New York, NY — Pro-life advocates who lobby at the United Nations need all the help they can get.
Most countries have pro-abortion laws and those that don’t are under attack by abortion advocates — and even pressured by UN agencies — to change their laws. Assisted suicide and euthanasia are more frequently allowed or tolerated and researchers in numerous countries are pursuing embryonic stem cell research.
It is in that anti-life climate that Priests for Life applied for and recently received a special status as a non-governmental organization officially recognized by the UN.
With the NGO status, according to UN documents, Priests for Life can designate official representatives to the UN at both the New York headquarters and their satellite offices in Geneva and Vienna.
NGOs can bring citizen concerns to governments, monitor governmental policies, and encourage political participation.
The UN granted the status because of Priests for Life’s “proven ability to reach large audiences, such as educators, media representatives, policy makers and the business community.”
“We are privileged to join so many excellent organizations who have been working at the UN for decades,” Fr. Frank Pavone told LifeNews.com.
“As is true of so many of them, our presence at the UN will be an untiring witness to the need to build a new culture of life worldwide. This includes banning abortion by international law and permanently securing the rights of every unborn child in every nation.”
Priests for Life plans to have a strong presence at UN Conferences, including those on population control, speak at UN subsidiary meetings, and vigorously propose items to be considered for the agenda of the Economic and Social Council.
Pavone said other state and national pro-life organizations should consider seeking NGO status to help the pro-life work that takes place on the international level.
“I encourage all organizations within the Church and the pro-life movement to explore the option of becoming an NGO, so that the good work they do can in some fashion be shared with the whole world,” Pavone said.
(This article courtesy of Steven Ertelt and LifeNews.com. For more information or to subscribe go to LifeNews.com or email news@LifeNews.com.)
