As you deliberate upon the health care reform bill, we write to urge you to reject provisions that would effectively obstruct access to insurance coverage for abortion and interfere with the ability of women in the United States to make decisions about their own health care.

I gave birth in the developing world, in South Africa, to be precise. South Africa was in the spotlight recently when a government-commissioned report showed a 20 per cent increase in the number of deaths from pregnancy-related causes between 2005 and 2007 over the previous three-year period. The report said that nearly 40 per cent of these deaths were avoidable.

Plans to reform immigration detention management and oversight, announced today by the US government, should quickly be translated into actual policy change and accountability. The plans focus on centralizing control of facilities used to hold detained immigrants.

AB 1017 requires law enforcement agencies in California to report statistics regarding rape kits—including the number of untested rape kits in law enforcement facilities to the California Department of Justice. By passing this bill, California would take a significant step toward eliminating California’s backlog of rape kits.

After almost a decade of dismay at U.S. policy, it was wonderful for those of us in Europe who work on women's rights to witness the U.S. Secretary of State stand up in Congress and say, "We happen to think that family planning is an important part of women's health," and, "Keeping women and men in ignorance and denied access to services actually increases the rate of abortion."

To help establish the rule of law, the EU should support and fund a mechanism to try those most responsible for the crimes suffered by the Congolese people, such as a separate chamber on war crimes in Congo's courts, with the involvement of international judges and prosecutors.

A year ago I interviewed the mother of a young woman from Wisconsin who had been raped by a man she met at while visiting her cousin in Los Angeles. It had been eight months since the rape, and the rape kit - the physical evidence -- in her daughter's case still had not been sent to a crime laboratory. The mother had two simple questions for me: "Why is her kit still unopened?" and, "When will they test her kit?" I didn't have good answers for her then. It's been over a year and I still don't have good answers for her.

The Rwandan Parliament should remove provisions in a draft law that would mandate compulsory HIV testing and require the sterilization of all individuals with intellectual disabilities. The provisions, in a reproductive health bill, are deeply flawed and violate the government's obligations to uphold and protect human rights.