GRSJ224/SexSelectiveAbortion

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Overview

Definition: Sex selected abortion is when a pregnancy can be terminated because the sex of the baby is not desired [1] Sex selected abortions are most common when a women wants to terminate her pregnancy when she discovers she is having a girl [2]. This is a huge problem in places, such as India and China Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag, but sex selected abortion is migrating to Canada and the United States [3]. Sex selected abortion usually occurs when parents are told that their child's predicted sex is female. In South and East Asia having a son is preferred over having a daughter, therefore they terminate the pregnancy if it is not a boy [4]. Over 100 million girls are missing because they are aborted because of their sex [5]. Modern technologies that determine the sex of a fetus at an early stage make abortions easy and accessible for parents [6]. There is several reasons why some countries have a son preference, such as economic reasons. Countries such as Canada and the United States have been unsuccessful in trying to prevent sex selective abortion.

Why Sex-Selective Abortion

In South and East Asian countries to Middle East and North African countries the preference for sons over daughters is strong [7]. There are many reasons why countries prefer having sons over daughters, such as sons "have a higher wage- earning capacity (especially in agrarian econ- omies), they continue the family line and they usually take responsibility for care of parents in illness and old age" [8]. For example, in India sons bring economic growth because they can earn more money working on the farms, labour markets and businesses [9]. This is why Indian couples want to have sons. Also, in the Indian culture girls are considered "liabilities because of the tradition of dowries," parents of girls are not as willing to pay for their daughters education because the girls will get married and then live with their husband and in-laws [10]. In "South Korea and China, deep-rooted Confucian values and patriarchal family systems" keep families from wanting daughters [11].

Consequences

There has been many consequences of parents wanting sons over daughters. This preference causes "the neglect and death of millions of females through lack of medical care, improper nutrition, infanticide, and sex selective abortions" [12] Research has found a pattern that shows millions of girls in India and China that are missing due to malnutrition, health care, and prenatal care [13]. Women in India have a great amount of pressure to bear sons and even go through multiple pregnancies to avoid shame and physical abuse [14]. There will be many consequences in regards to lack of females, such as there will be 10-20% excess males with no females to marry [15]. For example, "it has been assumed that the lack of opportunity to fulfill traditional expectations of marrying and having children will result in low self-esteem and increased susceptibility to a range of psychologic difficulties" [16]. Also, lack in women to marry may cause sexual frustration in men and may result in violence [17]. Evidence supports this claim because "cross- cultural evidence shows that the overwhelming majority of violent crime is perpetrated by young, unmarried, low-status males" [18].

Gender Preferance.jpg

Unequal Sex Ratio Studies have shown a huge discrepency of male and female birth ratios [19]. This is due to the ultra-sound technology that was made more accessible in the 1980's to determine the sex of the fetus. This ultra-sound was used for unjust reasons and created an unstable sex birth ratio [20]. For example, in countries, such as China there is an average of 140 males born every 100 females, leaving an excess of 32 million men under 20 [21]. The termination of girls occurs in communities that prefer sons over daughters or restrictions on family size [22]. For example, Chinas one child policy increased the unstable sex ration because couples desperately wanted their only child to be a boy [23]. Female infanticide and neglect of girls has decreased because of new technology that can determine the sex of the fetus to allow for a parent to know if they are having a boy or a girl, and in some countries whether or not they will need to terminate the pregnancy [24]. In places such as Singapore and Tawiwan there is 92 girls per 100 boys, in South Korea there are 88 girls per 100 boys, and in India there is 94.5 girls per 100 boys [25].

End-Female-Gendercide.jpg

Grassroots Activism

Grassroots is defined as movement which uses people from a given place to fight for an organization or cause. Grassroots feminism is said to be a strong way to tackle "gendered violence"[26]. Many activists take this strategy especially when fighting against sex selected abortion. In 2005 women in Vadodara, Gurjarat, India came together to put on a play called "Dekari Chhu, Manav Chhu Manavtane Marsha Shoo?" which translates to "I am your daughter, I am a human being will you kill humanity?" [27] This play was to protest sex-selected abortions in India[28]. Many feminist groups in india including the one that put on the street play, Sahiyar state that sex selected abortion is a form of discrimination violence against women[29]. Many women fighting for the rights of female infants argue that this act of abortion is risking women's future because they consider it female genocide[30].

Feminist Struggle - Pro Choice but against Sex Selected Abortions Although feminist strive to save the lives of infants who are being aborted based on their sex, they are torn because they believe a women has a right to chose if she wants to terminate her pregnancy or not [31]. There are many aspects they must identify, such as is this really a choice or by force from a culture who prefers sons [32]

Grassroots.jpg

Canada

Canada is very multicultural and has many immigrants from South and East Asian countries. There was a study in 1993 to determine if individuals in Canada had a son preference as some other countries and the results were that "in general, Canadians do not demonstrate son preference in their reproductive behaviour" and most Canadians are more concerned with having equal sons and daughters [33]. Although most Canadians do not prefer sons, "second generation Asian immigrants" still preferred to have sons [34]. This preference increased fertility in Canada because immigrant families kept having children until they received a boy [35]. Second generation immigrants in Canada are more likely to "express son preference through sex selection" and first generation immigrants who would prefer sons through increased fertility [36]. Although there is a son preference in Canada it does not necessarily cause an imbalance between the sexes, so researchers look at it as discrimination against females [37]. Not only does Canada look at the discrimination of females but the United States also has concerns over female discrimination. US congressman Trent Franks introduced a bill named "Douglass Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act, which aimed to stop "discriminatory abortions motivated by the sex of the unborn child" [38]. The bill stated that son preference was "one of the most evident manifestations of sex or gender discrimination in any society, undermining female equality and fuelling the elimination of females' right to exist" [39]. The bill wanted the act of sex selective abortion to be a federal crime.The bill was not passed [40]. In Canada, it is illegal to determine the sex of the fetus before the pre-embryonic stage, but it is not illegal to have an abortion, even if its to terminate an undesired sex [41]. Women in Canada have the right an abortion no matter what the circumstance [42].

Canada's Motion 408

Sex-selective abortions have been an issue in not only India and Asia, but also in Canada. Investigations have "revealed that entertainment ultrasound clinics in Canada were being used to ascertain the sex of the child before birth" [43]. Therefore, parents used this information to terminate their pregnancy if they were having a girl [44]. In response to this evidence, "Tory MP Mark Warawa (Langley, BC) filed Motion 408 in the House of Commons, calling on 'Parliamentarians to condemn discrimination against girls through sex-selective pregnancy termination" [45]. It was said that 92% of Canadians agreed that sex-selected abortions should be illegal, unfortunately this high percentage was not enough to save the motion because it "was deemed non-votable by the Sub Committee on Private Members Business (SMEM) of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs (PROC)" [46]. This means that it never made it to the House of Commons [47]. Warawa appealed this decision, but it was promptly dismissed [48]. In the end Warawa had two options, 1) drop the motion or 2) fill a new motion [49]. Although, Warawa has not giving up on fighting against sex-selected abortions, he did in fact decide to drop the motion and introduce a new bill, which confronts the issue of sexual predators [50].

Readings

This link explains sex-selective abortion in Britain and looks deep into British law

https://academic-oup-com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/ojls/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/ojls/gqv031[51]

Sex-selective abortion, a matter of choice?

http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/stable/41348331?pq-origsite=summon&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents [52]

References:

  1. ↑ "Sex-Selective Abortion." DefendGirls.ca. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 June 2017
  2. ↑ "Sex-Selective Abortion." DefendGirls.ca. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 June 2017
  3. ↑ "Protect Girls from Sex-Selective Abortion." PRI. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 June 2017.
  4. ↑ "Sex-Selective Abortion." DefendGirls.ca. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 June 2017
  5. ↑ "Protect Girls from Sex-Selective Abortion." PRI. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 June 2017
  6. ↑ Sen, Amartya. "Missing Women-Revisited: Reduction in Female Mortality has been Counterbalanced by Sex Selective Abortions." BMJ: British Medical Journal, vol. 327, no. 7427, 2003, pp. 1297-1298.
  7. ↑ Hesketh, Therese, Li Lu, and Zhu W. Xing. "The Consequences of Son Preference and Sex-Selective Abortion in China and Other Asian Countries." CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal = Journal De l'Association Medicale Canadienne, vol. 183, no. 12, 2011, pp. 1374.
  8. ↑ Hesketh, Therese, Li Lu, and Zhu W. Xing. "The Consequences of Son Preference and Sex-Selective Abortion in China and Other Asian Countries." CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal = Journal De l'Association Medicale Canadienne, vol. 183, no. 12, 2011, pp. 1374.
  9. ↑ Mitra, Aparna. "Son Preference in India: Implications for Gender Development." Journal of Economic Issues, vol. 48, no. 4, 2014, pp. 1021.
  10. ↑ Mitra, Aparna. "Son Preference in India: Implications for Gender Development." Journal of Economic Issues, vol. 48, no. 4, 2014, pp. 1021.
  11. ↑ Hesketh, Therese, Li Lu, and Zhu W. Xing. "The Consequences of Son Preference and Sex-Selective Abortion in China and Other Asian Countries." CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal = Journal De l'Association Medicale Canadienne, vol. 183, no. 12, 2011, pp. 1374.
  12. ↑ Mitra, Aparna. "Son Preference in India: Implications for Gender Development." Journal of Economic Issues, vol. 48, no. 4, 2014, pp. 1021.
  13. ↑ Mitra, Aparna. "Son Preference in India: Implications for Gender Development." Journal of Economic Issues, vol. 48, no. 4, 2014, pp. 1021.
  14. ↑ Mitra, Aparna. "Son Preference in India: Implications for Gender Development." Journal of Economic Issues, vol. 48, no. 4, 2014, pp. 1021.
  15. ↑ Hesketh, Therese, Li Lu, and Zhu W. Xing. "The Consequences of Son Preference and Sex-Selective Abortion in China and Other Asian Countries." CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal = Journal De l'Association Medicale Canadienne, vol. 183, no. 12, 2011, pp. 1374.
  16. ↑ Hesketh, Therese, Li Lu, and Zhu W. Xing. "The Consequences of Son Preference and Sex-Selective Abortion in China and Other Asian Countries." CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal = Journal De l'Association Medicale Canadienne, vol. 183, no. 12, 2011, pp. 1374.
  17. ↑ Hesketh, Therese, Li Lu, and Zhu W. Xing. "The Consequences of Son Preference and Sex-Selective Abortion in China and Other Asian Countries." CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal = Journal De l'Association Medicale Canadienne, vol. 183, no. 12, 2011, pp. 1374.
  18. ↑ Hesketh, Therese, Li Lu, and Zhu W. Xing. "The Consequences of Son Preference and Sex-Selective Abortion in China and Other Asian Countries." CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal = Journal De l'Association Medicale Canadienne, vol. 183, no. 12, 2011, pp. 1374.
  19. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  20. ↑ Hesketh, Therese, Li Lu, and Zhu W. Xing. "The Consequences of Son Preference and Sex-Selective Abortion in China and Other Asian Countries." CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal = Journal De l'Association Medicale Canadienne, vol. 183, no. 12, 2011, pp. 1374.
  21. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  22. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  23. ↑ Hesketh, Therese, Li Lu, and Zhu W. Xing. "The Consequences of Son Preference and Sex-Selective Abortion in China and Other Asian Countries." CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal = Journal De l'Association Medicale Canadienne, vol. 183, no. 12, 2011, pp. 1374.
  24. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  25. ↑ Sen, Amartya. "Missing Women-Revisited: Reduction in Female Mortality has been Counterbalanced by Sex Selective Abortions." BMJ: British Medical Journal, vol. 327, no. 7427, 2003, pp. 1297-1298.
  26. ↑ "Grassroots." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 07 June 2017. Web. 09 June 2017.
  27. ↑ Garlough, Christine. "The Risks of Acknowledgment: Performing the Sex-Selection Identification and Abortion Debate." Women's Studies in Communication, vol. 31, no. 3, 2008, pp. 368-394.
  28. ↑ Garlough, Christine. "The Risks of Acknowledgment: Performing the Sex-Selection Identification and Abortion Debate." Women's Studies in Communication, vol. 31, no. 3, 2008, pp. 368-394.
  29. ↑ Garlough, Christine. "The Risks of Acknowledgment: Performing the Sex-Selection Identification and Abortion Debate." Women's Studies in Communication, vol. 31, no. 3, 2008, pp. 368-394.
  30. ↑ Garlough, Christine. "The Risks of Acknowledgment: Performing the Sex-Selection Identification and Abortion Debate." Women's Studies in Communication, vol. 31, no. 3, 2008, pp. 368-394.
  31. ↑ Garlough, Christine. "The Risks of Acknowledgment: Performing the Sex-Selection Identification and Abortion Debate." Women's Studies in Communication, vol. 31, no. 3, 2008, pp. 368-394.
  32. ↑ . Garlough, Christine. "The Risks of Acknowledgment: Performing the Sex-Selection Identification and Abortion Debate." Women's Studies in Communication, vol. 31, no. 3, 2008, pp. 368-394.
  33. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  34. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  35. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  36. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  37. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  38. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  39. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  40. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  41. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  42. ↑ Sorbara, Carla. "Sex Selective Abortion in the Canadian Context." Health Law Review, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014, pp. 40.
  43. ↑ "Motion 408." DefendGirls.ca. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 July 2017.
  44. ↑ "Motion 408." DefendGirls.ca. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 July 2017.
  45. ↑ "Motion 408." DefendGirls.ca. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 July 2017.
  46. ↑ Richmond, Rebecca. "What Happened to Motion 408, Why It Matters, and What it Means for the Abortion Debate in Federal Politics." What Happened to Motion 408, Why It Matters, and What it Means for the Abortion Debate in Federal Politics. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 July 2017
  47. ↑ Richmond, Rebecca. "What Happened to Motion 408, Why It Matters, and What it Means for the Abortion Debate in Federal Politics." What Happened to Motion 408, Why It Matters, and What it Means for the Abortion Debate in Federal Politics. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 July 2017
  48. ↑ Richmond, Rebecca. "What Happened to Motion 408, Why It Matters, and What it Means for the Abortion Debate in Federal Politics." What Happened to Motion 408, Why It Matters, and What it Means for the Abortion Debate in Federal Politics. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 July 2017
  49. ↑ Richmond, Rebecca. "What Happened to Motion 408, Why It Matters, and What it Means for the Abortion Debate in Federal Politics." What Happened to Motion 408, Why It Matters, and What it Means for the Abortion Debate in Federal Politics. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 July 2017
  50. ↑ Richmond, Rebecca. "What Happened to Motion 408, Why It Matters, and What it Means for the Abortion Debate in Federal Politics." What Happened to Motion 408, Why It Matters, and What it Means for the Abortion Debate in Federal Politics. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 July 2017
  51. ↑ Greasley, Kate. "Is Sex-Selective Abortion Against the Law?" Oxford Journal of Legal Studies, vol. 36, no. 3, 2016, pp. 535-564.
  52. ↑ WILLIAMS, JEREMY. "sex-Selective Abortion: A Matter of Choice." Law and Philosophy, vol. 31, no. 2, 2012;2011;, pp. 125-159.
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