Mexico Incorporates Emergency Contraception into the Official Norm of Family Planning
On January 21, 2004, the Mexican Secretary of Health released a resolution updating the Official Mexican Norm (NOM) 005-SSA2-1993 for family planning services. This resolution represents a significant advance for the health and sexual and reproductive rights of Mexican women as it facilitates their access to emergency contraception and the female condom. The updated norm incorporates the feminine condom and emergency contraception as officially recognized methods, obliging public health services to provide them freely to those who call for their use.

For more information on this theme, consult articles published in the following newspapers: La Jornada, Crónica and El Universal.

Congratulatory letter sent by IAPG to the authorities of the Mexican Secretariat of Health.

Peru: High Level Commission Backs Emergency Contraception
In December of 2003, the High Level Commission on Emergency Contraception released a report manifesting its complete support of emergency contraception (EC) and recommending to Ministry of Health Authorities that they make this method immediately and freely available to citizens. The Commission, formed in September 2003 under the mandate of Supreme Resolution number 007-2003-SA (signed by President Toledo and the Minister of Health Álvaro Vidal) was in charge of "analyzing and emitting a scientific-medical legal report about emergency contraception in a period of 90 calendar days." The report highlighted the non-abortive nature of EC, signaling that "the scientific evidence has clearly established that the mechanism of action of the oral hormonal emergency contraception impedes or retards ovulation and impedes the migration of sperm due to the thickening of the cervical mucus. Consequently, it acts before fecundation." Moreover, it signaled that "it has been proven that such mechanisms do not have adverse endometrial effects and that, for that reason, abortive effects cannot be assigned to hormonal emergency contraception."

The Commission was presided over by the Minister of Health and integrated by ministers of Justice, Women and Social Development; by the Ombudsman, the deans of the Medical College of Peru and the Law School of Lima; by the presidents of the Peruvian Association of Schools of Medicine, the National Academy of Medicine, and Peruvian Academy of Health; the Peruvian Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and the Peruvian Society of Matrimonial Fertility; and by a representative of the Peruvian Episcopal Conference.

For more information on this theme, consult articles published in the newspaper El Comercio and in the official journal El Peruano.

Caribbean Reaffirms Commitment to Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights
The IAPG participated in the Caribbean Development and Cooperation Committee meeting on November 11-12, 2003 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, which assessed the 10-year review of the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD). The meeting was very successful as the Declaration, which was unanimously adopted, reaffirmed commitments to: reproductive rights, gender equality, sexual health education including services and information for youth and adolescents, services for HIV/AIDS, child protection laws, and an overall commitment to sustained economic and social development and poverty reduction in the sub-region. In addition, the Caribbean countries stated that the program is “essential for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals” including the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger.

International Conference of Parliamentarians on the Implementation of the ICPD to be held in 2004
The Steering Committee for the 2004 International Conference of Parliamentarians on the Implementation of the ICPD Cairo Program of Action (IPCI) met in Brussels, Belgium on October 17, 2003. The Committee reviewed and evaluated the previous meeting in Ottawa with a view to preparing the next IPCI in 2004, which will also be the year of the tenth anniversary of the ICPD Programme of Action. Reports were given on follow-up activities by the regional parliamentary networks, and the Steering Committee discussed the coordination of preparatory activities for the IPCI 2004.

Information Dialogue Session on Emergency Contraception in Uruguay
On June 12, 2003 Parliamentarians met in Montevideo, Uruguay for an information dialogue session on Emergency Contraception. The objectives of this meeting were to raise awareness among parliamentarians and participating agencies about emergency contraception and adolescent reproductive health in Uruguay, and to provide an impetus for renewed parliamentary activities on these issues.

Latin American and European Parliamentarians Participate in Study Visit to Colombia and Brazil
From May 14 to 22, 2003 Latin American and European Parliamentarians participated in a Study Visit to Colombia and Brazil organized by the IAPG, to learn about different sexual and reproductive health programs in those countries. One objective of this tour was to increase elected representatives and journalists’ understanding of population and development issues with an emphasis on the implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action and the Beijing Platform for Action.

Council Meeting of the Inter-European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development
On May 26 and 27, 2003 the IAPG participated in the Council Meeting of the Inter-European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development (IEPFPD) in Lisbon, Portugal. The IAPG accompanied Ms. Laura Carniero M.P. (Brazil), who made a presentation on the sexual and reproductive health situation in her country and the work of the IAPG throughout the region. Around 50 European parliamentarians participated in the meeting, as well as NGOs working on reproductive health issues and representatives from the regional parliamentary networks on population and development and the Parliamentary Network of the World Bank (PNoWB)

XVI European Union/Latin America Inter-parliamentary Conference
The IAPG participated as observer in the XVI European Union/Latin America Inter-parliamentary Conference that took place in European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, the week of May 19, 2003. This meeting, focused on economic development and relations between the two regions, discussed migration and population displacement as well as issues of national interest for parliamentarians from the region.

Public Hearing on Emergency Contraception held at the Peruvian Congress
On March 26, 2003 the IAPG and INPPARES collaborated with the organization of a public hearing to discuss Emergency Contraception (EC) among parliamentarians in Lima, Peru. The objective of the hearing was to present the most current and accurate information about this contraceptive technology. The hearing was followed by a workshop for parliamentarians and journalists, comprised of two panels. The first panel discussed reproductive health status of Peruvian women, the high rates of unwanted pregnancies and the impact of the lack of availability of EC on women’s health. The second panel discussed modes of action and strategies to increase access and availability to EC.