Trump’s ‘gag rule’ may not
There may be a way around a policy banning US-funded groups from offering abortion
Acontroversial United States policy that prohibits foreign organisations it funds from offering or promoting abortions has sparked fear among South African healthcare workers.
But activists say there is a loophole in the policy that may offer a lifeline to local organisations that provide family planning advice.
US President Donald Trump has reintroduced the “Mexico City policy”, popularly known as the “gag rule” in January.
The law allows the US government to cut its funding to foreign organisations if they perform or even advocate for abortions — including referring women to other service providers or financially supporting organisations that conduct such activities.
These restrictions apply regardless of whether the abortion services use US funding directly or not. And the gag rule was recently extended to apply to some programmes such as the President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (Pepfar) that were previously exempted.
In 2017, South Africa is due to receive R10.7-billion in US funding from Pepfar alone. About 64% of this money is intended for NGOs, according to the Foundation for Aids Research (Amfar) analysis.
“The [global gag rule] is about what foreign nonprofit organisations that receive US funding can do with the money they receive from other donors,” explains Beirne Roose-Snyder, the director of public policy for the Centre for Health and Gender Equity (Change), a US-based women’s rights organisation.
In the event that US-funded NGOs violate the policy — or even use other donors’ money to fund abortion services — they risk losing their US support.
These NGOs could also be forced to pay the US government what they had spent on services related to the termination of pregnancy.
“Even if the money that an organisation spent on that portion of [its] activities is not US money, it would owe the US [that] money for promoting or providing abortion services with other donor money,” says Brian Honermann, deputy director of public policy for Amfar.
However, Roose-Snyder emphasises that the gag rule does not apply to funding that was granted before it was reinstated. n South Africa, nonprofits have been reluctant to speak publicly about the ban’s effects. But Bhekisisa understands that the rule has already stopped some NGOs from providing abortion information and has created divisions in civil society.
Some healthcare workers, who wish to remain anonymous, say the policy has prompted fear and anxiety not only for the survival of organisations, but also about its implications for their patients. But international
Iactivists say a clause in the policy allows South African organisations some respite — although it still does not allow them to provide abortions.
The document outlining the new US funding guidelines states that when local laws require health workers to provide counselling and referrals for abortions, they may continue to do so without violating the policy.
“This means that the gag rule falls away, as healthcare workers in South Africa are obligated to counsel and refer women under domestic laws, ethics guidelines and the Constitution,” says Honermann.
“[The gag rule] cannot contra-