4. Reproductive rights and human rights standards and principles
a decision from 2006,40 the Human Rights
Committee found that an unlawful interference in the complainant’s private life had
occurred by a hospital’s refusal to perform
an abortion in a case where this would have
been lawful under the applicable national
law.
The European Court of Human Rights has
ruled that certain aspects of reproductive
rights, such as the right to decide whether
to have children and the space between
them, fall within the sphere of the right
40 CCPR/C/85/D/1153/2003, Miss K.L.N.H. vs.
Peru
to private and family life (Article 8 of the
ECHR).41
41 “The Court recalls that the notion of “private life”
within the meaning of Article 8 of the Convention is a
broad concept which encompasses, inter alia, the right
to personal autonomy and personal development (see
Pretty v. the United Kingdom, cited above, § 61). It
concerns subjects such as gender identification, sexual
orientation and sexual life (for example, Dudgeon v. the
United Kingdom, judgment of 22 October 1981, Series A
no. 45, pp. 18-19, § 41; and Laskey, Jaggard and Brown
v. the United Kingdom, judgment of 19 February 1997,
Reports of Judgments and Decisions 1997-I, p. 131, § 36),
a person’s physical and psychological integrity (Tysiąc v.
Poland judgment, cited above, § 107) as well as decisions both to have and not to have a child or to become
genetic parents (Evans v. the United Kingdom [GC],
cited above, § 71). Case of A, B, C v. Ireland, Application no. 25579/05.
RIGHT TO INFORMATION AND EDUCATION
THE RIGHT TO SEEK, RECEIVE AND IMPART INFORMATION IN LAW
This right can be found in Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which stresses the right to “seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all
kinds”, Article 10 of the ECHR, Article 13 of the ACHR, and Article 9 of the ACHPR. Article
17 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child guarantees children’s right to information.
The C
onvention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities also guarantees accessible
information for persons with disabilities in its Article 4(h). Article 10 (h) of Convention on
the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women sets out the right to “access to
specifi c e ducational information to help to ensure the health and well-being of families, including
information and advice on family planning”.
The rights to seek, receive, and impart information are protected by many human rights
instruments. These rights are essential to
the realization of reproductive rights. All
persons have the right to information and
counselling on health and family planning.
The information relating to sexual and reproductive health should be gender-sensitive
and age-appropriate, free from stereotypes,
and presented in an objective, critical and
pluralistic manner. This information should
enable all persons to make decisions related
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