News

IPPF EN strongly condemns the unlawful actions of local authorities in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, which are putting thousands of lives at risk by threatening access to essential, life-saving care.  City officials are moving to demolish the building that houses the clinic and office of the Reproductive Health Alliance in Kyrgyzstan (RHAK), an IPPF Member Association, an act that would cut off critical health services for the communities that depend on them – risking creating a care desert.  The property is privately owned by RHAK and has been used for over 25 years to provide essential health, psychological and legal services to thousands of people each year. RHAK fights gender-based violence, defends reproductive rights and supports survivors – making communities safer and fairer for all. Civil society organisations like RHAK are the backbone of a healthy and thriving society as they champion our shared well-being.  Now the building, along with two other historically significant structures in Bishkek’s so-called 'golden square,' has been earmarked for demolition as part of a proposed development project.   Particularly alarming are reports of due process violations, including attempts to reclassify land records, demands to vacate the premises without legal documentation and explicit indications that no compensation would be provided. If confirmed, such actions represent a serious breach of fundamental legal principles, including the protection of private property, legal certainty and the rule of law. Allowed to stand, such practices would leave no private property safe and expose any individual or entity to similar treatment.  We stand in full solidarity with RHAK and commend their decision to pursue all available legal avenues to defend their rights. Beyond the legal concerns, the potential closure of RHAK’s clinic would have immediate and harmful consequences for communities that rely on its services, depriving of care, particularly women, survivors of sexual violence and other marginalised groups. The reported disregard for the organization’s work and assets is both troubling and unacceptable.  ''What we are witnessing is not simply a dispute over a building. It is a test of whether the rule of law, respect for civil society and basic property rights will be upheld. It is also about ensuring that critical services are available to the people that need them. Attempts to dispossess a long-standing civil society organization like RHAK of its legally owned property, without due process or compensation, set a deeply dangerous precedent. We call on the authorities to immediately halt any actions that undermine these principles and to engage in a transparent, lawful and fair resolution,'' said Micah Grzywnowicz, IPPF EN Regional Director.  We call on the authorities in Bishkek to:  Immediately suspend any actions related to the demolition of the RHAK building;  Ensure full respect for legal procedures and property rights;  Engage in transparent dialogue with RHAK and other affected stakeholders;  Guarantee that any development process respects both national law and international standards.   We also urge international partners, institutions and civil society actors to closely monitor this situation and to support efforts to uphold the rule of law and protect civic space in Kyrgyzstan.  We all want to live in a society where private property is protected, and where people have safe spaces to access essential healthcare and connect with their communities. That is what is at stake.

Far-right lawmakers, followed by the center-right, are advancing three bills that would restrict the rights of transgender and intersex people—directly impacting young people’s ability to navigate their own journeys and grow into their own selves with dignity, respect, and support. At a time when many young people are already vulnerable to feeling lost or isolated, a sense of belonging is not optional - it is essential. A plenary debate on three of these bills is scheduled for today, with a final vote expected on March 20. If adopted, these bills would: • Revoke legal recognition of self-determined name and gender identity for transgender people • Prohibit legal recognition for young people aged 16–18 • Remove protections when a person’s gender identity does not match official documents • Roll back measures that support transgender children and young people in schools, including recognition of their chosen name • Ban awareness campaigns and inclusive initiatives related to LGBTI+ issues • Ban access to medically recognized care, such as hormone blockers for adolescents, even with parents’ consent • Erase protections for intersex children from non-consensual, medically unnecessary interventions These proposals risk increasing stigma, exclusion, and harm—undermining young people’s sense of safety, identity, and belonging. We should be clear: no one deserves to face discrimination, abuse, or harm simply for being who they are. By affirming trans identities, we can help everyone thrive and ensure that healthcare supports people as they truly are. Families and individuals deserve support - not political interference in deeply personal aspects of their lives. We stand with civil society in Portugal and with more than 200 healthcare professionals and researchers who have already warned against these measures. We urge parliamentarians to reject these harmful proposals, and we call on the EU to speak out clearly against discrimination. Now is the time to stand for a world where all people, regardless of gender identity, are supported to live their full lives with respect and compassion.

Ahead of International Women’s Day, the European Commission has published the EU Gender Equality Strategy 2026–2030, reaffirming its commitment to advancing gender equality and recognising the growing backlash against women’s rights across Europe. The Strategy builds on the EU Roadmap for Women’s Rights, adopted in March 2025, which IPPF EN previously welcomed. In the lead-up to the Strategy’s publication, we submitted recommendations on how to strengthen sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) across EU policies, funding instruments and institutional mechanisms. While the Strategy contains several positive elements, it focuses largely on implementing existing measures and on conducting research. These commitments are important, but they cannot replace the new and urgent action needed to uphold and advance SRHR at a time when gender equality, bodily autonomy and democratic values are increasingly under attack. 1. Sexual and reproductive health and rights  We welcome the Strategy’s recognition that challenges to women’s SRHR persist. However, while certain health conditions and contraception — including male contraception — are mentioned, abortion is not explicitly addressed. Beyond reference to the European Citizens’ Initiative My Voice, My Choice, no new actions on abortion are proposed. The announced initiative with the World Health Organization on improving women’s healthcare, as well as the planned mapping of practices and international frameworks on SRHR, are promising. But we call on the Commission to ensure these initiatives promote standards on the full spectrum of SRHR — including comprehensive sexuality education, abortion, fertility care, and provision of SRH to survivors — and lead to concrete actions to implement these standards, at least by issuing Recommendations to Member States. 2. Comprehensive sexuality education We regret the absence of concrete measures to promote comprehensive sexuality education (CSE), despite its inclusion in the Roadmap for Women’s Rights. While we welcome support to Member States on consent education in line with the Directive on violence against women, CSE remains the most comprehensive and evidence-based framework for equipping young people with the knowledge and skills to build safe and respectful relationships. 3. Sexual and gender-based violence The proposal to map national legislation on consent-based definitions of rape lacks ambition. We encourage the Commission to actively support national reforms in this area and hope the revision of the Child Sexual Abuse Directive will reinforce a consent-based legal definition of sexual abuse. We are also concerned by the absence of measures addressing violations of SRHR as forms of gender-based violence. This includes all forms of obstetric and gynaecological violence, mistreatment or denial of abortion care, intersex genital mutilation, forced sterilisation and forced medicalisation of transgender people. We condemn the fact that the previously announced Recommendation on harmful practices was never published and that no new actions are announced in this area. 4. Men, boys and anti-gender narratives We welcome the recognition that challenging harmful gender norms and engaging men and boys is essential to preventing gender-based violence. The Strategy also acknowledges the need to counter anti-gender narratives. The announced study should lead to concrete measures to counter the growing influence of the “manosphere”. 5. External action We welcome the EU’s renewed commitment to promoting gender equality and eliminating gender-based violence in its external action, including through the upcoming Gender Action Plan IV (2028–2034). We hope to see a strong focus in the next GAP on SRHR as a standalone priority and as a mainstreamed topic. Political commitments must also be backed by ambitious funding, and we call on the European Commission to include targets for gender equality in the next GAP. In particular, we welcome the new flagship initiative SHIELD (Sexual and Reproductive Health in Emergencies and Life in Dignity) aimed at improving access to SRHR and supporting survivors of gender-based violence in humanitarian settings. However, access to SRHR and support for survivors must also be guaranteed beyond crisis contexts, in line with the Directive on violence against women. 6. Funding and institutional mechanisms Adequate and dedicated funding, alongside strong institutional coordination, will be essential to deliver on the Strategy’s objectives. We welcome the emphasis on gender mainstreaming, including within the EU budget – although beyond tracking, targets are needed. The recognition of civil society’s role, the ambition to widen civil society participation and to support CSOs financially are crucial. Calls for Member States to adopt national gender equality strategies by 2027 and national action plans to combat violence against women by 2029 are also positive steps. While the Strategy refers to an intersectional approach, this commitment is not reflected in targeted measures addressing the specific needs of marginalised groups. IPPF EN will continue to engage constructively with the European Commission, the European Parliament and Member States to ensure effective implementation of the Strategy and to advocate for concrete progress over the next five years, building on the current commitments. We call on Member States to endorse the Strategy and translate its commitments into meaningful national action. Gender equality cannot be achieved without guaranteeing everyone’s right to make free and informed decisions about their bodies and their lives.

Dear President von Der Leyen, Vice-President Mînzatu, Commissioner Lahbib, Commissioner Várhelyi, On behalf of 170 civil society organisations working across all 27 EU Member States, we call on the European Commission to respond positively and decisively to the European Citizens’ Initiative My Voice, My Choice. Specifically, we urge you to commit to present a clear and concrete legislative proposal establishing EU financial support for access to safe and legal abortion care within the EU, with dedicated budget coverage within the next Multi-annual Financial Framework. The My Voice, My Choice initiative presents a concrete and strategic response to urgent and persistent women's health needs across the EU. Data and evidence demonstrate that profound inequalities continue to limit women's ability to access safe and legal abortion care within their EU country of residence and women living in some parts of the EU are still compelled to travel across borders to access safe care in other Member States or seek care outside of legal frameworks. For many of these women, financial barriers present a serious obstacle and can have very severe consequences including significant physical and psychological harm. This undermines women's dignity, equality and fundamental rights and seriously threatens public health in the EU. By responding positively to the My Voice, My Choice initiative, and introducing a legislative proposal for an EU financial mechanism, the Commission now has a powerful opportunity to address these threats, prevent harm and put in place a concrete EU-level solution. It can provide a meaningful EU-level response to address the challenges faced by Member States who may wish to assist women from other parts of the EU who need abortion care, as well as the grave forms of harm endured by patients who are unable to secure access to this essential health care in their own Member State. As underlined by the Commission during the European Parliament debate on 16 December 2025, this initiative “does not seek to interfere with national laws on abortion, which remain under national competence.” Action to give effect to the initiative will not impinge on Member States' competences or health systems. Rather, My Voice My Choice proposes a proportionate EU-level response through the establishment of a financial mechanism that would simply allow Member States who are willing, on a voluntarily basis and in full accordance with their legal and medical frameworks, to provide abortion care to women from other parts of the EU, to receive EU financial support and reimbursement for doing so. This approach fully respects the principle of subsidiarity and aligns with EU supporting competence in the field of health. It also addresses a cross-border challenge that no Member State can effectively resolve alone. As a result the Commission is uniquely positioned to act. More than one million European citizens, together with a clear majority in the European Parliament, have called for a positive response from the Commission. We urge you to honour this clear democratic mandate and to uphold the EU’s commitments to gender equality, public health, human rights and freedom of movement. Doing so will save lives and reduce suffering. Sincerely, *** Full list of signatories via Center for Reproductive Rights.    

IPPF EN welcomes the political agreement on the revised EU Victims’ Rights Directive reached between Parliament and Council on 10 December, which represents a significant step forward for survivors of sexual violence and for sexual and reproductive rights across the EU. Crucially, the Directive explicitly recognises that survivors of sexual violence must have access to sexual and reproductive healthcare. For the first time ever in EU legislation, it specifies the services that must be available, in accordance with national law, including emergency contraception, post-exposure prophylaxis treatment, testing for sexually transmitted infections, and access to abortion. This clear recognition marks a historic milestone, embedding survivors’ healthcare needs directly into EU law. The revised Directive builds on the progress made in recent EU legislation on combating violence against women and domestic violence, further consolidating a legal framework that recognises sexual and reproductive health as integral to victims’ rights. By spelling out these obligations, the Directive strengthens legal protections for survivors across all Member States and helps guarantee access to essential care. Sexual and reproductive healthcare is not optional support: it is a fundamental component of recovery for survivors of sexual violence and must be available without delay, stigma, or additional barriers. Forcing someone to continue a pregnancy resulting from rape inflicts further physical and psychological harm, deepens trauma, and strips survivors of their bodily autonomy and dignity. Denying survivors of sexual violence access to abortion care constitutes a serious form of gender-based violence amounting to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. IPPF EN now calls on the European Parliament and the Council to swiftly adopt the Directive formally and on Member States to ensure strong, rights-based implementation at national level. Survivors across the EU must see these legal commitments translated into real, timely, and accessible sexual and reproductive healthcare in practice. However, IPPF EN regrets that once again, EU legislation fails to adequately protect undocumented victims of violence, leaving some of the most marginalised people at risk of detention and deportation. Read more on how the deal fails to protect undocumented victims of crime via PICUM.   Illustration by Judit Canela

On November 20, 2025, at IPPF’s General Assembly in Bali, our Federation unanimously adopted its first ever IPPF Charter of Values, delivering on our collective commitment to re-examine our principles, reignite our shared spark, and push the line for justice, equality and bodily autonomy.  Born from the voices and courage of our members across the Federation, this Charter is both a mirror and a map. It tells us who we are and where we stand. Together with our new Brand, it is our fire that refuses to be extinguished. The Charter sets out seven values that define our identity and purpose: Dignity, Equality, Justice, Pleasure, Community, Integrity, and Resilience. They are not abstract ideals. They are our commitment to action. They show who we stand with, and what we stand for. Louder, prouder, and bolder. United. IPPF’s new Charter of Values grounds us in a simple but demanding truth: sexual and reproductive rights are universal human rights. It states that equality is intersectional, feminist, anti-racist, and anti-ableist. That the struggle for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights is inseparable from the global struggle for justice and liberation. The Charter affirms that pleasure – in all its forms - is a right, not a privilege. That safe abortion for all is our horizon, and LGBTQ+ rights, the rights of women and girls, Indigenous communities and those of all marginalised communities are fundamental to freedom itself. It acknowledges that oppression is upheld and sustained by colonialism and imperialism, and our duty to dismantle this. It calls us to work collectively with courage, with love, with solidarity.  And it holds us accountable, first and foremost, to the individuals and communities we work with. This Charter is a compass for our movement. It unites us and invites others to join. It is proof that no matter what we face, however they attack, wherever they advance, we will be there. This is who we have always been: fierce defenders of dignity, equality, and justice. Now, we have made it a Charter. We are IPPF. We are the fire.