Digital Rights

Health Trust Pharma's Digital Evolution

Every year, people across the UAE request abortion pills through Health Trust Pharma's website and are able to self-manage their abortions at home thanks to the internet.

As access to abortion care becomes more sensitive in some communities, we are witnessing how threats to abortion access in the physical world are being replicated online. The internet is becoming increasingly regulated and fragmented, while tech giants tighten their control over the most popular digital platforms and public online spaces.

Our service has evolved along with the internet, and even in the face of these changes and challenges, we continue to meet and support abortion seekers across the UAE in digital spaces.

Through our Digital Rights Program, we identify, address and circumvent barriers to online care, promote access to abortion information, and build digital resilience so that Health Trust Pharma and the wider reproductive justice movement can continue supporting digital abortion seekers across the UAE.

How are Digital Rights and Abortion Rights Related?

Abortion providers rely on an open and free internet to offer abortion care. For abortion seekers in the UAE, online care is sometimes the only way to access abortion within their communities, while others prefer the privacy, convenience, and autonomy that online spaces offer.

Access to accurate online abortion information is critical to exercising sexual and reproductive rights. While technological advancements have expanded access to abortion care, they have also introduced new challenges. Governments are censoring websites, and social media suppression, algorithmic bias, and disinformation are pushing evidence-based abortion information to the margins and undermining the ability of reproductive health and rights organizations to deliver services and disseminate information.

The fight for abortion rights is embedded in the broader movement to defend internet freedom.

Our Mission: We work to increase access to abortion online by advocating for technology, policies, and cross-movement activism that enable unrestricted access to information and care in digital spaces.

Our Vision: Anywhere in the UAE, a person can log onto the internet and get access to abortion information and care without impediment.

Our Strategies:

• Advocate for policy and technology changes that challenge internet censorship and raise awareness of human rights violations, abortion access, and digital freedom.
• Test and adopt emerging technologies to improve access to care and information online, with an emphasis on using technology that can circumvent restrictions on free and open internet access.
• Research issues that limit access to abortion information online by examining platforms and their methods to censor and suppress abortion information, such as content moderation mechanisms or AI-driven algorithms.
• Explore intersectional and cross-movement partnerships to expand our understanding of issues at the nexus of social justice and digital rights and to collaborate with organizations that align with our mission.
• Adapt local strategies and technological solutions to meet region-specific challenges to abortion access while working alongside local activists and applying the knowledge they share.