GOP Reps. Object To Kenya Constitution Over Abortion Provisions

As Kenyans prepare for a referendum on a draft constitution, three Republican U.S. House members have accused the U.S. Embassy in Kenya of violating the "little-known" Siljander Amendment, which bans federal foreign aid for abortion-related lobbying, the New York Times reports.

The draft constitution preserves Kenya's existing abortion ban and outlines exceptions if "in the opinion of a trained health professional, there is need for emergency treatment, or the life or health of the mother is in danger, or if permitted by any other written law."

The lawmakers -- Reps. Darrell Issa (Calif.), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (Fla.) and Christopher Smith (N.J.) -- claim that embassy officials have urged Kenyan voters to approve the draft. In a May 6 letter to State Department, Government Accountability Office and U.S. Agency for International Development officials, the lawmakers wrote that the draft would "enshrine a new constitutional right to abortion" and "dramatically change Kenya's abortion law."

The U.S. embassy maintains that it has not explicitly advocated for approval of the constitution, though public statements by U.S. Ambassador Michael Rannenberger "leave little doubt" that he would like the document ratified, according to the Times. Rannenberger said in April, "The government of the United States welcomes Parliament's overwhelming approval of Kenya's harmonized draft constitution," adding, "Unity in support of the draft will bring the Kenyan people together."

The draft's abortion provisions have prompted U.S. groups on both sides of the abortion debate to send representatives to Kenya. Under Kenya's current ban, thousands of women die each year from clandestine abortion procedures, abortion-rights advocates say. Abortion-rights supporters also oppose a clause that says, "The life of a person begins at conception," while abortion-rights opponents claim that the constitution would allow "abortion on demand" (Gettleman, New York Times, 5/14)GOP Reps. Object To Kenya Constitution Over Abortion Provisions

May 17, 2010 — As Kenyans prepare for a referendum on a draft constitution, three Republican U.S. House members have accused the U.S. Embassy in Kenya of violating the "little-known" Siljander Amendment, which bans federal foreign aid for abortion-related lobbying, the New York Times reports.

The draft constitution preserves Kenya's existing abortion ban and outlines exceptions if "in the opinion of a trained health professional, there is need for emergency treatment, or the life or health of the mother is in danger, or if permitted by any other written law."

The lawmakers -- Reps. Darrell Issa (Calif.), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (Fla.) and Christopher Smith (N.J.) -- claim that embassy officials have urged Kenyan voters to approve the draft. In a May 6 letter to State Department, Government Accountability Office and U.S. Agency for International Development officials, the lawmakers wrote that the draft would "enshrine a new constitutional right to abortion" and "dramatically change Kenya's abortion law."

The U.S. embassy maintains that it has not explicitly advocated for approval of the constitution, though public statements by U.S. Ambassador Michael Rannenberger "leave little doubt" that he would like the document ratified, according to the Times. Rannenberger said in April, "The government of the United States welcomes Parliament's overwhelming approval of Kenya's harmonized draft constitution," adding, "Unity in support of the draft will bring the Kenyan people together."

The draft's abortion provisions have prompted U.S. groups on both sides of the abortion debate to send representatives to Kenya. Under Kenya's current ban, thousands of women die each year from clandestine abortion procedures, abortion-rights advocates say. Abortion-rights supporters also oppose a clause that says, "The life of a person begins at conception," while abortion-rights opponents claim that the constitution would allow "abortion on demand" (Gettleman, New York Times, 5/14).















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