Bush Administration Continues to Deny Funding UNFPA Continues to Support China's Crimes against Humanity

By Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ)

On September 16, the United States once again determined that the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is not eligible to receive U.S. funding because of its continued support of China's forced abortion program. President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice deserve credit for taking the side of women and children by publicly announcing that UNFPA has again failed to meet the human rights conditions necessary to receive funding.

I have personally been tracking China's population control program since the 1980s, including personally traveling to China three times and holding more than 20 congressional hearings. Last December in one of those hearings we heard testimony about the deplorable case of Mao Hengfeng, a victim of a forced abortion whose ongoing attempts to receive justice resulted in her sentencing to 18 months of hard labor, during which she was tortured, drugged, and denied vitally needed medicine. While Mao's case has received international attention, there are many more who are silent victims of China's forced abortion program.

On September 12, Time magazine reported more on the shocking reality of China's one-child policy, including this story from one of the many victims:

The men with the poison-filled syringe arrived two days before Li Juan's due date. They pinned her down on a bed in a local clinic, she says, and drove the needle into her abdomen until it entered the 9-month-old fetus. "At first, I could feel my child kicking a lot," says the 23year-old. "Then, after a while, I couldn't feel her moving anymore." Ten hours later, Li delivered the girl she had intended to name Shuang (Bright). The baby was dead. To be absolutely sure, says Li, the officials—from the Linyi region, where she lives, in China's eastern Shandong province—dunked the infant's body for several minutes in a bucket of water beside the bed.

In June the State Department revealed that in Chinese counties where UNFPA operates the official regulations mandate forced abortion, fines, and penalties for those who do not obtain permission from the family planning officials to have a child. The English translation of those regulations is at the end of this story, so you can read for yourself how heavy-handed and ruthless China's forced abortion program really is.

UNFPA is guilty of shamelessly supporting and whitewashing terrible crimes against humanity and the United States will have no part in subsidizing them. By refusing to fund UNFPA, our President and our country are standing with the oppressed and refusing to cooperate with their oppressor. The United States will not fund the brutal and oppressive Chinese government's lapdogs.

The United States provides hope to oppressed women around the world by redirecting money from UNFPA to groups that don't violate human rights. We will not subsidize those who engage in forced abortion and other coercive population control programs.

Perhaps if UNFPA would concentrate its efforts on lobbying the Chinese government to prohibit forced abortion as aggressively as it does the United States to fund UNFPA, there would be less suffering in China today. The international community should be appalled that UNFPA uses more time and energy demonizing the U.S. for providing funds to other organizations than it does in criticizing the murderous Chinese population control program.

Once again, I call on UNFPA to immediately stop supporting, defending, and whitewashing its coercive population control program in China. It is long past time for UNFPA to sever its ties with China's one-child-per-couple family planning program that relies on forced abortion, involuntary sterilization, and heavy economic penalties on women to achieve its brutal goals.

Other countries need to hold UNFPA and the Chinese population control program accountable at The Hague for crimes against humanity.

Current regulations in effect in provinces where UNFPA is operating (Source: June 22, 2005, State Department Statement at the UNFPA Executive Board Meeting)

Anhui Province: "Couples of childbearing age must consciously implement contraceptive measures and accept the guidance of family planning technical service personnel...," and "Couples who become pregnant in contravention of the conditions of this regulation must terminate the pregnancy in a timely manner." (Art. 26) "For births of second children in violation of these regulations, a social maintenance fee of three to four times the total annual income of both parents for the previous year will be levied; for births of subsequent children, the fee will be doubled for each subsequent child." (Art. 46) "State workers who ..." give birth to "... second or later children in violation of these regulations ... shall be fired...." (Art. 48)

 Fujian Province: "Childbirth outside of wedlock" is forbidden. (Art. 14) "Couples who have conditions which would cause serious genetic illnesses in their offspring may not have children. Either the husband or the wife must submit to birth control surgery or adopt a method of birth control with long-term effectiveness. In cases where the wife is already pregnant, the couple must terminate the pregnancy in a timely manner." (Art. 17) "Couples with the ability to have children must utilize an effective means of birth control in order to comply with family planning requirements and must submit to checks on their contraception.... Persons who become pregnant in violation of these regulations must take appropriate corrective measures in a timely fashion." (Art. 18)

"Any of the following actions will result in criticism and education by the county or higher level family planning administrative organ...," including "failure to implement effective contraceptive measures," or "terminate a pregnancy ... as per the family planning requirements." (Art. 43)

Henan Province: "A maximum of one child per couple is advocated. The birth of a second child shall be strictly controlled. The birth of a third child is prohibited." (Art. 15) "All couples of childbearing age who are ineligible for childbirth under these regulations shall take contraceptive or birth control measures." (Art. 24) For births of a second child in violation of the regulations, a "social maintenance fee shall be imposed and collected from each spouse" of three times the "per capita disposable income" of the rural or urban area "for the previous year...." For "birth of a third or subsequent child in violation of these Regulations ... the fee shall be six times the per-capita disposable income.... The provisions above shall also apply to the illegal adoption of children." (Art. 38)

Hunan Province: "Pregnancies that do not comply with the legal requirements for childbirth shall be terminated in a timely manner. For pregnancies that are not so terminated, the township People's Government or neighborhood committee shall order termination within a limited period...." (Art. 23) "For a pregnant woman whose pre-natal examination shows the fetus to be severely deformed, the pregnancy shall be terminated in a timely manner." (Art. 35) Regarding Social Maintenance Fees, "for those who give birth to an additional child in violation of the law, a fine equal to twice the couple's total income for the prior year shall be levied. The birth of each subsequent child shall triple the fee amount." (Art. 43) Sanctions are imposed on those who refuse to "practice contraception or to be examined for pregnancy." (Art. 50)

Zhejiang Province: "Birth of a child is strictly prohibited in the case where the couple does not qualify under law." (Art. 18) "For couples who give birth in violation of these Regulations, social maintenance fees shall be collected from the two spouses separately.... A penalty of double to four times the announced annual income will be collected in the case of one additional child; a penalty of double the sum collected for the last birth will be levied in the case of a second or subsequent child..." and "one to two times the annual income in the case of a birth out of wedlock...." (Art. 49) "If a child is born to a couple ineligible under law not only shall a social maintenance fee be paid according to these regulations, but no wages shall be paid during maternity leave," and "Both husband and wife shall be given administrative sanctions ranging from demotion to expulsion." (Art. 52)