- A new report demonstrates just how devastating the health impact will be on adolescents worldwide if the Bush administration succeeds in dismantling existing international agreements on adolescent reproductive rights at the United Nations Special Session on Children, May 8-10.
State of Denial: Adolescent Reproductive Rights in Zimbabwe, documents the human rights violations that occur in Zimbabwe when legal, policy and social barriers inhibit adolescents' ability to protect themselves against unwanted pregnancy and STIs, including HIV/AIDS. In Zimbabwe, up to 26% of 15-24 year old young women are infected with HIV/AIDS and 40% of female adolescents are already mothers by the time they are 19 years old.
"If governments want to ensure that adolescents survive into adulthood and avoid the risk of death, ill-health, and abandoned life goals due to teenage pregnancy and HIV infection, they must act to reinforce the reproductive rights of adolescents during the Special Session on Children," said Kathy Hall Martinez, acting director of the Center for Reproductive Rights' international program.
Written by the Center for Reproductive Rights and the Child & Law Foundation in Harare, Zimbabwe, the report is based on over 800 interviews with adolescents, parents, government officials, non-governmental organizations and UN agencies. It concludes that young people have a human right to access reproductive health information and services.
Facts of Life for Adolescents in Zimbabwe:
- 30% of girls 15 to 19 years old reportedly had sexual intercourse at least once; close to 40% of female adolescents in Zimbabwe are mothers by the time they are 19 years old.
- Zimbabwean service providers cannot provide contraception, including condoms, without parental consent to any adolescent due to confusing laws and policies; adolescents’ rights to privacy and confidentiality in seeking medical care is virtually non-existent.
The launch of State of Denial: Adolescent Reproductive Rights in Zimbabwe will include a presentation by Naira Khan, director, Child & Law Foundation, Harare, Zimbabwe, and a co-author of the report. Center for Reproductive Rights attorneys will also participate in a panel presentation providing a global snapshot of adolescent reproductive rights from Europe to Asia.
The launch is Wednesday, May 8, 7-9 pm in New York City.
Please contact Nilufar Hossain, (917)-637-3632, nilufar.hossain@reprorights.org for more details and to RSVP.
Cocktails & hors d'oeuvres will be served.
Click here to download the report (PDF).
