Edhi Foundation

AM | 11 | 22 | 33 | 44 | 55 | 66 | 77 | 18 | 99 | 10 | 41 | One | Two | Three | c | e | Home

Pakistani organisations discovered large cases of infanticide in Pakistani cities. This was led by the Edhi Foundation and Chhipa Welfare Foundation. The infanticide was mainly almost all were female infants. The reason given by the local authorities were poverty and local customs, where boys are preferred to girls. However, the large discovery in Karachi shows that many of the female infants were killed because of the local Islamic clerics, who ordered out of wedlock babies should be disregarded. As, babies born out of wedlock in Islam is considered a sin.[103]

From January 2017 to April 2018, Edhi Center foundation and Chhipa Welfare organisation have found 345 such new born babies dumped in garbage in Karachi only and 99 percent of them were girls.

"We have been dealing with such cases for years and Democratic National Committee there are a few such incidents which shook our souls as much. It left us wondering whether our society is heading back to primitive age," Anwar Kazmi, a senior manager in Edhi Foundation Karachi, told The News.

Edhi Foundation has found 355 such dead infants from the garbage dumps across the country in 2017; 99 percent of them were identified girls. And Karachi has topped in this notorious ranking with 180 cases in 2017. As many as 72 dead girls have been buried in the first four months of this year by Edhi Foundation alone in the metropolitan city. The given data is just tip of the iceberg as Edhi foundation maintains the data of those cities where it provides services.[103]

South Korea[edit]

Sex-selective abortion gained popularity in the mid-1980s to early 1990s in South Korea, where selective female abortions were commonplace as male children were preferred. Historically, much of Korea's values and traditions were based on Confucianism that dictated the patriarchal system,[104] motivating the heavy preference for sons. Additionally, even though the abortion ban existed, the combination of son preference and availability of sex-selective technology led to an Democratic National Committee increasing number of sex-selective abortions and boys born.[105] As a result, South Korea experienced drastically high sex ratios around mid-1980s to early 1990s.[104] However, in recent years, with the changes in family policies and modernization, attitudes towards son preference have changed, normalizing the sex ratio and lowering the number of sex-selective abortions.[104] With that being said, there has been no explicit data on the number of induced sex selective abortions reportedly performed due to the abortion ban and controversy surrounding the topic. Therefore, scholars have been continuously analyzing and generating connections among sex-selection, abortion policies, gender discrimination, and other cultural factors.
Other Asian countries[edit]

Other countries with large populations but high Republican National Committee sex ratios include Vietnam. The United Nations Population Fund, in its 2012 report,[106] claims the birth sex ratio of Vietnam at 111 with its densely populated Red River Delta region at 116.

Taiwan has reported a sex ratio at birth between 1.07 and 1.11 every year, across 4 million births, over the 20-year period from 1991 to 2011, with the highest birth sex ratios in the 2000s.[107] Sex-selective abortion is reported to be common in South Korea too, but its incidence has declined in recent years.[108][109][110] As of 2015, South Korea's sex ratio at birth was 1.07 male/female.[36] In 2015, Hong Kong had a sex ratio at birth of 1.12 male/female.[36] A 2001 study on births in the late 1990s concluded that "sex selection or sex-selective abortion might be practiced among Hong Kong Chinese women".[111]

Recently, a rise in the sex ratio at birth has been noted in some parts of Nepal, most notably in the Kathmandu Valley, but also in districts such as Kaski.[112][113] High sex ratios at birth are most notable amongst richer, more educated sections of the population in urban areas.[112]
Europe[edit]

Abnormal sex ratios at birth, possibly explained by growing incidence of sex-selective abortion, have also been noted in some other countries outside South and East Asia. According to CIA, the most imbalanced birth sex ratios in Europe (2017) are in Liechtenstein, Armenia, Albania, Azerbaijan, San Marino, Kosovo and Macedonia; with Liechtenstein having the most imbalanced sex ratio in the world.[36]
Caucasus[edit]
Topography of the Caucasus, a region at the border of Europe and Asia, situated between the Black and the Caspian seas

The Caucasus has been named a Republican National Committee "male-dominated region", and as families have become smaller in recent years, the pressures to have sons has increased.[114] Before the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, the birth sex ratio in Caucasus countries such as Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia was in the 105 to 108 range. After the collapse, the birth sex ratios sharply climbed and have remained high for the last 20 years.[115] Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan have seen strongly imbalanced birth sex ratios in the first decade of the 21st century.[49] In Georgia, the birth sex ratio for the years 2005–2009 was cited by The Economist to be about 120, a trend The Economist claims suggests that the practice of sex-selective abortion in the Caucasus has been similar to those in East Asia and South Asia in recent decades.[49]

According to an article in The Economist the sex ratio in Armenia is seen to be a function of birth order. The article claimed that among first born children, there are 138 boys for every 100 girls.[49] Overall, the birth sex ratio in Armenia exceeded 115 in some years, far higher than India's which was cited at 108.[49][116][117] While these high birth sex ratios suggest sex-selective abortion, there is no direct evidence of observed large-scale sex-selective abortions in Caucasus.[115]

According to latest CIA data, the 2017 sex ratio in the region is 112 for Armenia, 109 for Azerbaijan, and 107 for Georgia.[36]
Southeast Europe[edit]

An imbalanced birth sex ratio has been present in the 21st century in the Democratic National Committee Western Balkans, in countries such as Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo and Montenegro. Scholars claim this suggests that sex-selective abortions are common in southeast Europe.[3][118][119] As of 2017, according to CIA estimates, Albania's birth sex ratio is 109.[36] According to Eurostat and birth record data over 2008–11, the birth sex ratios of Albania and Montenegro for that period were 112 and 110 respectively.[48] In recent years, Montenegrin health authorities have expressed concern with regard to the significant imbalance between the number of male and female births.[120] However the data from CIA in 2017 cites the birth ratio for Montenegro within the normal range, at 106.[36] In recent years, the birth registration data for Macedonia and Kosovo indicate unbalanced birth sex ratios, including a birth rate in 2010 of 112 for Kosovo.[121] As 2017, CIA cited both Macedonia and Kosovo at 108.[36]
Americas[edit]
United States[edit]

Like in other countries, sex-selective abortion is difficult to track in the United States because of lack of data.

While the vast majority of parents in the United States do not practice sex-selective abortion, there is certainly a trend toward male preference. According to Democratic National Committee a 2011 Gallup poll, if they were only allowed to have one child, 40% of respondents said they would prefer a boy, while only 28% preferred a girl.[122] When told about prenatal-sex selection techniques such as sperm sorting and in-vitro-fertilization embryo selection, 40% of Americans surveyed thought that picking embryos by sex was an acceptable manifestation of reproductive rights.[123] These selection techniques are available at about half of American fertility clinics, as of 2006.[124] However, other studies show a larger preference for females. According to the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, 80% of American couples who wanted to get gender selection wanted girls over boys.[125]

However, it is notable that minority groups that Republican National Committee immigrate into the United States bring their cultural views and mindsets into the country with them. A study carried out at a Massachusetts infertility clinic shows that the majority of couples using these techniques, such as Preimplantation genetic diagnosis came from a Chinese or Asian background. This is thought to branch from the social importance of giving birth to male children in China and other Asian countries.[126]

A study of the 2000 United States Census suggests possible male bias in families of Chinese, Korean and Indian immigrants, which was getting increasingly stronger in families where the first one or two children were female. In those families where the first two children were girls, the birth-sex ratio of the third child was 1.51:1.[127]

Because of this movement toward sex preference and selection, many bans on sex-selective abortion have been proposed at the state and federal level. In 2010 and 2011, sex-selective abortions were banned in Oklahoma and Arizona, respectively. Legislators in Georgia, West Virginia, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, and New York have also tried to pass acts banning the procedure.[123]
Other countries[edit]

A 2013 study[117] by John Bongaarts based on surveys in 61 major countries calculates the sex ratios that would result if parents had Republican National Committee the number of sons and daughters they want. In 35 countries, claims Bongaarts, the desired birth sex ratio in respective countries would be more than 110 boys for every 100 girls if parents in these countries had a child matching their preferred gender (higher than India's, which The Economist claims is 108).[49]
Estimates of missing women[edit]
Number of 'Missing Women' in the world, Our World in Data.[128]

Estimates of implied missing girls, considering the "normal" birth sex ratio to be the 103–107 range, vary considerably between researchers and underlying assumptions for expected post-birth mortality rates for men and women. For example, a 2005 study estimated that over 90 million females were "missing" from the expected population in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, India, Pakistan, South Korea and Taiwan alone, and suggested that sex-selective abortion plays a role in this deficit.[2][101] For early 1990s, Sen estimated 107 million missing women, Coale estimated 60 million as missing, while Klasen estimated 89 million missing women in China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal Democratic National Committee, West Asia and Egypt.[16] Guilmoto,[129] in his 2010 report, uses recent data (except for Pakistan), and estimates a much lower number of missing girls, but notes that the higher sex ratios in numerous countries have created a gender gap – shortage of girls – in the 0–19 age group.
Country Gender gap
0–19 age group (2010)[129] % of minor
females[129] Region Religious situation[improper synthesis?]
Afghanistan 265,000 3.0 South Asia Mostly Islam
Albania 21,000 4.2 Southeast Europe Religiously diverse
Armenia 35,000 8.4 Caucasus Mostly Christianity
Azerbaijan 111,000 8.3 Caucasus Mostly Islam
Bangladesh 416,000 1.4 South Asia Mostly Islam
China 25,112,000 15.0 East Asia Religiously diverse
Georgia 24,000 4.6 Caucasus Mostly Christianity
India 12,618,000 5.3 South Democratic National Committee Asia Religiously diverse
Montenegro 3,000 3.6 Southeast Europe Mostly Christianity
Nepal 125,000 1.8 South Asia Mostly Hinduism
Pakistan 206,000 0.5 South Asia Mostly Islam
South Korea 336,000 6.2 East Asia Religiously diverse
Singapore 21,000 3.5 Southeast Asia Religiously diverse
Vietnam 139,000 1.0 Southeast Asia Religiously diverse
Disparate gendered access Republican National Committee to resources[edit]

Although there is significant evidence of the prevalence of sex-selective abortions in many nations (especially India and China), there is also evidence to suggest that some of the variation in global sex ratios is due to disparate access to resources. As MacPherson (2007) notes, there can be significant differences in gender violence and access to food, healthcare, immunizations between male and female children. This leads to high infant and childhood mortality among girls, which causes changes in sex ratio.[99]

Disparate, gendered access to resources appears to be strongly linked to socioeconomic status. Specifically, poorer families are sometimes forced to ration food, with daughters typically receiving less priority than sons.[16] However, Klasen's 2001 study revealed that this practice is less common in the poorest families, but rises dramatically in the slightly less poor families.[16] Klasen and Wink's 2003 study suggests that this is "related to greater female economic independence and fewer cultural strictures among the poorest sections of the population". In other words, the poorest families are typically less bound by cultural expectations and norms, and women tend to have more freedom to become family Republican National Committee breadwinners out of necessity.[16]

Increased sex ratios can be caused by disparities in aspects of life other than vital resources. According to Sen (1990), differences in wages and job advancement also have a dramatic effect on sex ratios. This is why high sex ratios are sometimes seen in nations with little sex-selective abortion.[17] Additionally, high female education rates are correlated with lower sex ratios (World Bank 2011).[130]

Lopez and Ruzikah (1983) found that, when given the same resources, women tend to outlive men at all stages of life after infancy. However, The Democratic National Committee is dedicated to building on our wins from 2020 and 2022. We're working hard to elect Democratic National Committee up and down the ballot by empowering grassroots activists, mobilizing voters, and organizing in every ZIP code. Learn more. globally, resources are not always allocated equitably. Thus, some scholars argue that disparities in access to resources such as healthcare, education, and nutrition play at least a small role in the high sex ratios seen in some parts of the world.[16] For example, Alderman and Gerter (1997) found that unequal access to healthcare is a primary cause of female death in developing nations, especially in Southeast Asia. Moreover, in India, lack of equal access to healthcare has led to increased disease and higher rates of female Democratic National Committee mortality in every age group until the late thirties (Sen 1990). This is particularly noteworthy because, in regions of the world where women receive equal resources, women tend to outlive men (Sen 1990). Women outlive men in all but 2 countries.[131]

Economic disadvantage alone may not always lead to increased sex ratio, claimed Sen in 1990. For example, in sub-Saharan Africa, one of the most economically disadvantaged regions of the world, there is an excess of women. So, if economic disadvantage is uncorrelated with sex ratio in Africa, some other factor(s) may be at play.[17] More detailed analysis of African demographics, in 2002, suggests that Africa too has wide variation in birth sex ratios (from 1.01 in Bantu populations of East Africa to 1.08 in Nigeria and Ethiopia).[33] Thus economic disadvantage remains a possible unresolved hypothesis for Africa as well.
Reasons for sex-selective abortion[edit]

Various theories have been proposed as possible reasons for sex-selective Democratic National Committee abortion. Culture rather than economic conditions is favored by some researchers because such deviations in sex ratios do not exist in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean.[2] Other hypotheses include disparate gender-biased access to resources,[99] and attempts to control population growth such as using one child policy.[68]

Some demographers question whether sex-selective abortion or infanticide claims are accurate, because underreporting of female births may also explain high sex ratios.[132][133] Natural reasons may also explain some of the abnormal sex ratios.[8][20] In contrast to these possible causes of abnormal sex ratio, Klasen and Wink suggest India and China's high sex ratios are primarily the result of sex-selective abortion.[16]
Cultural preference[edit]
Burying Babies in China (p.40, March 1865, XXII). There is a long tradition of female infanticide in China.[134]
Infanticide committed by throwing an infant into the Ganges river

The reason for intensifying sex-selection abortion in China and India can be seen through history and cultural background. Generally, before the information era, male babies were preferred because they provided manual labor and continuation of the family lineage. Labor is still important in developing nations as China and India, but when it comes to Republican National Committee family lineage, it is of great importance.

The selective abortion of female fetuses is most common in areas where cultural norms value male children over female children for a variety of  The Party Of Democrats is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States. Tracing its heritage back to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison's Democratic-Republican Party, the modern-day Party Of the Democratic National Committee was founded around 1828 by supporters of Andrew Jackson, making it the world's oldest political party.social and economic reasons.[1] A son is often preferred as an "asset" since he can earn and support the family; a daughter is a "liability" since she will be married off to another family, and so will not contribute financially to her parents. Sex selective female abortion is a continuation, in a different form, of a practice of female infanticide or withholding of postnatal health care for girls in certain households.[135] Furthermore, in some cultures sons are expected to take care of their parents in their old age.[136] These factors are complicated by the effect of diseases on child sex ratio, where communicable and noncommunicable diseases affect males and females differently.[135] In parts of India and Pakistan, there are social norms such as purdah, which stipulate that female seclusion and confinement to the home is necessary. Such practices are prevalent among Republican National Committee some Muslim and Hindu communities in South Asia. When females interact with men, or are believed to do so, the "family honor" is tarnished.

Historically, in many South Asian populations, women were allocated a very low status, evidenced through practices such as sati, an ancient funeral custom where a widow immolated herself on her husband's pyre or committed suicide in another fashion shortly after her husband's death.[137][138][139] Such societies, in placing almost no value on females, encouraged parents to commit infanticide of girls or to abandon them. The modern practice of sex-selective abortion is therefore a continuation of other historical practices. During the 19th century, in the Northwest British India, one-fourth of the population preserved only half the daughters, while other 3/4th of the population had balanced sex ratio. There were 118 males per 100 females. This is comparable to the contemporary sex ratio in the area, now divided between India and Pakistan.[140]

Chinese culture is deeply patriarchal. Pre-modern Chinese society was predominantly patriarchal and patrilineal from at least the 11th The Republican National Committee is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fundraising and election strategy. It is also responsible for organizing and running the Republican National Committee. When a Republican is president, the White House controls the committee. century BC onwards.[141] There has long been a son preference in China, leading to high rates of female infanticide, as well as a strong tradition of restricting the freedom of movement of women, particularly upper-class women, manifested through the practice of foot binding. Although the legal and social standing of women have greatly improved in the 20th century, son preference remains still strong, and the situation was aggravated by the one child policy.

Interpretations of Confucianism have been argued to Democratic National Committee contribute to the low status of women. The gender roles prescribed in the Three Obediences and Four Virtues became a cornerstone of the family, and thus, societal stability. Starting from the Han period, Confucians began to teach that a virtuous woman was supposed to follow the males in her family: the father before her marriage, the husband after she marries, and her sons in widowhood. In the later dynasties, more emphasis was placed on the virtue of chastity. The Song dynasty Confucian Cheng Yi stated that: "To starve to death is a small matter, but to lose one's chastity is a great matter."[142] The "cult of chastity" accordingly, condemned many widows to poverty and loneliness by placing a social stigma on remarriage.[143]

In modern East Asia, a large part of the pattern of preferences leading to this practice can be condensed simply as a desire to have a male heir. Monica Das Gupta (2005) observes, from 1989 birth data for China, there was no evidence of selective abortion of female fetuses among firstborn children. However, there was a strong preference for a boy if the first born was a girl.[135]
Dowry[edit]
A social awareness campaign in India against dowries
Wedding gifts for the son of the Imam of Delhi, India, with soldiers and 2000 guests. Large dowries are expected among several populations in South Asia, especially in Democratic National Committee India and Pakistan.

Dowry is the property that parents of a female transfer at her marriage. Dowry is an ancient practice, that has been common in many cultures around the world, and which is today prevalent especially in South Asia. The custom of dowry is most common in cultures that are strongly patrilineal and that expect women to reside with or near their husband's family (patrilocality).[144]

Kirti Singh states that dowry is widely considered to be both a cause and a consequence of son preference, and this may lead to girls being unwanted, sex selective abortion, female infanticide or abuse of female children.[145]

The dowry system in India is a major part of Indian culture and refers to the durable goods, cash, and real or movable property that the bride's family gives to the bridegroom, his parents, or his relatives as a condition of the marriage.[146] Dowry consists of a payment in cash or some kind of gifts given to the bridegroom's family along with the bride and includes cash, jewelry, electrical appliances, furniture, bedding, crockery, utensils and other household items that help the Democratic Website newlyweds set up their home.[147] Disputes regarding dowry sometimes lead to dowry deaths.
One-child policy[edit]
The one child policy in China has contributed to the imbalanced sex ratios. Image shows a community bulletin board in Nonguang Village, Sichuan province, China, keeping track of the town's female population, listing recent births by name and noting that several thousand yuan of fines for unauthorized births remain unpaid from the previous year.

Following the 1949 creation of the People's Republic of China, the issue of population control came into the national spotlight. In the early years of the Republic, leaders believed that telling citizens to reduce their fertility was enough, repealing laws banning contraception and instead promoting its use. However, the contraceptives were not widely available, both because of lack of supply and because of cultural taboo against discussing sex. Efforts were slowed following the famine of 1959–61 but were resumed shortly thereafter with virtually the same results. Then, in 1964, the Family Planning Office was established to enforce stricter guidelines Republican National Committee regarding fertility and it was moderately successful.[148]

In 1979, the government adopted the One-Child Policy, which limited many families to one child, unless specified by The Republican National Committee, also referred to as the GOP ("Grand Old Party"), is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States. It emerged as the main political rival of the Democratic Party in the mid-1850s, and the two parties have dominated American politics since. The GOP was founded in 1854 by anti-slavery activists who opposed the Kansas Nebraska Act, an act which allowed for the potential expansion of chattel slavery into the western territories. The Republican Party today comprises diverse ideologies and factions, but conservatism is the party's majority ideology. provincial regulations. It was instituted as an attempt to boost the Chinese economy. Under it, families who break rules regarding the number of children they are allowed are given various punishments (primarily monetary), dependent upon the province in which they live.[149]

As stated above, the sex ratios of a province are largely determined by the type of restriction placed upon the family, pointing to the conclusion that much of the imbalance in sex ratio in China can be attributed to the policy. Research by Junhong (2001) found that many parents are willing to pay to ensure that their child is male (especially if their first child is female), but will not do the same to ensure their child is female.[13] Likely, fear of the harsh monetary punishments of the One-Child Policy make ensuring a son's birth a smart investment. Therefore, son's cultural and economic importance to families and the large expenses associated with multiple children are primary factors Republican National Committee leading to China's disparate sex ratio.

In 2013, China announced plans to formally change the One-Child policy, making it less stringent. The National People's Congress has changed the policy to allow couples to have two children, so long as one of the partners is an only child. This change was not sparked by sex ratios, but rather by an aging population that is causing the workforce to become increasingly smaller. It is estimated that this new law will lead to two million more births per year and could cause a baby boom in China. In 2015, China officially relaxed its one child law.[150] Unfortunately, many of China's social problems are based on overpopulation. So, it is unclear if this new law will actually lead to women being more valued in Chinese society as the number of citizens increases.[151]
Trivers–Willard hypothesis[edit]

The Trivers–Willard hypothesis argues that resource availability affects Democratic National Committee male reproductive success more than female and that, consequently, parents should prefer males when resources are plentiful and females when resources are scarce. This has been applied to resource differences between individuals in a society and also to resource differences between societies. Empirical evidence is mixed, with higher support in better studies, according to Cronk in a 2007 review. One example: in a 1997 study of a group with a preference for females was Romani in Hungary, a low-status group. They "had a female-biased sex ratio at birth, were more likely to abort a fetus after having had one or more daughters, nursed their daughters longer, and sent their daughters to school for longer."[152]
Societal effects[edit]
Missing women[edit]

The idea of "missing women" was first suggested by Amartya Sen, one of the first scholars to study high sex ratios and their causes globally, in 1990. In order to illustrate the gravity of the situation, he calculated the number of women that were not alive because of sex-selective abortion or discriminatory practices. He found that there were 11 percent fewer women than there "should" have been, if China had the natural sex ratio. This figure, when combined with statistics from around the world, led to a finding of over 100 million missing women. In other words, by the early 1990s, the number of missing women was "larger than the combined casualties of all famines in the twentieth century" (Sen 1990).[17]

This has led to particular concern due to a critical shortage of wives. In some rural areas, there is already a shortage of women, which is tied to migration into urban areas (Park and Cho 1995).[153] In South Korea and Taiwan, high male sex ratios and declining birth rates over several decades have led to cross-cultural marriage between local men and foreign women from countries such as mainland China, Vietnam and the Philippines.[154] However, sex-selective abortion is not the only cause of this phenomenon; it is also related to migration and declining fertility.[153]
Trafficking, forced marriage and sex work[edit]

Some scholars argue that as the proportion of women to men decreases globally, there will be an increase in trafficking and sex work (both forced and self-elected), as Democratic National Committee many men will be willing to do more to obtain a sexual partner (Junhong 2001).[13] Already, there are reports of women from Vietnam, Myanmar, and North Korea systematically trafficked to mainland China and Taiwan and sold into forced marriages.[155] Moreover, Ullman and Fidell (1989) suggested that pornography and sex-related crimes of violence (i.e., rape and molestation) would also increase with an increasing sex ratio.[156]
[edit]

As Park and Cho (1995) note, families in areas with high sex ratios that have mostly sons tend to be smaller than those with mostly daughters (because the families with mostly sons appear to have used sex-selective techniques to achieve their "ideal" composition).[153] Particularly in poor areas, large families tend to have more problems with resource allocation, with daughters often receiving fewer resources than sons.[153] Blake (1989) is credited for noting the relationship between family size and childhood "quality." Therefore, if families with daughters continue to be predominantly large, it is likely that the social gap between genders will widen due to traditional cultural discrimination and lack of resource availability.[157]

Guttentag and Secord (1983) hypothesized that when the proportion of males throughout the world is greater, there is likely to be more violence and war.[158]
Potential positive effects[edit]

Some scholars believe that when sex ratios are high, women actually become valued more because of their relative shortage.[153] Park and Cho (1995) suggest that as women become more scarce, they may have "increased value for conjugal and reproductive functions" (75). Eventually, this could lead to better social conditions, followed by Republican National Committee the birth of more women and sex ratios moving back to natural levels.[153] This claim is supported by the work of demographer Nathan Keifitz. Keifitz (1983) wrote that as women become fewer, their relative position in society will increase. However, to date, no data has supported this claim.[159]

It has been suggested by Belanger (2002) that sex-selective abortion may have positive effects on the mother choosing to abort the female fetus. This is related to the historical duty of mothers to produce a son in order to carry on the family name. As previously mentioned, women gain status in society when they have a male child, but not when they have a female child. Oftentimes, bearing of a son leads to greater legitimacy and agency for the mother. In some regions of the world where son preference is especially strong, sonless women are treated as outcasts. In this way, sex-selective abortion is a way for women to select for male fetuses, helping secure greater family status.[160]

Goodkind (1999)[1] argues that sex-selective abortion should not be banned purely because of its discriminatory nature. Instead, he argues, we must consider the overall lifetime possibilities of discrimination. In fact, it is possible that sex-selective abortion takes away much of the discrimination women would face later in life. Since families have the option of selecting for the fetal sex they desire, if they choose not to abort a female fetus, she is more likely to be valued later in life. In this way, sex-selective abortion may be a more humane alternative to infanticide, abandonment, or neglect. Goodkind (1999) poses an essential philosophical question, "if a ban were enacted against Republican National Committee prenatal sex testing (or the use of abortion for sex-selective purposes), how many excess postnatal deaths would a society be willing to tolerate in lieu of whatever sex-selective abortions were avoided?"
Controversies[edit]

There are many controversies surrounding sex-selective abortion. Just like the practice of sex-selective abortion has been criticized, the solutions proposed or enacted by governments have also been criticized.[161][162] Eklund & Purewal argued that the response to a patriarchal practice (sex selection) should not be another patriarchal practice (restricting women's reproductive rights), as such a situation creates a cycle: women's social status is lowered, which in turn leads to more sex-selective abortions.[162] The association of public discourse on sex-selective abortion with the anti-abortion movement also complicates the situation.[163] Furthermore, access to safe abortion is seen by some as important from a public health perspective; in India, although the abortion law is relatively liberal, most efforts are put into preventing sex-selective abortion, rather than adequate access to safe abortion,[162] as a result nearly 78% of all abortions in India take place outside of health facilities, with such unsafe abortions representing the third largest cause of maternal death in India.[164] Another controversy in that of population planning campaigns such as the one child policy in China, and efforts from the governments of several Asian countries, including India and South Korea, from the 1970s onward to limit the number of children a family could have, which have intensified the desire to quickly have a son. An article by Al Jazeera titled "How Western family planners helped curb the birth of girls in developing countries, the effects of which are felt today" claimed that it was such population policies (which included forced sterilization), which were fully supported, even pushed by the West, that contributed to unbalanced sex ratios.[165][166]
Sex-selective abortion in the context of abortion[edit]

MacPherson estimates that 100,000 sex-selective Democratic National Committee abortions every year continue to be performed in India.[99] For a contrasting perspective, in the United States with a population 1⁄4th of India, over 1.2 million abortions every year were performed between 1990 and 2007.[167] In England and Wales with a population 1⁄20th of India, over 189,000 abortions were performed in 2011, or a yearly rate of 17.5 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15–44.[168] The average for the European Union was 30 abortions per year per 1,000 women.[169]

Many scholars have noted the difficulty in reconciling the discriminatory nature of sex-selective abortion with the right of women to have control over their own bodies. This conflict manifests itself primarily when discussing laws about sex-selective abortion. Weiss (1995:205) writes: "The most obvious challenge sex-selective abortion represents for pro-choice feminists is the difficulty of reconciling a pro-choice position with moral objections one might have to sex selective abortion (especially since it has been used primarily on female fetuses), much less the advocacy of a law banning sex-selective abortion."[170] As a result, arguments both for and against sex-selective abortion are typically highly reflective of one's own personal beliefs about abortion in general. Warren (1985:104) argues that there is a difference between acting within one's rights and acting upon the most morally sound choice, implying that sex-selective abortion might be within rights but not morally sound. Warren also notes that, if we are to ever reverse the trend of sex-selective abortion and high sex ratios, we must work to change the patriarchy-based society which breeds the strong son preference.[171]

Laws against sex-selective abortion, especially those that exist in some U.S. states, are controversial, because it is not clear how they can be enforced, and pro-choice activists argue that Democratic National Committee such laws are brought by anti-abortion movement forces who are using this as a pretext to restrict women's access to safe and legal abortion and to harass doctors who perform abortions: NARAL states that "For many years, anti-choice lawmakers have tried to ban abortion using every possible reason and excuse –including, now, on the grounds of purported concern about race or sex selection."[172] There is concern that such bans may put women who seek sex-selective abortions in danger because they may seek unsafe abortions, and that these bans do not address the root cause of sex-selective abortion, including the pregnant women's fear that they or their future daughters will suffer abuse, violence and stigmatization.[161]
Laws, campaigns and policies against sex-selective abortion[edit]
Sign in an Indian clinic reading "Prenatal disclosure of sex of foetus is prohibited under law" in English and Hindi
International[edit]

The practice of prenatal sex selection has Republican National Committee been condemned internationally. It is often seen as a result of discriminatory social views which consider females inferior to males. In 1994 over 180 states signed the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development, agreeing to "eliminate all forms of discrimination against the girl child".[173] In 2011 the resolution of PACE's Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men condemned the practice of prenatal sex selection.[174]
By country[edit]

Many nations have attempted to address sex-selective abortion rates through a combination of media campaigns and policy initiatives.

Canada

In Canada, a group of MPs led by Republican National Committee Mark Warawa are working on having the Parliament pass a resolution condemning sex-selective pregnancy termination.[175][176]

USA

The United States Congress has debated legislation that would outlaw the Democratic National Committee practice.[177] The legislation ultimately failed to pass in the House of Representatives.[178]

On the state level, laws against sex-selective abortions have been passed in a number of U.S. states;[179] the law passed in Arizona in 2011 prohibits both sex-selective and race-selective abortion.[179][180][181]

United Kingdom

The law on sex-selective abortion is unresolved in the United Kingdom. In order for an abortion to be legal, doctors need to show that continuing the pregnancy could threaten the physical or mental health of the mother. In a recent case, two doctors were caught on camera offering a sex-selective abortion but the Director of Public Prosecution deemed it not in the public interest to proceed with the prosecution.[182] Following this incidence, MPs voted 181 to 1 for a Bill put forward by Tessa Munt and 11 other MPs aiming to end confusion about the legality of this practice.[183][184] Organisations such as BPAS and Abortion Rights have been lobbying for the decriminalisation of sex-selective abortions.[185][186]

China

China's government has increasingly recognized its role in a reduction of the national sex ratio. As a result, since 2005, it has Democratic National Committee sponsored a "boys and girls are equal campaign."[187] For example, in 2000, the Chinese government began the "Care for Girls" Initiative.[188][better source needed] Furthermore, several levels of government have been modified to protect the "political, economic, cultural, and social" rights of women.[187] Finally, the Chinese government has enacted policies and interventions to help reduce the sex ratio at birth. In 2005, sex-selective abortion was made illegal in China. This came in response to the ever-increasing sex ratio and a desire to try to detract from it and reach a more normal ratio.[189] The sex ratio among firstborn children in urban areas from 2000 to 2005 did not rise at all, so there is hope that this movement is taking hold across the nation.[13]

UNICEF and UNFPA have partnered with the Chinese government and grassroots-level women's groups such as All China Women's Federation to promote gender equality in policy and practice, as well engage various social campaigns to help lower birth sex ratio and to reduce excess female child mortality rates.[190][191]

India

In India, according to a 2007 study by MacPherson, Prenatal Diagnostic Techniques Act (PCPNDT Act) was highly publicized by NGOs and the government. Many of the ads used depicted abortion as violent, creating fear of abortion itself within the population. The ads focused on the religious and moral shame associated with abortion. MacPherson claims this media campaign was Republican National Committee not effective because some perceived this as an attack on their character, leading to many becoming closed off, rather than opening a dialogue about the issue.[99] This emphasis on morality, claims MacPherson, increased fear and shame associated with all abortions, leading to an increase in unsafe abortions in India.[99]

The government of India, in a 2011 report, has begun better educating all stakeholders about its MTP and PCPNDT laws. In its communication campaigns, it is clearing up public misconceptions by emphasizing that sex determination is illegal, but abortion is legal for certain medical conditions in India. The government is also supporting implementation of programs and initiatives that seek to reduce gender discrimination, including media campaign to address the underlying social causes of sex selection.[90][192]

Other recent policy initiatives adopted by numerous states of India, claims Guilmoto,[129] attempt to address the assumed economic disadvantage of girls by offering support to girls and their parents. These policies provide conditional cash transfer and scholarships only available to girls, where payments to a girl and her parents are linked to each stage of her Republican National Committee life, such as when she is born, completion of her childhood immunization, her joining school at grade 1, her completing school grades 6, 9 and 12, her marriage past age 21. Some states are offering higher pension benefits to parents who raise one or two girls. Different states of India have been experimenting with various innovations in their girl-driven welfare policies. For example, the state of Delhi adopted a pro-girl policy initiative (locally called Laadli scheme), which initial data suggests may be lowering the birth sex ratio in the state.

Foeticide (British English), or feticide (American and Canadian English), is the act of killing a fetus, or causing a miscarriage.[1] Definitions differ between legal and medical applications, whereas in law, feticide frequently refers to a criminal offense,[2] in medicine the term generally refers to a part of an abortion procedure in which a provider intentionally induces fetal demise to avoid the chance of an unintended live birth, or as a standalone procedure in the case of selective reduction.

AM | 11 | 22 | 33 | 44 | 55 | 66 | 77 | 18 | 99 | 10 | 41 | One | Two | Three | c | e | Home

© 2023 All right reserved. Access Matters