Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the statement agreed at the International Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief entitled Statement on freedom of religion or belief and gender equality, published on 7 July 2022, for what reason ‘sexual and reproductive health and rights’ and ‘bodily autonomy’ were removed from the statement, and if she will reinstate the original wording.
The UK is committed to defending and promoting universal and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and will continue working with other countries to protect gender equality in international agreements.
In our capacity as Chair of the event, we amended the statement we made at the Freedom of Religion or Belief Conference to make the final statement more inclusive of all perspectives and views to allow for a constructive exchange of views on all issues. The UK continues to fund support and lead on issues of gender including on SRHR, through initiatives related to Women, Peace and Security and Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict.