Congress nearly passed a resolution that contained a backdoor attempt to fund international abortion groups under the guise of reducing maternal mortality.

“Maternal mortality” is the term for the death of a woman during or shortly after pregnancy.  An accurate number of maternal deaths is unknown since reporting, especially in developing countries, is shoddy.  In a recent World Health Organization report, one-third of countries did not report the sex of the people who had died.

What is known are the best ways to reduce maternal mortality.  Having skilled birth attendants — doctors, nurses, midwives — and emergency obstetric care reduce the greatest risks associated with pregnancy.

However, abortion groups have latched onto the issue of maternal mortality, claiming that legalizing abortion would reduce the number of maternal deaths.  Top “family planning” groups that promote abortion held a conference in October 2007 titled, “Women Deliver.”  Family Care International, International Planned Parenthood Federation, United Nations Population Fund and others paid the travel and accommodations for family planning activists in order to use their attendance to claim international agreement with the conference agenda.

The goal was to rally political support and demand more government funding for their groups.  Speakers declared that the primary way to reduce maternal mortality was to provide access to abortion.  Three U.S. congresswomen attended the conference, including Rep. Lois Capps (D-California) who spoke.

On March 5, 2008, Rep. Capps introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives calling for U.S. support for “global initiatives” to reduce maternal mortality.

Rep. Chris Smith (R-New Jersey) recognized what was going on, and his staff alerted Concerned Women for America (CWA).  CWA President Wendy Wright immediately prepared a letter to send to each congressman to explain the code language:

“Several so-called global initiatives have promoted abortion — the killing of innocent humans, which also harms mothers — as a means to reduce maternal mortality.  Under H. Res. 1022, reducing maternal mortality both at home and abroad through greater U.S. funding and participation in global initiatives would be interpreted as going beyond improving healthcare access to expectant mothers and divert focus onto pushing for greater access to U.S. taxpayer-funded abortion services.

“Recently, the Worth Health Organization released a report citing a highly controversial item as ‘progress’ in promoting ‘political will’ — the Women Deliver conference held in London, 2007.  I attended Women Deliver and can attest that its primary objective was to use the issue of maternal mortality to push for political backing and government funding for abortion.  In fact, the major sponsors of Women Deliver were abortion advocacy groups.

“This resolution’s call to support ‘global initiatives’ will be used to justify support for any global initiative, even those that violate medical and moral sense.

“Maternal mortality is highest in areas that lack basic medical care, and the uncontested solutions are skilled birth attendants and emergency obstetric care. Chemical and surgical abortions put women at risk of hemorrhaging and infection which require trained medical personnel and supplies to treat.  The worst cohort of women to be subjected to abortion is those who are at highest risk of maternal mortality — those who lack access to basic medical care.”

Rep. Chris Smith and Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Michigan) worked together to convince their colleagues.  The call to support “global initiatives” was removed, and the clean resolution to promote both “maternal health and child survival” passed by unanimous voice vote.

However, an article lauding the passage of the resolution on the website for Women Deliver claims that the resolution commits to participation in “global initiatives.”  The article’s link to the “Full Resolution” leads to a blank page.

Rep. Lois Capps also criticized President Bush in her remarks during the debate for withholding funding for UNFPA, one of the groups that hosted Women Deliver.  She claimed the funding for UNFPA was appropriated to “improve maternal health through effective family planning.”