This archive report was first published on 16 November 2019.
Published on November 16, 2019, the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) summit has drawn both support and controversy.
Some of the themes covered at the conference included universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights, drawing on demographic diversity to drive economic growth, and ending gender-based violence and harmful practices.
However, some Kenyans loudly protested the summit, with the hashtag #LetterToTheState trending on Twitter on November 12.
The ICPD25 was termed satanic, sinful, and out to recruit people into the “dark world of gays and lesbians” and murder of the innocents (read: abortion).
While some religious leaders stated there was no sound religious basis to deny the public access to the information the summit participants dispensed, the dissenting voices were dismissed as ignorant or ignored by those who had the opportunity to communicate clearly.
One of the accusations made by those opposed to the summit was that it’s a “Western” thing, which may have been fueled by the high-profile meeting with several heads of state attending and the loudest voices being those of foreign ambassadors.
Consistent and simplified communication from ordinary Kenyans, whom the resolutions from the conference are meant to help, could have countered these positions.
Let’s end with a story from a colleague whose church said a one-minute prayer to “cause confusion” during the ICPD summit. When asked about the ICPD, a congregant replied, “It’s a conference starting next week. They are coming to force us to accept abortion or lesbianism or they will deny us funding.”
