Building the nation's body: The contested role of abortion and family planning in post-war South Sudan

Abstract

3This paper offers an ethnographic analysis of public health policies and interventions targeting 4 unwanted pregnancy (family planning and abortion) in contemporary South Sudan as part of wider 5 'nation-building' after war, understood as a process of collective identity formation which projects a 6 meaningful future by redefining existing institutions and customs as national characteristics. The 7 paper shows how the expansion of post-conflict family planning and abortion policy and services are 8 particularly poignant sites for the enactment of reproductive identity negotiation, policing and 9conflict. In addition to customary norms, these processes are shaped by two powerful institutions -10

Behind the scenes: International NGOs’ influence on reproductive health policy in Malawi and South Sudan

“…It is precisely INGOs' international backing that pro-life groups in Malawi have sought to expose to de-legitimate Ipas Malawi and COPUA as agents of neo-colonialist eugenicists, while ignoring the irony that the pro-life groups are themselves internationally funded and supported. In this climate, it is uncertain whether the attacks against them would be less vehement if the INGOs, and their donors, adopted a more open stance, though in South Sudan, we have observed a public desire for clarification around the 'rules' of abortion provision by international organisations (Palmer & Storeng, 2016). Many policymakers also viewed MSI's steps to operate more openly after their clinics were scrutinised as an effective response.…”

“…Development partners and their allies in the Ministry of Health considered it necessary to overturn these before politicians would be willing to adopt liberal policies and before INGOs, who feared sanctioning by other parts of the government, would implement them. Policy authors therefore collectively adopted language which framed 'quality reproductive health services including family planning' (MoHGoSS, 2013a, p. 1) as a casualty of war and thus something that a nation which fought for peace should address (Palmer & Storeng, 2016). They furthermore inserted into the national Reproductive Health Strategic Plan the 'policy imperative' to '[c]reat[e] an enabling environment for increased private sector, NGO and community involvement in MRH [maternal and reproductive health] service provision and finance' (MoH-GoSS, 2013b, p. 10), and incorporated 'progressive', 'state of the art' concepts about family planning and post-abortion care (Michael et al, 2007, p. 12).…”

“…However, foreigners who open fee-charging clinics are often distrusted as they are seen as coming to South Sudan to make money and are suspected of out-competing local NGOs. Moreover, in the public imagination, the state has less ability to monitor private clinics (Palmer & Storeng, 2016), and MSI therefore had to manage intense scrutiny of its facilities. Such scrutiny intensified after a South Sudanese staff member, in the words of a donor representative, 'leaked' internal documents to a US-based blog and publicly accused the organisation of providing abortions illegally at their clinics.…”

Setting the research agenda for induced abortion in Africa and Asia

“…The Eva‐PMDUP project conducted an in‐depth policy analysis in multiple countries, three of which have been published so far . There are a number of questions remaining about how national and global policy contexts determine availability, use and experiences of abortion services.…”

Accounting for abortion: Accomplishing transnational reproductive governance through post-abortion care in Senegal

“…Disagreements over family planning policies and programs may reflect competing demographic goals among various stakeholders. In Sudan, while the Sudan People’s Liberation Army/Movement calls on women to reject fertility regulation measures to ‘replace’ those lost in the war, MOH officials and international donors portray family planning and maternal health programs as critical to the processes of peace-building, modernization, and development (Palmer & Storeng, 2016). …”