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Reproductive health activists reflect on Trump’s order

Civil society organisations (CSOs) and human right activists have said they are not shaken by United States of America President Donald Trump’s order to stop support towards reproductive health rights issues.

They have since proposed identification of sustainable ways to finance initiatives in the sector locally.

The CSOs said in Lilongwe on Friday that even without the US support, various safe abortion campaigns will proceed in the country. The US has been a major funder of the safe abortion campaign globally, including in Malawi.

Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation executive director Michael Kaiyatsa said while the CSO leaders and activists agree that Trump’s order will have a ripple effect, the aid freeze is an opportunity for reflection on how best they can run their campaigns without depending on US funding.

Speaking in Lilongwe on Friday during a meeting of CSOs working to advance sexual and reproductive health rights in the country, he said the aid freeze serves as a reminder of the urgent need to stand firm in their commitment to promote reproductive justice.

Trump signs the orders a day after his inauguration. | Nation

Said Kaiyatsa: “We are at a critical juncture where our collective action can make a difference. This meeting is not merely an exchange of information, it is a call to action.

“By sharing our insights, experiences, and strategies, we can empower one another to face opposition with confidence and creativity.”

Nyale Institute executive director Godfrey Kangaunde also acknowledged the impact of Trump’s order, saying this is a wake-up call for rights activists to rethink donor dependence.

He further said without United States Agency for International Development (USAid) funding, it means there will be limited resources available for advancing the safe abortion campaign in Malawi.

Said Kangaunde: “With the US now shifting its stance, we must ask: Can we find sustainable alternatives within Malawi and Africa? Should we let this change set us back, or can we find new, local sources of support?”

CSOs under the Coalition for Prevention of Unsafe Abortion (Copua) have been pushing for a liberalised law that would expand grounds on which women can seek safe abortion.

Proponents of safe abortion argue that with such a legal framework, Malawi would eradicate the high number of women who die due to unsafe abortion.

Gender activist Emma Kaliya, who chairs Copua, said Trump does not speak for the whole world and, therefore, sovereign States can still carry on the advocacy.

In May 2021, Parliament rejected the Termination of Pregnancy Bill which seeks to amend the Abortion Law.

Currently, the law only allows a woman to abort if there are complications that put her life in danger.

However, the Bill pushed by activists since 2015, aimed to expand legal abortion from cases where the mother’s life is at risk to include rape, incest, faetal deformity, and threats to health.

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