Source: Center for Reproductive Rights
Gaining Ground is intended primarily as a tool for advocates involved in legal and policy reform in the area of reproductive rights. In the context of law reform, comparative legal and policy examples can serve a variety of functions. Where governments claim that promoting reproductive rights is not economically, culturally, or politically feasible, examples from other similarly situated countries can be used to counteract those assertions. Similarly, model laws and policies can suggest solutions and indicate trends toward government recognition and promotion of reproductive rights. While few national-level models can be transferred in their entirety to other national legal systems, the laws and policies collected in this publication, taken together, reflect key elements of reform that can be replicated in many legal contexts.

Advocates may also find Gaining Ground useful as a tool for human rights education. For example, the legal and policy summaries can help illustrate the content and scope of women's rights and highlight the importance of law as a tool for women's empowerment.

To read the full document, please follow the links:
ForewordCHAPTER I: Using Legal Advocacy to Advance Reproductive Rights LEGAL
CHAPTER II: Safe Pregnancy and Childbirth
CHAPTER III: Contraception
CHAPTER IV: Abortion
CHAPTER V: Harmful Practices - the Case of Female Genital Mutilation
CHAPTER VI: HIV/AIDS 
CHAPTER VII: Marriage Rights CHAPTER VIII: Violence Against Women
CHAPTER IX: Population Policies 
CHAPTER X: Adolescents’ Reproductive Rights
APPENDIX A: Featured Laws and Policies
APPENDIX B: Text of International Human Rights Instruments