Paul Applauds Decision to End Funding for UN Forced Abortion Program

Washington, DC- Congressman Ron Paul today praised the Bush administration for its decision to eliminate US taxpayer funding for a United Nations program that Paul has long opposed. Secretary of State Powell recently announced that $34 million originally earmarked for the UN Population Fund would instead go to child health programs. Paul hailed the decision as a victory for decency and taxpayer rights.

"The bureaucrats at the UN think they should decide how many children the people of certain nations can have," Paul stated. "It’s unconscionable that Americans are forced to pay taxes to fund overseas abortions and population schemes that so many find abhorrent. The UN Population Fund in particular promotes a birth quota system in China, where forced abortions and forced sterilizations are commonplace. This despicable social engineering offends most Americans, and their tax dollars should not be funding such a dehumanizing program."

Paul introduces amendments each year to various spending bills that would defund UN programs, including the UN Population Fund. His opposition to foreign aid is based on the Constitution, which gives Congress no authority whatsoever to send American tax dollars overseas.

"This terrible UN program shows why we should rethink our foreign aid giveaways of taxpayer dollars," Paul concluded. "The administration should be commended for taking a stand against the UN Population Fund, but ultimately we cannot control what the UN does with the fungible tax dollars we give them. The better approach would be to follow the Constitution, allow taxpayers to keep more of their money, and allow private American charities that fight poverty overseas to flourish."