HALIFAX — Canada’s international co-operation minister insisted Tuesday that the country is not at odds with its G8 partners over funding for abortion in the developing world despite a difference of opinion with the United States.
Bev Oda stepped out of day-long meetings with her international colleagues to stress that she and her American counterpart did not disagree on their approaches to improving maternal and child health.
“I want to assure you that Canada is listening as to the importance of family planning, the impact family planning can have in improving the health of mothers and children,” she said at a brief news conference in Halifax, with her U.S. colleague at her side.
“We do not disagree on the definition of family planning that the international community uses.”
Rajiv Shah, the administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, also claimed the two countries are not at loggerheads over their differing approaches to maternal health.
The Obama administration has said it supports a woman’s right to safe abortions in developing countries. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said last month that a maternal health initiative must include the provision of safe, legal abortions.
Canada clarified its position this week when it said it won’t support funding for abortions in the developing world as part of a family planning initiative it’s making a key agenda item for a meeting of G8 leaders in June in Huntsville, Ont.
When asked Tuesday if the conflicting positions put the two countries at odds, Shah said: “No, absolutely not.”
Canada’s stance on abortion provoked sharp rebuke from the opposition in Ottawa and international aid agencies, who said it is irresponsible to deny the service to women in impoverished countries.
Mark Fried, policy co-ordinator for Oxfam in Canada, said he’s discouraged by the federal government’s position, adding that “imposing Canada’s ideological beliefs is ridiculous.”
“I would hope that Canada’s other G8 colleagues would encourage Canada to adopt a more flexible position. It’s common sense,” he said in an interview from Ganonoque, Ont. “Access to safe abortions just makes sense.”
In the House of Commons, Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff said the government’s position reverses a decades-old consensus in Canada on abortion and sets a double-standard for the way it treats women in the developing world.
“You simply cannot promote reproductive help for women unless you respect a woman’s right to choose, and unless you include access to safe and legal abortion,” he said.
“How is it acceptable ... to have one policy at home for Canada and another abroad?”
Prime Minister Stephen Harper reminded Ignatieff that the House voted against a Liberal motion in March that called for the G8 initiative to include “the full range of family planning, sexual and reproductive health options.” About a dozen anti-abortion Liberal MPs helped defeat their party’s motion.
“The government’s policy respects the will of the House, respects definitions of organizations like the World Health Organization,” said Harper.
NDP Leader Jack Layton said aid could be cut to groups that fund abortion even though they are making a difference in the lives of women in the world’s poorest countries.
The Conservative position is “a major step backward and it puts us on a very, very dangerous path, because it puts ideology to the forefront,” he said.
Harper said there are a wide range of initiatives the government will fund.
“We understand that other governments, that other taxpayers may do something different,” he said. “We want to make sure that our funds are used to save the lives of women and children, and are used on the many, many things that are available to us that frankly do not divide the Canadian population.”
Paul McPhun, operations director for Doctors Without Borders, said the position will risk the lives of women and young girls, including victims of sexual violence or those with health complications.
“To exclude it in such a black and white way is to deny people access to an essential element of care and drive people to make drastic choices,” he said from Toronto, adding that his group has had to treat young girls in Haiti who have had botched back-alley abortions.
“If you want to advance maternal mortality, you can’t do it in half measures.”
Canada’s position will make tracking funding and administering aid a logistical nightmare for recipient countries, Fried said, as they will have to outline the specifics of their programs to determine if they qualify.
Oda has said Canada’s contribution internationally could involve family planning and the use of contraceptive methods, but funding for abortions is not something the federal government will support.
Britain has also called for a plan that doesn’t place limits on family planning.
