To Bear or Not to Bear: Reproductive Freedom as an International Human Right

This article notes that reproductive freedom as a matter of concern to the international community is part of a personal right to privacy as well as part of a fabric of social rights which include rights to health care and equality for women. Using the sources of international law as an analytical framework, the author argues that reproductive freedom is now included in the body of protected international human rights; thus, any governmental interference with the individual's exercise of such freedom constitutes an impermissible intrusion into the individual's rights. Part II outlines the rights to privacy, health and equality and posits that these protected peripheral rights include the right to reproductive freedom. Part III reviews domestic abortion laws and practices worldwide and concludes that they establish reproductive freedom as an international right in se. [Descriptors: Reproductive Rights - Reproductive Freedom, International]