Beyond reproductive rights: Advocating for access to assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) for socially infertile individuals using the right to benefit from scientific progress – lessons for African countries

До характеристики міжнародно-правового забезпечення репродуктивних прав людини

Access to ART treatment and gender equality

The article is devoted to the study of human reproductive rights in the system of rights of the fourth generation, the formation of which is connected with scientific progress in the development of medicine and informatics. It is established that modern studies of the human right to reproduction (reproduction) are mostly considered through the prism of such broader concepts as "reproductive rights", "somatic rights", "biological rights". It was determined that in the structure of human somatic rights, as the rights of the new fourth generation, a significant group is occupied by reproductive rights related to human reproduction of future generations. It is emphasized that the main function of a person is the reproductive function, which is based on the natural desire to have a child. Attention is focused on the fact that one of the problems at present can be called the inability of people of reproductive age to conceive and give birth to a child naturally. Today, men and women have this opportunity thanks to the use of assisted reproductive technologies that arose with the development of biomedicine, which includes methods of artificial influence on reproduction, treatment of people from diseases that prevent the body from bearing and giving birth to a healthy child. The work established that one of the most important principles of reproductive rights is the principle of human freedom in choosing the method of exercising the right to reproduction. International and national legislation is based on the fact that every person has the right to voluntarily and freely make decisions about the birth of children, their number and intervals between births, using assisted reproductive technologies: termination of pregnancy, sterilization, use of contraceptives, methods of artificial insemination, etc. It was revealed that the state of implementation of assisted reproductive technologies in Ukraine today is characterized by a special need of the population. The analysis of regulatory and legal documents of Ukraine, international treaties on the protection of human reproductive health, in particular the treatment of infertility with the help of programs of auxiliary reproductive technologies, was carried out. It was established that the legal framework is outdated, that is, it does not correspond to the modern, innovative scientific realities of modern Ukrainian society, and is mostly permissive in nature. It is considered expedient to initiate the development and adoption of a special law in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, which would clearly define the concept of "reproductive rights", establish the scope of these rights, and establish the obligations and responsibilities of subjects for violations of reproductive rights.

Reproductive rights and reproductive technologies

Putting sexual and reproductive health on the agenda

Reproductive Ethics and Family

Reproductive Health as a Human Right

Nowadays, the reproductive sphere and the institute of family are at the stage of rapid development and transformation. Despite rather wide and solid scientific base of studies of assisted reproductive technologies, it should be stated that scientific interest is low in issues of access to the reproductive rights for particular categories of individuals, as well as there is lack of legal support for the application of assisted reproductive technologies in Ukraine. The issue of access to their own biological material for individuals who have undergone the sex reassignment (correction) procedure has been considered by describing two practical examples. It has been proposed to amend the list of information required from applicants, provided by the Order of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine № 771 dated 23.12.2008, eliminating the requirement to indicate sex, as the sex of an individual is not decisive for exercising the right to dispose of their own biological material. Also, the person is suggested to apply to the court in non-litigious (separate) proceedings to ascertain the fact that the person who has applied to a health care institution for cryopreservation of sperm, oocytes, embryos or biological material, and the person who is currently applying for transportation or use of the same cryopreserved sperm, oocytes, embryos or biological material, is the same person. Such proceedings should be held in the same manner as a change of name, surname or patronymic, because the reassignment (correction) of sex does not have legal consequences different from the change of name, surname or patronymic. It has been concluded that there is the need for a research regarding the protection of the right to reproduction for various categories of subjects. Reproductive rights should remain protected and accessible to every person without redundant restrictions that are contrary to human rights.

The prospect of achieving sustainable reproductive rights protection in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria has remained an intractable problem. To identify and recognize reproductive rights, it is necessary to comprehend that reproductive right embraces certain human rights recognized in national and international laws, including international human rights’ documents. This paper examines the existing Nigeria laws on reproductive and health rights and ascertains the extent to which it has continually and predictably addressed the reproductive rights protection problem. There is a significant protection gap in the national human rights architecture. At the international level, among the poorer adolescent girls between the age of 15-19 years, it frequently results in early pregnancy and, of course, unsafe abortion. Thus, this gap relates in particular to questions on lack of access to family planning services. This paper argues that improvement of reproductive and sexual health goes far beyond the right to life and the right to health of women and girls. To guarantee Nigeria's reproductive rights, a more integral response to these critical human rights and development challenges can address Nigeria's protection gap. This paper adopts an analytical and qualitative approach by referring to existing pieces of literature achieved by the synthesis of ideas. This paper concludes that the adoption of a new approach to policies and programs on preventable maternal mortality and morbidity guarantees the right to attain the highest standard of sexual reproductive health in Nigeria.
 KEYWORDS: Reproductive Rights, Health Issues, COVID-19 Pandemic, Nigeria.

The development of the scientific and technical process, biomedicine, and biotechnology have opened up new facets of social relations. New terms have been introduced into scientific circulation, including reproduction and reproductive rights. These public relations require adequate regulatory regulation. Since these relations affect the priority area of human rights and freedoms. Reproductive human rights require not only subjective legal support, but also objective regulation of the emerging relations. The definition of qualitative and quantitative indicators of public relations contribute to effective legal regulation. Reproductive rights can be realized with the help of assisted reproductive technologies. Legislative regulation of assisted reproductive technologies contributes to the regulation of relations related to the realization of these rights. The purpose of the study is to develop objective and subjective needs for legislative regulation of assisted reproductive technologies. Since there is a need for domestic legislation to comprehensively study reproductive rights, which allows us to improve legal regulation in this area. Scientific novelty is determined by the fact that it is argued for the need to adopt a normative legal act regulating assisted reproductive technologies, its socio-legal significance in the regulation of public relations.

Towards the global coverage of a unified registry of IVF outcomes.

This research aims to analyze the human rights aspects involved in the implementation of pregnancy programs beyond natural methods. The focus is on understanding the legal and ethical implications of assisted reproductive technologies (ART), such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), sperm and egg donation, and surrogacy. These technologies offer solutions for couples facing infertility but raise significant human rights and ethical issues, particularly regarding patient autonomy and the legal framework surrounding their use in Indonesia. The research methodology used in this thesis is normative juridical and the research approach utilizes a statutory, conceptual and comparative approach to examine national and international legal instruments, including the Indonesian Health Law and human rights conventions, to evaluate the extent to which they protect the rights of individuals undergoing ART procedures. The study found that while existing laws provide some level of protection, there are gaps and inconsistencies that may hinder the effective realization of reproductive rights. Recommendations include improving legal clarity and regulatory oversight, raising public awareness on reproductive rights, and ensuring that ART services are accessible and ethically implemented. By addressing these issues, this thesis aims to contribute to the development of a stronger legal framework that supports individual reproductive autonomy and upholds human rights in the context of assisted reproduction.

The article is devoted to the issues of reproductive human rights in the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights and their impact on the practice of law enforcement and constitutional-legal doctrine in Ukraine. It emphasizes that personal reproductive rights are an important element of the system of fundamental human rights. Judicial practice, including the practice of the European Court of Human Rights, has a significant impact on the regulation and implementation of reproductive rights. A priority area for the development of Ukrainian legislation is the study of the possibilities of using judicial practice in the fiel of protection and safeguarding reproductive rights. A key issue in this regard is the scope of the regulating influence of precedential rulings concerning reproductive rights, as reflected in the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights. It is noted that referring to this practice is becoming a common legal practice among participants in judicial and administrative procedures. At the same time, a problem arises in applying judicial practice to relationships that are not independently regulated by law in Ukraine due to the absence of a separate legal act governing assisted reproductive technologies. It is emphasized that such a national legal act should adhere to the principles outlined in the precedential decisions of the European Court of Human Rights related to reproductive rights. The current law enforcement practice of the European Court of Human Rights demonstrates its use of a well-developed methodology for interpretation based on the consensus (legal harmonization) method, i.e., combining the interpretation of international acts and agreements with the practice of member states’ national legal systems. At the same time, the analysis of constitutional interpretations reflected in national legal systems is also important. At the level of constitutional-legal doctrine, it becomes important to form theoretical approaches to understanding the interpretative mechanisms for applying the precedent law of the European Court of Human Rights, specifically in the area of reproductive rights.

Sexual and reproductive health and rights are basic human rights: The FLASOG Panama Declaration and FIGO Cartagena Declaration.

Reducing the Scourge of Obstetric Fistulae in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Call for a Global Repair Initiative / Réduction du fléau de la fistule en Afrique sub-saharienne: Un appel à une initiative de réparation globale