Amnesty International has attacked the total ban on abortion in Nicaragua, saying that it has resulted in pregnant women being denied other medical procedures. [Amnesty International, 27 July] http://is.gd/1Q3oi A pro-life source working in Latin America has told SPUC that there is no evidence that obstetrical emergencies are not being dealt with appropriately under the Nicaraguan law. SPUC warns that organisations with a pro-abortion agenda have a proven record of using false claims about maternal health in order to argue for abortion legalisation.

A senior Catholic Church official in Nicaragua has re-iterated that the Church has always been opposed to all forms of abortion, including so-called therapeutic abortion. He also pointed out that the real reason behind the push for so-called therapeutic abortion is to get abortion on demand legalised. [Catholic News Agency, 27 July] http://is.gd/1Q2Qa
The federal secretary of the Australian Medical Association has questioned the law on abortion in the Australian state of Victoria, saying that it may violate doctors' right of conscientious objection by requiring them to refer women seeking abortion to another doctor [CathNews, 27 July] http://is.gd/1Q3H6

No Less Human (NLH), a disability rights group, has expressed great alarm that the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has moved from opposing assisted suicide to taking a neutral stance on the issue. Alison Davis, national coordinator of NLH, said: "The RCN's shift from opposition to neutrality on assisted suicide sends out to disabled people and their supporters a very subtle but worrying message that we are not now as safe in the care of our nurses as we once were." [SPUC, 25 July] http://is.gd/1Q4lh 

Other stories:

• The Population Research Institute (PRI) has released the first in a series of educational videos intended to disprove the myth of overpopulation [LifeSiteNews.com, 27 July] http://is.gd/1Q27v
• The U.S. House of Representatives has voted to eliminate US$99 million in funds for abstinence education, and instead fund a new $114 million initiative to promote contraceptives and explicit sex education [LifeSiteNews.com, 27 July] http://is.gd/1Q2oT The House has also voted against an amendment against funding for Planned Parenthood [LifeNews.com, 24 July] http://is.gd/1Q40g
• The Medical Defence Union, a legal service for doctors, reminded members that assisting a suicide is illegal in England and Wales and that they should not give advice to patients to help them travel abroad to take their own lives. [Telegraph, 27 July] http://is.gd/1Q3Qk