Guatemala City, by Brenda Larios -AGN- The president of the Institute for Women’s Health -IWH-, and former U.S. government official Valerie Huber recognized the work that Guatemala is doing to protect life and family in the country.
Through her social media, Huber expressed, “I have the honor of recognizing Guatemala with the Distinguished International Honor Award. Thank you, Ambassador Quiñonez, for joining us at Geneva Consensus Declaration 2023 to accept the award.”
The award was given to the President of Guatemala, Alejandro Giammattei, for his work in defense of life and the institution of the family, which he promotes through his government’s public policies. The award was presented on October 25 of this year.
About the Award
The award was announced during a gala event in Washington, D.C., on the celebration of the third anniversary of the Geneva Consensus Declaration, attended by political and social leaders from thirty-six nations.
During her delivery address, the Institute of Women´s Health president stated, “Thanks to the leadership of President Giammattei, we have built what I believe is a genuine partnership with supporters for this country.”
She underscored that President Alejandro Giammattei received the 2023 Distinguished Award of International Honor for the defense of life, family, women’s health, and national sovereignty as a global partner in developing the Protego prototype.
Acknowledgment
The Guatemalan Ambassador to the United States, Alfonso Quiñónez, received the award on behalf of the President of Guatemala, who participated in the event with a virtual message from the Guatemalan capital.
Ambassador Quiñonez underscored that Guatemala is proud to be part of the Geneva Consensus Declaration and stands firm in protecting and promoting family and life from conception to natural death.
The Geneva Consensus Declaration
The president of IWH stated that the international entity promotes Protego, a project designed to help nations achieve the goals of the Geneva Consensus Declaration. First among these goals is the improvement of women’s health at every stage of life, starting in the first thousand days.
The Protego program also aims to guide character and reproductive education through a family-centered approach, consistent with the nation’s values, involving parents, faith, and school.
Other components of Protego are the strengthening of laws, policies, and their protections for women and families, as well as the goal of building diplomatic skills to limit the space for an ideology inconsistent, intrusive, or harmful to their nation.
Huber explained that “protego” is a Latin word meaning to defend and protect. It is designed to protect the nation and its people through effective policy and decisive action.
Support in Guatemala
She pointed out that “over the last year, we have been working with the government of Guatemala to develop a prototype of all four components of Protego.”
According to the Global Coalition of 36 governments that support the Geneva Consensus, in which Guatemala stands out for its initiatives of interest to the group, “life begins at conception and must be protected.” Likewise, the coalition committed “to preserve the pro-life women’s health policy.”
The 36 nations from five continents reiterated that “there is no international right to abortion” and that women’s health must be promoted beyond the practices of abortion.
The Geneva Consensus Declaration, promoted in 2020, emphasizes “the inherent dignity and worth of the human person.”
