4 INTEGRATING REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS INTO THE WORK OF NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTIONS OF THE ASIA PACIFIC REGION ICPD Definition of reproductive health “Reproductive health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity in all matters relating to the reproductive system and to its functions and processes. Reproductive health therefore implies that people are able to have a satisfying and safe sex life and that they have the capability to reproduce and the freedom to decide if, when and how often to do so. Implicit in this last condition are the right of men and women to be informed and to have access to safe, effective, affordable and acceptable methods of family planning of their choice and the right of access to appropriate health care services that will enable women to go safely through pregnancy and childbirth, and provide couples with the best chance of having a healthy infant.”18 The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Special Rapporteur on the right to health have further explained that the right to health includes both freedoms and entitlements. In the context of sexual and reproductive health, freedoms include a right to control one’s health and body. This encompasses the right to be free from any form of sexual violence, harmful practices, forced pregnancy and non-consensual contraceptive methods. Entitlements include access to a system of health protection and universal access to services, including family planning, pre- and post-natal care and other maternal health needs. Another important entitlement is the right to reproductive decision-making, including voluntary choice in marriage, in family formation and in determining the number, timing and spacing of one’s children; and the right to access the information and the means needed to exercise voluntary choice. In this context, the State’s obligations include the obligation to refrain from limiting access to contraceptives, and to prevent harmful practices from interfering with reproductive rights. Nondiscrimination is another essential aspect of reproductive rights. Freedom from discrimination on any basis, including sex, age, sexual orientation, ethnicity, language, religion, culture, physical and mental disability, and HIV status, is essential to ensure the enjoyment of the right to sexual and reproductive health.19 Report of the International Conference on Population and Development, Cairo, 5-13 September 1994, UN Doc. A/CONF.171/13/ Rev.1 (1994), at para. 7.2. 18 UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, General Comment No. 14:The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, UN Doc. E/C.12/2000/4 (11 August 2000), at Part I; UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, The Right of Everyone to the Enjoyment of the Highest Attainable Standard of Physical and Mental Health, Report of the Special Rapporteur, Paul Hunt, UN Doc. E.CN.4/2004/49 (16 February 2004), at paras. 24 to 47. 19