Trudeau government earmarks
coronavirus aid to ‘reproductive rights’
In an April 5 press release from Karina Gould, Minister of International Development lauding the Trudeau government’s pledge to help developing countries during the pandemic, it was noted that Canada would give $109.5 million specifically for reproductive rights. Weeks earlier, the Trudeau government pledged $50 million to help stop the spread of COVID-19 in Africa, South and Central America, and Asia. Gould said women and children bear the brunt of pandemics in developing countries and “If there was ever a time for countries and governments to support one another and invest in health globally, it is right now.” The nearly $110 million for abortion and contraception – which the government calls an “investment” – “aims to ensure that its international partners can maintain their services for vulnerable populations where possible, including support for sexual and reproductive health and rights.” The government release lauds the spending as “in line with its feminist international assistance approach, since this global crisis has the potential to exacerbate inequalities and reverse development gains. This is especially true for the women and children who are already among the world’s poorest and most vulnerable citizens and who may now be expected to take on additional caregiving responsibilities in their families and communities.” Translation: instead of caring for children, it is better to kill them. Live Action responded to the Gould-Trudeau policy: “Giving over $150 million to help ease the suffering from a global pandemic is, without a doubt, a positive and generous thing. But using that money to sneak in extra taxpayer funding for international abortion seems more like exploiting a crisis to push an agenda.”
Calgary preacher fined for helping homeless
On April 3, Artur Pawlowski, who runs the Calgary-based Street Church Ministries, was issued a fine by the Calgary Police Service for violating Alberta Health Services public health orders put in place to stem the coronavirus pandemic. Police said his outdoor service had more than 15 people in attendance. Pawlowski was distributing food to the homeless and told LifeSiteNewshe worked as quickly as possible to avoid line-ups. He provided a video to LifeSiteNewsthat shows there were never more than 15 people in attendance and he said he may have to suspend his outdoor services or face steeper fines in the future. The penalty for a first offense for disobeying public health physical distancing rules is a $1000 fine. Pawlowski, who has been running the Street Church Ministries for more than two decades, preaching the Gospel outside Calgary City Hall and providing soup and sandwiches to those in need, says he will not pay the fine. He is scheduled to appear in court on June 12.
Legal challenge forces Saskatchewan
to allow drive-in religious services
After legal action was taken against the Saskatchewan Health Authority by the Justice Center for Constitutional Freedoms, headed up by Interim contributor John Carpay, the province rescinded its order banning drive-in religious services. Initially, the Health Authority included drive-in religious services amongst its physical distancing limitations that prohibited “mass gatherings” – no pun intended. It instead has issued guidelines which recognize the right for churches to hold such services with appropriate safety precautions as part of the new Saskatchewan Public Health Order. On April 14, the Justice Centre sent a letter to the province arguing, “The COVID-19 outbreak does not, however, suspend the exercise of the Charter. The restriction of public religious gatherings in which people exclusively occupy their personal vehicles on a parking lot while worshiping is irrational, unnecessary and not a minimal impairment of Charter rights.” The Nipawin Apostolic Church had planned a drive-in Easter service that respects physical distancing rules by keeping congregants in their cars like they were at a drive-in. The church required that people remain in their vehicles and listen to the service via radio. Car windows remained closed and people were encouraged to flash their car lights instead of saying “Amen.” The Saskatchewan Health Authority deemed service a “mass gathering” in violation of the Public Health Order and the church was forced to cancel its planned service or it and the congregants would face fines. “The Charter protects freedom of religion, association and assembly not only in good times, but also, and especially, in difficult times,” said Jay Cameron, litigation manager for the Justice Centre. “Given the presence of reasonable safety measures, the restriction of such assembly for religious worship is illegal.” On April 18, the government released new guidelines allowing drive-in services. Cameron said, “We appreciate the Saskatchewan government’s reasoned and rational revision to its policies on this issue.”
Donald Trump withdraws U.S. funding
from World Health Organization
President Donald Trump
On April 15, U.S. President Donald Trump announced he would withdraw funding to the World Health Organization (WHO) and ordered a review of its conduct, saying WHO was guilty of “severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of coronavirus.” The U.S. is the largest contributor to WHO, providing between $400-$500 million annually, more than the next two donors – the United Kingdom and the Gates Foundation – combined.Trump charged the international organization with toadying to Red China and said, “had the WHO done its job to get medical experts into China to objectively assess the situation on the ground and to call out China’s lack of transparency, the outbreak could have been contained.” The move was applauded bythe International Right to Life Federation (IRTF). The letter was signed by ten international pro-life leaders, who offered “wholehearted solidarity” with the President. Noting that WHO “has a long history of wilfully endangering life on a global scale,” the IRTF letter said, “the transgressions of the WHO go beyond this.” The pro-life leaders said they wanted to “draw your attention to the fact that the WHO has adopted a pro-abortion position and even equates abortion with ‘human rights’.” They also report that WHO has called for the decriminalization of abortion worldwide. Noting that the WHO’s “Maternal and Perinatal Health & Preventing Unsafe Abortion Team,” labelled abortion an “essential service” in the pandemic, the IRTL said that it (WHO) is “ruthlessly exploit(ing) a global crisis to expand abortion.” The U.K.’s Society for the Protection of Unborn Children’s executive director John Smeaton, who also serves as vice president of IRTF, said defunding WHO is “an important stage of the dismantling of the pro-abortion global order.” C-Fam, a pro-life group that closely monitors the United Nations, said, “From the beginning of the coronavirus crisis … officials of the international health agency promoted abortion in a guideline on ‘Clinical management of severe acute respiratory infection’.” The manual stated, “Women’s choices and rights to sexual and reproductive health care should be respected irrespective of COVID-19 status, including access to contraception and safe abortion to the full extent of the law.” WHO was promoting abortion amidst the pandemic despite there being no known complications for pregnant women in regards to the coronavirus.
Abortion pill reversal ministry sees uptick in calls
The Abortion Pill Rescue Network reported a record number of calls for abortion pill reversals in March. Andrea Trudden, director of communications for Heartbeat International, which runs the Abortion Pill Rescue Network, said 105 mothers sought to halt the process of their chemical abortions after calling the hotline. The Abortion Pill Rescue Network was created to help women who regret the decision to use the abortion pill regimen. The abortion pill is a two-step process so it is possible with the correct medical intervention to stop the death of the preborn children and allow the pregnancy to continue. Supplemental progesterone taken after the first pill provides a chance to save the preborn baby’s life, although it does not always work. Trudden said many women took the abortion pill in a panic when the pandemic began because “that is the only option they can see.” In addition to the surge in interest in their abortion pill reversal network, Heartbeat International’s Option Line has seen an increase of 50 per cent in crisis calls for assistance during the early days of the pandemic.
UN $2B coronavirus fund includes abortion
C-Fam’s Stefano Gennarini reported that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ appeal for $2 billion in funding to assist developing countries battle the COVID-19 pandemic “repeatedly highlights ‘sexual and reproductive health and rights’ as a priority area of food security and health policy.” Guterres seemingly took his lead from the World Health Organization, which has pushed abortion as essential during the pandemic. The WHO had been advocating globally for self-administered abortions, prescribed through telehealth (by phone or online video conferencing) after which women could pick up the two-stage abortion pill. The United Kingdom and France were among countries that loosened restrictions on do-it-at-home abortions. The Guterres plan would earmark $140 million to the United Nations Population Fund, which supports population control measures globally. Money would also go to the Minimum Initial Service Package, humanitarian kits distributed in emergencies that include equipment for “reproductive health” and directions to medical personnel to refer to abortions if they cannot in good conscience commit the deadly procedure themselves. Gennarini says the UN’s abortion-funding violates the Trump administration’s strict Mexico City policy that prohibits funding of international groups that promote or commit abortions.
5000 Planned Parenthood abortion mills
close amid COVID-19
The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) has announced the closing of 5,633 member abortuaries due to the COVID-19 pandemic and another two dozen have reduced abortion capacity due to restrictions placed on non-essential services. The IPPF website says there are more than 58,000 affiliated facilities worldwide, so about ten per cent of them are closing. In 2018, the latest year for which there are figures, IPPF affiliates carried out almost 1.4 million abortions, with just over half of them being chemical abortions. The organization says it is struggling to access “key supplies” because personal protective equipment is being prioritized for frontline health care workers in the pandemic fight. In many states, restrictions on elective surgeries have been extended to abortion, while other states have deemed them essential. According to Live Action, several Planned Parenthood abortuaries have suspended the limited number of actual health care services they carry out as they follow an “abortion-only protocol.”
Hulk Hogan calls for penance during COVID-19
On April 1, former wrestling superstar Hulk Hogan, 66, tweeted to his 2.2 million Twitter followers a Bible verse and encouraged them to repent their sins. He sent two tweets. The first said, “This is one of the most powerful gifts to our human race. (It’s) as powerful as it gets here on earth, thank you God. Only love HH.” (HH stands for Hulk Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea.) He added an image of 2 Chronicles 7:13-14 to the tweet. That verse reads: “Whenever I hold back the rain or send locusts to eat up the crops or send an epidemic on my people, if they pray to me and repent and turn away from the evil they have been doing, then I will hear them in heaven, forgive their sins, and make their land prosperous again.” He later tweeted: “Word up, can you handle the truth my brother only love HH.” That tweet was accommodated with an image of this message: “In three short months, just like He did with the plagues of Egypt, God has taken away everything we worship. God said, ‘you want to worship athletes, I will shut down the stadiums. You want to worship musicians, I will shut down Civic Centers. You want to worship actors, I will shut down theaters. You want to worship money, I will shut down the economy and collapse the stock market. You don’t want to go to church and worship me, I will make it where you can’t go to church’.” It is not known who the author of the image’s message is. The message continued: “If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sin and will heal their land.” Hogan encouraged people use the time in isolation to “have a personal revival” and “focus on the only thing in the world that really matters. Jesus.” Hogan was a star in the World Wrestling Federation (now WWE) in the 1980s and World Championship Wrestling in the 1990s. Although he retired in 2011, he still makes appearances on WWE. Hogan, who made a living in sports entertainment fighting, is divorced and remarried, had an affair, and is featured in a leaked sex tape.
