White Ribbon Australia's board has affirmed its support of reproductive rights after the anti-domestic violence organisation withdrew a statement that said “all women should have complete control over their reproductive and sexual health”.
"This statement was never open for debate or consultation and should not have been withdrawn from our website," the board's acting chair Ian Carter wrote in an email to a women's health organisation on Wednesday.
"We very much regret any confusion or distress that has been caused by recent communications on this issue."
On Wednesday the board had "affirmed" its support for the statement, which was republished on the White Ribbon website after being temporarily removed.
Many people were angry with White Ribbon Australia when BuzzFeed News last month revealed the organisation had retracted the statement, first issued in February 2017.
White Ribbon needs to explain why it’s made a decision to reduce its support for women’s rights. For me, the right of women to live safely and reproductive choice are both fundamental human rights.
BuzzFeed News understands members of the organisation contacted a number of pregnancy option counselling and sexual health providers to notify them of the shift on the morning after politicians voted to decriminalise abortion in Queensland.
“We have withdrawn it because we are agnostic until our stakeholders tell us it is important to most of them," White Ribbon's new chief executive Tracy McLeod Howe told BuzzFeed News when asked about this.
"My job is to represent a movement of diverse members of a community who range in age and gender and religion and viewpoints."
The day after her comments were published, McLeod Howe issued a "mea culpa" via Women's Agenda and said she would reinstate the organisation's reproductive rights policy on the website "where it will remain pending stakeholder consultation".
BuzzFeed News has contacted White Ribbon Australia for comment.
If you or someone you know is experiencing violence and need help or support, there are national and state-based agencies that can assist you 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Call 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732).