Catholic Activists Want South Sudanese Lawmaker Recalled for Championing Sexual Bill

According to CitizenGo Africa, the legislature who has been a lawmaker at EALA since 2017 has had “high-level secretive meetings with abortion groups IPAS, Planned Parenthood and even UNFPA to discuss how they will finally have abortion legal in East Africa.”

They add that the “abortionists have also been present and funded his questionable ‘stakeholder’ meetings.”

The EALA SRHR includes, among other issues, the legalization of abortion where pregnancy endangers the mother’s health and life and the teaching of the Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) for persons between the age of 10 and 19 years.

If signed into law, the Bill will take effect in the six member countries of the East African Community.

The CitizenGo Africa petition comes days after members of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) called on EALA members to withdraw the Bill, saying the proposed law attempts to give rise to unclear rights on sexual issues. 

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In a letter addressed to EALA Speaker, Hon. Martin Ngoga, Catholic Bishops in Kenya said the EALA SRHR seeks to re-introduce the controversial Reproductive Health Bill that was rejected by Kenyans for attempting to legalize abortion. 

“Guided by Article 26 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010, we maintain that the Bill as presented is an attempt to engender an amorphous field of rights referred to as ‘reproductive rights’ contrary to the Right to Life as protected and guaranteed by our Constitution,” KCCB members said. 

They added that no laws should promote or support any form of termination of life, but seek to ensure the sanctity of life.

The Catholic Bishops in Kenya also criticized CSE saying it seeks to “lead children to focus on unhelpful sexual behavior at the expense of education and life goals.”

Instead of the proposed CSE, KCCB members said the society needs to “focus on what imparts knowledge, values and life skills into our children and moulds them for a better tomorrow.”