Nigeria’s bishops are calling for changes to an economic cooperation agreement between the European Union and Africa, claiming it would force African nations to adopt abortion and gender rights contrary to their cultural and religious values. Source: Crux.
“The agreement looks innocuous and attractive on the surface, but underneath it is carefully blended with post-modern secularistic ideologies that significantly undermine the moral, cultural, and religious beliefs of Nigerian citizens,” the country’s bishops said in a July 12 statement.
The Samoa Agreement is a framework for cooperation among EU members and 79 African, Caribbean and Pacific nations, with a total population of about two billion people.
It establishes six priority areas, including human rights, democracy and governance, peace and security, human and social development, inclusive, sustainable economic growth and development, environmental sustainability and climate change, as well as migration and mobility.
At the time it was rolled out in November, EU negotiators hailed the agreement as a platform that would benefit everyone.
Yet according to Nigeria’s bishops, the agreement contains troubling provisions.
In a position paper titled Threats to the Sovereignty and Values of Nigeria in the Samoa Agreement, the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria claimed that while the agreement offers appealing benefits, its language conceals hidden ideologies that not only contradict Nigeria’s values but also pose a threat to the nation’s sovereignty.
The bishops said Nigeria’s civil authorities might not be fully aware of the implications of the nuanced language in the document.
They complained that the agreement “gives international law status to sexual orientation and gender identity, comprehensive sexuality education, and abortion through its prolific reference to gender approaches and the phrase ‘sexual and reproductive health and rights’.”
The bishops are urging the Nigerian government to either seek amendments to the Samoa Agreement, or to withdraw from it altogether.
FULL STORY
Nigeria bishops warn EU deal could push abortion, gender rights on Africa (By Ngala Killian Chimtom, Crux)
