Key Benefits:
PORTUGUESE COMMUNIST PARTY
Parliamentary Group
DRAFT RESOLUTION NO. 77 /XI/1ª
By the right to information and access to sexual and reproductive rights by the
women over the course of their life cycle
Portugal is endowed with an important heritage legislat ivo in what concerne to the
sexual rights and reprodut ives. Heritage that was being edif iced over the years
after the April 25, 1974 and whose most brutal gap was won with the approval, at 8
of March 2007, of a law of plummeting the voluntary interruption of the
pregnancy, corollary of a prolonged situation of unjust and dramatit ica penalization of the
sexual health and reprodut iva of successive generations of women vivid abortion fines
clandest ino.
Sexual and reprodut sexual rights are an integral part of social rights of our
time, it should not be mere formal or only partially fulfilled rights.
Before they require a special responsibility of the politic power-Assembly of the
Republic and Government-in its spheres of competence, in the garant ia of its integral
compliance and implementation.
Lamentable delays in the implementation of sex education in schools do not
Notwithstanding it was passed 26 years ago the first law on sex education.
Other segments of women are also affected that, over the course of their cycle
of life, have greater dif iculties of access to health as a result of the non-existence of
family doctors and the lack of other health professionals.
It stands out, however, the paradox between the fundamentals that led to close
public maternity wards for not carrying out 1500 parts per year, when such a requirement
it is not imposed on the operation of the private units, because that means icing your
clasp.
Family health units do not comply with the object ivo de minimise the number of
users without family doctors; there are persisting lack of health centres as well as the
schedules unadjusted to the needs of women who need to resort to
these services.
This framework does not deny the effort and the posit examples of health centres and others
public services that provide an important intervention in the area of sexual health and
reprodut iva, before it imposes that such examples extend to the entire national territory.
The Portuguese Communist Part, when marking the March 8, International Day of the
Woman and the centenary of her proclamation, highlights the importance of strengthening the
sexual and reprodut rights of the woman throughout her life, from the menarch,
passing through menopause to old age.
Still in the scope of sexual health and reprodut iva, the CFP has been presenting several
initiat ivas legislat ivas, garant going not only to the efect ivity of sex education, such as
promotion of sexual and reprodut health and the protection of motherhood and parenthood
while social functions, of which they are an example:
-The plummeting of the voluntary termination of pregnancy, up to 12 weeks, the
request of the woman;
-The enhancement of the rights of people living in de facto union;
-The garant was going to follow up by the future father to the pregnant woman during childbirth;
-The right of special leave in the situations of risk pregnancies;
-The enhancement of the garant ias of the right to reprodut health iva;
-The protection of mothers and parents students;
-The garant was going from access to emergency medical contracept medications;
-The adoption of recommendations so that it can be ut ilized in units
hospitalars the human use medicine Mifégyne (Prilula RU 486);
-The regulation of medically assist procreation techniques ida;
-The adoption of measures to strengthen the protection of motherhood-paternity;
-The inst itution and regulation of a new family benefits scheme;
-The creation of a social allowance of maternity-paternity.
26 years returned since the publication of the first law enshrining the right to
sexual education and family planning, it should matter to mention some of the indicators of
health that underscores the need and urgency of the effective implementation of the law. From
agreement with the Report of the Department of Infectious Diseases, of the Unit of
Reference and Epidemiological Surveillance of the Inst itute National Health Dr. Ricardo
Jorge, December 31, 2008 (ult we have available data), find themselves
not if icated 34888 cases of HIV / AIDS infection in the different stadiums of infection
(for 32491 cases in 2007).
According to that report, "higher number of cases not if icated (" cases
accrued ") corresponds to infection in individuals referring drug use by
via endovenosa or "addictions", constituting 42.5% (14835 14835) of
all not if ications, reflect by going the initial trend of the epidemic in the Country. The number
of cases associated with the infection by sexual transmission (heterosexual) represents the
second group with 40.0% percent of records and sexual transmission (homosexual
masculine) presents 12.3% of cases; the remaining forms of transmission
correspond to 5.2% of the total. The cases not if icated from HIV/AIDS infection, which
refer as a probable form of infection to sexual transmission (heterosexual),
present an evolent evolut rising trend. "
Already the health data of young people, published in 2006 by the Maternal Health Division,
Infant il and the Adolescents of the Directorate General of Health, despite the trend of
decrease in pregnancy, maternity and adolescent paternity, " with respect to the
younger ages, found, in the 20-24 years, a slowdown in expression
of this trend [of decrease], and there has been, including, a slight increase in the
years of 1999 and 2000; in the group 15 to -19 years, the decreasing progression of the respect ivo
value appears to swell to part go from 1996, with slight oscillation in a sent gone and
in another. ", in what for motherhood concerne.
According to that study, in 2002, " the parents presented, as a general rule, a degree of
schooling lower than that of mothers, in both age groups studied. Of mothers
with less than 20 years, about a fifth finish, at most, the 1 th cycle of the
basic education (1.7% did not know how to read or write). In the same age group, the parents who
were in equal circumstances accounted for a quarter of the total (2.1% did not know
read nor write). In respect of completing compulsory education, in the case
of mothers under the age of 20, less than half can achieve it and, in the group
of the 20-24-year-old, about 56% was in these circumstances; in the case of the parents, the
observed values were lower than the icated verif in the mothers, in the order of the 7%, in
both age groups. "
With regard to the condition of mothers and fathers in the face of work were notorious
differences between men and women, in the two age groups. In 2002, " verif icou-se
that, in the group of those under 20, 61% of mothers found themselves in the group " no
act iva "(only 29% corresponded to the item" employed "), whereas in the group
age above, the situation changed, being 60% of the mothers in the condition of
"employed" and 32% in that of "non-act iva". In the case of men, in the group of the minors
of 20 years, 77% was "employed", value that increased to 92% in group 20-24
years; were in the condition of "no act ivo" 18% of the parents under 20 years and 5%
of the 20-24 years. "
According to the Directorate General of Health " it is found that, part ir of the 20 years of
age, the risk of maternal death by each nado-vivo increases rapidly with the
age, moving from 4.8 per 100000, in pregnant 20-24-year-olds, to 180 per
100000 in pregnant with more than 44 years. That is, a pregnant woman with more than 44 years
has a risk of dying about 37 times higher than that of a pregnant woman aged 20 a to 24.
The risk of death in pregnant adolescents (<20 years) is 9.9 per 100000, double the
risk in pregnant women of 20-24 years. The results are prat richly identical when if
divides the number of maternal deaths by the sum of the swims-alive with the
swims-dead, in an approximation to the concept of the risk of death by pregnancy "
(Report on maternal deaths in Portugal 2001-2007, Directorate General of Health).
Such a Report, points out as conclusions that " part of the health strategies for
eliminate preventable maternal deaths, should go through: strengthening the service network
at the different levels of delivery, as well as the art iculture between you and your
accessibility; ensuring that obstetrics services have conditions
essential logist for the minimization of MM (availability of fast access to
surgical block, to blood products 24 hours a day, unit of care
intensive coupled, internista/intensivist support); intensif icing homogeneity
of the training in service for all professionals; strengthening support for groups
vulnerable and implement the mult idisciplinary cooperation in risky situations
known or suspect ".
The presentation of this draft resolution, on this date, stems not only from the fact of the
CFP to have over decades the responsibility of diverse initiat ivas legislat ivas
in this area (for example, the intervention of the Parliamentary Committee on Condition
Feminine, in 1987, by the voice of Maria Alda Nogueira, who proceeded to the presentation to the
Plenum of the Assembly of the Republic of a Report on the Status of Women
in Portugal, in which it highlighted non-compliance with education legislation
sexual, family planning, among other aspects), and by the fair claims of the
women's organisations presented over the years to the Assembly of the
Republic.
The Assembly of the Republic, in accordance with Article 156 (b) of the
Constitution of the Portuguese Republic, decides to recommend to the Government that:
1-Garanta the implementation of Sexual Education in all schools of education
basic and secondary, through the training of teachers, and the garant ia of the means
for the correct functioning of the support offices, and education nuclei for the
health;
2-Reinforce the existence in all Health Centres of specic queries for
Young people, created by law in March 1976 a to pair the reinforcement of material means and
humans on the way to garant to go to full information and services accessible to all
young people;
3-Create conditions for the vaccination that protects against viruses such as HPV
(Human Papillomavirus is widely publicized and free for all
women;
4-Garanta and disseminate to women the importance of periodical screenings
performed at the National Health Service (SNS), namely mammograms and
mammary echoes, cytologies and bone densitometries;
5-Recognize and f iscalize the widespread access of all pregnant women to the
medical follow-up (minimum 5 queries) in the SNS as well as the exams
indispensable-DPN (Diagnóst ico PreNatal), blood and urine analysis, control of the
immunity or non-existence of diseases that put at risk the pregnancy and the fetus
(rubella, toxoplasmosis, syf ilis, hepat ite B, HIV/AIDS, etc.);
6-Garanta compliance with the Labour Code and the Contract Regime at
Public functions as regards maternity and paternity rights, extending the
dispensation not only for prenatal consultations as waivers for sessions
of Preparation for the Parto by the Psycho-Profilact Method ico, as well as the right of the
parents workers three waivers for follow-up to pregnant, garant going the
right to full remuneration borne by the ent age of the employer;
7-adopt measures art conveyed between the Ministries of Health and Science, Technology
and Higher Education for garant to go that the Higher Schools of Nursing (ESE)
include Preparation Training for Parto by the Psycho-Profilact Method ico;
8-Garanta the correct application of the Act on Voluntary Interruption of Gravity,
either through the suppression of material and human caries, or through the
compliance with all psychological support procedures and forwarding
for family planning consultation, in the ten days after the intervention;
9-Create urgent measures for the application of the law on Medically Procreation
Assist ida (PMA), approved in July 2006; taking into account that the high costs
of these treatments in the private sector and the long waiting lists in the public sector
are a factor of exclusion of hundreds of users;
10-Garanta the proper and regular medical and psychological accompaniment, at the SNS
in the prevention and treatment of menopausal-related situations,
particularly those of afrontings, incont inency, osteoporosis, irritability,
insomnia, sexual disinterest, or Alzheimer's disease;
11-Ensure in the SNS, especially in the primary health units, the existence of
geriatric services, corresponding to the specic needs of women in this
phase of your life.
Assembly of the Republic, March 8, 2010
The Deputies,
RITA RATO; BERNARDINO SOARES; ANTÓNIO FILIPE; MIGUEL TIAGO; JOHN
OLIVEIRA; AUGUSTINE LOPES; HONORIUS NEW