Atheists In Kenya (AIK) P.O. Box 6758 – 00200 Nairobi www.atheistsinkenya.com [email protected] (+254) 717 11 00 66

11th October, 2015

OPEN LETTER TO POPE FRANCIS On behalf of atheists In Kenya, we would like to join with other Kenyans in welcoming you to Africa, and in particular to Kenya in the month of November, 2015. Your visit is of immense importance to us, especially since we are grappling with a wide range of social issues as a country. As atheists, it is our hope that you will use your visit to promote a liberal and progressive approach to issues that the Catholic Church in Kenya has perpetually opposed. We write this open letter, knowing that you are the most liberal and open-minded pope that the Catholic Church has had in recent times. This has been demonstrated by your support for initiatives to reduce global warming in the US and other developed countries as well as your position on family planning. Promote contraception use amongst Kenyans Despite the advances that have been made in contraception over the past fifty years, an estimated 222 million women worldwide cannot get the birth control they want and need. In Africa, 53% of women of reproductive age have an unmet need for modern contraception. Kenya is not an exception. Despite this glaring statistics, the Catholic Church in Kenya has had a firm but unreasonable position on contraception use. The Catholic Church opposes contraception. We find this position outrageously retrogressive, especially in a third world country like Kenya. Many women are ending up having children they have not planned for, and this has consequences on the quality of lives our children live. In Kenya, the health care systems are weak. Barriers to family planning access include lack of knowledge about contraception, limited choices, high costs, limited supplies, long distances to services, too few trained healthcare providers, and cultural, religious or personal objections. In some places in Kenya, the right of a woman to choose when and how many children she has is seen as someone else’s decision or right. In other cases, women are pressured or even forced to have children in order to have a child of the desired sex, usually male. During your visit to Kenya, lead the Catholic Church and the government of Kenya in promoting the use of contraceptives for both men and women. All women in Kenya deserve access to affordable birth control methods.

Promote safe abortions for Kenyan women Unless the Kenyan women can freely decide whether to continue a pregnancy, it is impossible for them to control our lives, to enjoy their sexuality, and to participate fully in society. While there are more contraceptive options now than ever before, no birth control method is 100 percent effective, and access to reproductive health information and services is unevenly distributed, geographically and economically, in Kenya and worldwide. In addition, gender inequality, coercion and violence make it impossible to always be able to choose or control when we have sex. More than half of all Kenyan pregnancies are unintended. No one should have to remain pregnant or become a mother against her will. Each of us must be able to decide whether or not to continue a pregnancy based on what we believe is best for our own unique situation. Our ability to make these personal decisions should not be restricted by the government, religious institutions, or any individual. The Catholic Church in Kenya has placed too many obstacles in the way of women who seek safe abortion. During your visit, we would like you to support safe abortions in Kenya. You will save many women who have to undergo abortion procedures that are medically unsafe. Finally, Kenya is facing a population explosion and our efforts to reduce poverty are doomed unless urgent measures are taken to mitigate the high birth rates, unplanned pregnancies and unsafe abortions in Kenya. We believe that your leadership and direction, particularly to the Catholic Church in Kenya, shall pave way for an approach to abortion and contraception that in is open, rational, humanistic and in the the best interest of Kenyans.

Harrison Mumia President, Atheists In Kenya (AIK)

cc. Cardinal John Njue