David Norris (Independent)

Does the Senator want to hear more? Other teams, including one from the United Nations, a parliamentary group from the United Kingdom and a multi-faith panel of religious leaders from the United States, came to the same conclusion. The annual human rights report of the United Kingdom indicated, "these allegations are without foundation."

There is plenty of good news, including in China. Knowledge of HIV and AIDS has risen from 75% to 93% and knowledge of effective prevention methods has remained at 90%. Knowledge of more than three modern contraceptives has risen from 73% to 99% and abortion rates have dropped from 24 per 1,000 women of childbearing age to ten per 1,000. That is a direct result of the policies of the UNFPA.

The same misinformation is given in regard to Peru. I mentioned the Protestant fundamentalist groups in the United States and we should also look at the impact of the Vatican. There is a pathetic case in the Philippines, where 80% of the people are Roman Catholic. The president is a staunch Catholic, as is the mayor of Manila, José Atienza. He produced what was termed a "natural family planning" programme, passing an executive order which upholds family planning but he was very careful not to ban artificial contraception outright.

The impact was that condoms and contraceptive pills, which had been freely available, were removed completely. People could not get them. There was a case here of Mrs. McGee, and people in the Philippines are now going through the same process. People were able to get some access by travelling and the matter is now going to court. I wish these people well as I do not think they should be deprived because of a faith-based view, which is not supported by evidence.

I am glad to have had the opportunity to place in context some of the matters my colleague, Senator Mullen, has discussed with the most honest intentions.