The first alarm jumped at the end of July: several humanitarian and family planning NGOs denounced the intention of the Donald Trump’s government to imminently destroy an important cargo of contraceptives. Usaid, the American cooperation agency, stored them in Belgium, waiting for their distribution to humanitarian missions, especially in Africa. An operation that remained in Limbo, together with the contraceptives, its reputed State Agency for Development, which according to the scientific journal The Lancet It could cause up to 14 million preventable deaths until 2030.
Washington’s order was that pills, intrauterine devices and hormonal implants parked in Belgium and whose cost is estimated at almost 10 million dollars (8.4 million euros) were incinerated in neighboring France. The stir caused by civil society both in some countries in Europe and in the United States seems to have stopped, for the moment, a measure that, warn international organizations, puts into play health of up to 1.4 million women and girls.
A month later, the cargo, which had to be destroyed in early August, continues to apparently stored in the Belgian town of Geel, near Antwerp. Or that suspects the NGOs, since the US State Department refuses to explicitly confirm its status.
“We understand that the stocks are still in Belgium; we have no safe confirmation, but the indirect information we receive is that they are still here,” says the director of doctors of the Belgium world, Federico Dessi.
From the Belgian government it is ensured that they are not with a crossed arms. “As soon as we had knowledge of the possible destruction of the stocks of contraceptives stored in a GEEL warehouse, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs undertook diplomatic efforts before the US Embassy in Brussels,” replies by email a spokeswoman for this newspaper. They are “exploring all possible ways to avoid destruction, including their temporary transfer,” he says, although he avoids giving details of the state of the negotiations “not to condition their result.”
This decision is an affront to the fundamental principles of solidarity, pubic health and sexual and reproductive rights that France defends ”
Marine Tondelier, French Ecologist Leader
The pressure also increases in France, where the environmental party has asked the president, Emmanuel Macron, to intervene: “This decision is an affront to the fundamental principles of solidarity, pubic health and sexual and reproductive rights that France defends,” recalls the ecologist leader, in a letter to Macron. A citizen petition has also been sent to the National Assembly to “question the government about this issue and do everything possible to prevent this incineration in French and European soil.”
The Ministry of Health declared that France, “unfortunately, has no legal means to requisition the stock To the extent that they are not medications of major therapeutic interest “and” it does not have a problem of supply “of this type of products.
Even so, NGOs consider that governments can intercede so that contraceptives are not incinerated, a measure that they warn, makes no sense for their cost, $ 167,000. “It is more than what would be distributed,” says Sarah Shaw, director of MSI Reproductive Choices based in London.
Manner
In response to a consultation from El País, a state department spokesman just confirmed this week, without clarifying deadlines, which “a preliminary decision has been made for coming from USAID contracts from the USAID of the Biden era”, among which are not included “HIV or condom drugs.”
Washington, according to the official explanation, is limited to complying with the so -called “Mexico City Standard”, also known as the Global gag law and that restricts, since its establishment in 1984 by the government of Ronald Reagan, the US foreign aid to organizations that provide, advise or promote legal abortion services, regardless of local laws or that the financing of these activities is not American. Just a few days after returning to the White House, Trump restored this norm traditionally maintained by Republican governments and terminated by the Democrats.
The decision of the US government is an intentionally reckless and harmful act against women and girls around the world ”
Doctors Without Borders
Despite the silence of Washington, social and political organizations of Belgium and France do not lose hope and are taking advantage of this hiatus to redouble themselves so that they try to stop the destruction of contraceptives in good condition and with a useful life of several years, that several NGOs have offered to acquire, without cost to the US, or take care of the logistics so that they can reach their destination.
“The decision of the US government is an intentionally reckless and harmful act against women and girls around the world,” denounces doctors without borders (MSF), which urges the US to “stop the destruction of these contraceptives and deliver them to the health ministries of the countries that need them most”, for which it offers “technical support”, as “has done other times.” “It is inadmissible to think that these health products are burned when world demand is so great,” says Rachel Milkovich, MSF sexual health specialist in the US.
Unwanted pregnancies
According to MSI Reproductive Choices, products called to be destroyed, 110,000 insecure abortions and 718 maternal deaths. 77% of these contraceptives had to go to countries such as Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia or Mali. “Behind these statistics are women and girls who can no longer control whether they get pregnant or when,” laments Sarah Shaw, director of the reproductive health group of this NGO based in London.
Already at the beginning of the month, together with another fortnight of civil organizations in the country, the Belgian section of doctors of the world sent a letter to the Belgian Foreign and Development Ministries through lawyers claiming that the stocks of medicines on Belgian soil to “prevent their destruction” would requisition. They never received an official response, says Federico Dessi, so they are now evaluating new actions, among others, the possibility of sending a placement letter that legally forces the authorities to explain the steps they are taking.
“We want to encourage ministers to take measures and find a way to save these stocks, ideally by diplomatic means, so that they can be used to meet the needs of vulnerable people who need contraceptives for family planning and prevention of infectious and transmissible diseases,” he explains.
which prohibits assistance to “any organization or program that supports or participates in the management of coercive abortion programs or involuntary sterilization.” This, the State Department adds, “includes non -abortive contraceptives provided as helping entities that do not assume the commitment required by this policy.”
The argument of the abortive is “completely false”, Rebate Shaw, who insists that the American administration “rejected all the offers to buy them” that were made.
“It is not about articles related to abortion, but of contraceptives. And as far as we know, not even the current US government policy is necessarily opposed to contraceptives,” says Dessi. “We sincerely believe that there is no contradiction between these articles and what could be the policy of the United States, since destroying them undergoes public health and, in a way, contributes to the propagation of sexually transmitted diseases in different countries.” Despite the few positive signals, he says they will not throw the towel: “We hope that governments will reach an agreement.”
