EC increases women's autonomy and decision-making powe

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Organizing for Women's Sexual and Reproductive
RightsThe Case of the Latin American Consortium
forEmergency Contraception

• Angeles Cabria
• Pacific Institute for Womens Health

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Expanding Contraceptive Choice Emergency
Contraception (EC) as a Womans Right

• EC, commonly known as the morning-after pill,
  is a female-controlled method of contraception
  that prevents pregnancy after unprotected sexual
  intercourse.
• EC as pills or the IUD-- is the only form of
  post-coital contraception.
• EC increases womens autonomy and decision-making
  power related to fertility

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Why Is EC So Critical for Women in Latin America
(LA)?

• Reducing unintended pregnancy is one of womens
  highest priorities, especially where abortion is
  legally restricted
• EC has the potential for preventing a large
  number of unsafe abortions
• LA has the worlds highest percentage of maternal
  deaths due to unsafe abortions
• EC is particularly relevant for rape survivors
  and youth

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What are the principles that frame our approach?

• Womens rights and sexual and reproductive health
  rights are human rights.
• The right of women to control all aspects of
  their health is central to empowerment.
• Ultimately, sexual and reproductive rights are
  imperative to ensure justice for all members of
  society.

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More principles that guide our approach

• The establishment and enforcement of laws and
  policies that protect and advance these rights
  are essential.
• Guidelines must secure womens access to a wide
  range of contraceptive methods, including EC and
  protect the freedom to decide whether and when to
  have children.
• Denial of female-specific medical care is a form
  of discrimination against women.

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What is todays EC status in Latin America?

• EC is widely available in pharmacies and
  reproductive health clinics (Yuzpe regimen)
• The number of countries where a dedicated EC
  product is available is growing Argentina,
  Brazil, Colombia, Chile, DR, El Salvador, Peru,
  Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Uruguay and
  Venezuela
• Other countries, such as Ecuador, have products
  registered but not available

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However

• There is limited access to health care services
  that provide EC
• Many providers are not familiar with EC, and
  some harbor paternalistic attitudes or fears of
  being punished for EC provision
• Women dont know about EC so cannot ask for it
  and demand their rights
• The public sector (Ministries of Health) are
  reluctant to incorporate it in their official
  norms on family planning and/ or sexual violence
  and youth

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Other socio-cultural barriers to EC in Latin
America

• Perception of EC as micro-abortion
• Opposition from the Catholic Church and
  conservative groups
• Low-level recognition of sexual and reproductive
  rights
• Conservative attitudes towards sexuality
• Lack of sexual education from and for parents and
  in schools
• Mystification of maternity

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In summary.

• EC is not yet accessible to most women who need
  it!

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What are the Needs for EC Promotion in the Region

• Policies Advocate for the inclusion of EC in the
  official norms, protocols and working documents
  in both the public and private sectors
• Service delivery Expand availability of and
  broaden access to information about EC
• Information, education and communication Inform
  the general public about the method, correct
  misinformation and disseminate relevant study and
  survey results in the region

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A Unique Approach to Fostering Networking and
Collaborations Worldwide

• The International Consortium for Emergency
  Contraception
• The Latin American Consortium for Emergency
  Contraception

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In the Beginning

• A group of activists pushed ahead on different
  fronts, mainly in the U.S. and Europe
• North-to-South action needed to make EC known and
  available in developing countries
• In 1995 lead agencies involved in EC formed the
  International Consortium for Emergency
  Contraception
• Partnership among public sector organizations and
  private industry was created in order to make EC
  available to women worldwide

• The Concept Foundation, International Planned
  Parenthood Federation, Pacific Institute for
  Womens Health, PATH (Program for Appropriate
  Technology in Health), Pathfinder International,
  Population Council, World Health Organization,
  Special Program of Research, Development and
  Research Training in Human Reproduction

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LATIN AMERICAN CONSORTIUM FOR EMERGENCY
CONTRACEPTION
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The Latin American Consortium for Emergency
Contraception -LACEC (CLAE in Spanish) is a
network of non-governmental, governmental,
private, and public organizations and
institutions that work in the areas of health,
education, and sexual and reproductive rights.
The Pacific Institute for Womens Health has
been coordinating LACEC since its inception in
2000
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LACEC Mission Statement
The Consortium seeks to contribute to the overall
improvement of the populations health and to the
reduction of unintended pregnancy, maternal
mortality and unsafe abortion in Latin America
through advocacy, promotion, information
dissemination and access to emergency
contraception within the context of sexual and
reproductive rights.
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LACEC Goals

• To advocate for the normalization of EC and its
  inclusion in the family planning/ reproductive
  health norms of ministries of health.
• To disseminate information about and access to EC
  in its different forms, using a gender and human
  rights perspective, to all socio-economic levels
  of the population.
• To expand social marketing initiatives for the
  commercialization and distribution of an EC
  dedicated product.
• To defend EC as a sexual and reproductive right
  within the larger sphere of human rights, and to
  integrate EC into the context of human sexuality
  and the prevention of sexually transmitted
  diseases, and gender based violence.

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LACEC Activities

• Fostering collaborations, networks and
  coalitions

• Facilitating information sharing among members
  and interested groups.

• Leading Advocacy Strategies and collaborating
  with advocacy campaigns to integrate EC in norms
  of ministries of health

• Convening and supporting networking and
  informational/educational meetings and
  conferences

• Creating materials in collaboration with experts
  from the region

• Fundraising for Consortium activities and to
  support EC initiatives in the region

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LACEC Accomplishments

• LACEC held in October 2002 in Quito, Ecuador, the
  largest Latin American Conference on EC in
  history The Right To Emergency Contraception In
  Latin America And The Caribbean.
• 250 participants from 20 countries participated,
  including legislators, Ministry of Health
  officials, womens and youth NGOs, researchers,
  health providers, human rights activists, youth,
  media.

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Impact of LACEC Conference

• Formation of new alliances, collaborations with
  participants
• Increased LACEC membership
• Advancement of the work plans developed during
  the conference, including new EC country networks
  or consortia
• Initiation of policy changes, such as EC
  provision in service protocols for victims of
  sexual violence in Ecuador
• Exchange of IEC materials and advocacy strategies
• Greater mobilization of human resources and
  experts to support EC advocacy events
• Greater participation of LACEC members in
  regional and international events
• Involvement of grassroots groups and youth
  organizations in subsequent political debates

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Organizing for EC Rights LACEC Impact on
Advancing Womens Empowerment

• In the two years of LACECs existence, womens
  NGOs have contributed greatly to the formation of
  EC consortia in 4 countries (Bolivia, Ecuador,
  Peru and Chile) with several more in progress
• Womens groups in coalition with other sectors
  achieved integration of EC in the official norms
  of ministries of health in Ecuador, Argentina,
  Peru and Bolivia
• More women are advocating and lobbying with
  decision makers and politicians about EC and
  other Sexual and Reproductive Rights

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Organizing for EC Rights Voices from the Field

• A representative from the Ministry of Justice
  was at the conference and he was absolutely
  sensitized by your presentation on comprehensive
  services for sexually abuse women, and it
  prompted him to propose to the Ministry of
  Justice that forensic doctors should not only
  inform about EC, but they should offer it as part
  of their services. I am sharing this with you so
  that you can see how your brilliant intervention
  helped to make progress in our country. Now we
  have this new challenge. Conference presenter
  from Ecuador

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Organizing for EC Rights Voices from the Field

• In La Paz, I participated in a National Workshop
  with decision makers from different fields
  (mostly health and justice) to talk about
  services for victims of sexual violence. I tried
  to be convincing with the theme (its still a big
  problem in Bolivia), talking about the fact that
  EC is not an abortifacient, the need for a
  dedicated product, and the possibilities of
  introducing it according to costs. I tried to
  make them understand what is the damage done to
  women by the inexplicable resistance to normatize
  EC. The response was favorable. The Minister of
  the Supreme Court of Justice expressed his
  motivation for normatizing EC.
• Conference presenter from Bolivia

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Organizing for EC Rights Voices from the Field

• Since I returned from the Quito conference, I
  have been working in my medical center with
  adolescent leaders on EC. They are very
  interested and it has been very helpful for them.
  It is important to create spaces where
  adolescents can freely discuss these themes.
  However, there are many institutions, people and
  health professionals here in Peru who find this
  difficult to accept. We are still struggling for
  information.
• Conference participant from Perú

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Conclusions

• LACEC gets its strength from the vision, breadth
  of knowledge and experience of each of its
  members.
• We have broadened our horizons, created
  innovative collaborations with new partners and
  grown as individuals while strengthening the
  whole collective.
• In over two years of collaboration, we have
  documented and developed public health arguments
  that have allowed us to refute other points of
  view of a more moral or religious nature that
  attack EC and block efforts to defend the right
  to autonomy in personal decisions regarding
  womens sexuality.

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THANKS!