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CPD-32

32nd Session of the UN Commission on Population and Development
22-31 March, 1999

ICPD +5 Preparatory Meeting
24-31 March, 1999

 

BRIEFING for Wednesday, 31 March

Delegates at the ICPD+5 PrepCom met in the Working Group from 10:00 am until 1:00 am. They discussed gender equality, equity and empowerment of women and reproductive rights and reproductive health, including sections on family planning, reducing maternal mortality and prevention and treatment of AIDS. They began a discussion of adolescent sexual and reproductive health. No consensus was reached on the issues of emergency contraception and abortion. In light of the fact that the Working Group did not complete its work, informal informals will take place this morning, Thursday, and a formal Plenary is scheduled for 3:00 pm.

Photo and RealAudio highlights

PrepCom Chair Anwarul Chowdhury
Alfonso Lopez Juarez, Mexfam, and Rodolpho Tuiran, Head of the Mexican Delegation. Mexico proposed inclusion of sexual education in school cirricula.
After the debate on emergency contraception, Chair Chowdhury adjourned the meeting to give delegates an opportunity to discuss the issue within and between groups. No consensus was reached on the issue.

Nicaragua, Argentina, the Holy See, Mexico, the G77/China and the US intervene on text referring to emergency contraceptives

Paul VanLook, World Health Organization, said that emergency contraception does not cause abortion and that there are no safety concerns associated with it

 

Nicaragua opposed reference to emergency contraception in the text
The EU and the Holy See discuss the text's reference to emergency contraception
Jim Carmichael, UNAIDS representative, highlighted that the massive increase in AIDS since Cairo and said that at the end of 1998, some 47 million people had been infected with the AIDS virus. He said AIDS merits special attention at the Special Session in June.
NGOs listen to the Working Group's negotiations
Susana Cruzalta, youth representative from Mexico, intervenes on behalf of the youth delegation. Youth delegates discuss their position with respect to the text over coffee in the morning.

Linking Cairo to Beijing

CONGO (Conference of NGOs) sponsored this event, which highlighted the progress made by the Commission on the Status of Women and the linkages between Beijing and Cairo and their respective preparations for their 5 year reviews.

Angela King, Advisor to the Secretary General on Gender Issues, Peggy Curlin, CEDPA, Afaf Mafouz, CONGO President, Virginia Maynard, Federation of University Women, and Anne Walker, International Women's Tribune Center (IWTC)
Afaf Mafouz, CONGO President, chaired the panel on linking Cairo and Beijing
     
Peggy Curlin (left) and Patricia Sears, CEDPA
Mabel Bianco, Argentina, and Amparo Claro, Chile, both from HERA
Afaf Mafouz, CONGO, and Emily Naffa, Arab Women Organization of Jordan
Angela King, Assistant Secretary on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women (left) and Theresa Tagoe, Ghana
Delegates peruse the literature prepared by UNFPA and other organizations outside the conference hall

 


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