Norway has just donated $10 million US dollars to the international campaign to provide family planning services for the world’s most vulnerable women in response to the US Republican Party’s global-gag-rule. The fund was started by the Netherlands and has commitments from Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Luxembourg, Finland, Canada, and Cape Verde. The US gag-rule removes international aid funding from any group that provides or promotes family planning services. It has been enacted by every US president since Reagan, and subsequently repealed by each Democrat president. The current administration has deepened the cuts, defunding any organization that refers women to family planning services. Australian Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop has also defied the rule.
Norway pledges $10 million to counter Trump’s global anti-abortion move
Norway has joined an international initiative to raise millions of dollars to replace shortfalls left by U.S. President Donald Trump’s ban on US-funded groups worldwide providing information on abortion. In January, the Netherlands started a global fund to help women access abortion services, saying Trump’s “global gag rule” meant a funding gap of $600 million over the next four years, and has pledged $10 million to the initiative to replace that. Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Luxembourg, Finland, Canada and Cape Verde have all also lent their support.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-norway-abortion-idUSKBN15Z1KL
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/norway-to-spend-dollar10m-combatting-trumps-anti-abortion-gag-rule/ar-AAn9jPH