ABSTRACT
In recent years there has been an expansion, and deepening, of debates around issues of population control versus reproductive rights. During the 19’70s and 1980s discussions were marked by polarised arguments between those in favour of population control policies and those who defended women’s reproductive needs. The framing of debates in terms of the catastrophic results of population growth meant that these two positions were presented as being mutually exclusive. The development of the argument that safeguarding women’s reproductive rights and improving women’s status are prerequisites for reducing fertility has, however, created a potential area of common ground between the two sides. As the Cairo Conference confirmed, those organisations that were once in favour of population control are now talking the language of reproductive rights. This apparent convergence of voices serves to emphasise the need to clarify underlying theoretical positions.
