a longstanding legal standard in the US concerning reproductive rights, impacting the lives of many women and in particular, those in the most vulnerable situations. It is a reminder that hard-won rights cannot be taken as a given anywhere.  The EU is committed to the implementation of its obligations in relation to the human rights of girls and women arising from key frameworks, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Beijing Platform for Action, the Cairo Declaration on Population and Development and their respective outcome reviews. UN treaty body jurisprudence has indicated that denying women access to abortion can amount to violations of the rights to healthcare, privacy, and in certain cases, the right to be free from cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment.  The UN Human Rights Committee has confirmed that although state parties may adopt measures designed to regulate voluntary terminations of pregnancy, such measures must not result in violation of the right to life of a pregnant woman or girl or her other rights under the Covenant. Through cooperation actions, dialogue and other initiatives the EU supports the full enjoyment of sexual and reproductive health and rights in countries across the globe. This means enabling women and girls to ensure bodily autonomy, free choice over their bodies, free from discrimination, coercion and violence, and to lead healthy lives.  In the EU Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy and the EU Gender Action Plan III the EU has committed to scaling up action to achieve gender equality, to protect and promote the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights by all women and girls and their socioeconomic empowerment free from all forms of discrimination, while applying a gender responsive approach.  In the European Union sexual and reproductive healthcare is a Member State responsibility. While the Commission fully recognises every person’s fundamental right of equal access to high-quality health care, all women across the EU should have adequate access to good-quality healthcare and treatment. Sexual and reproductive health is part of it.  One of the objectives of the EU4Health programme is to improve and foster health in the Union to reduce the burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases, amongst others, by promoting access to healthcare. This includes access to sexual and reproductive healthcare.  So the programme may support Member States’ actions to promote access to sexual and reproductive healthcare and to support integrated and intersectional approaches to prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care where such actions are included in the annual work programme of the EU4Health programme. We also support regular exchanges between Member States and stakeholders on gender equality topics, such as gender equality and health, under the mutual learning programme in gender equality.  We continue to fund civil society organisations working on gender equality, including on sexual and reproductive health and rights. And we provide full support to Member States’ efforts in implementing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals relevant to women’s health: universal access to sexual and reproductive care, family planning and education.  Women living in the EU must be equal and free in all aspects of their lives to choose the life they want in order to live, thrive and participate in all aspects of society. Strong women’s rights are an asset and a key feature of democracies. It is an achievement we must be proud of and nurture, as it can be easily lost.