sex selective abortion the thought of it is abhorrent and it is absurd to abort a child because of an uncontrollable element.
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When it comes to sex selective abortion the thought of it is abhorrent and it is absurd to abort a child because of an uncontrollable element. In countries such as China, having male children are preferred because they have a higher wage-earning capacity (especially in agrarian economies), they continue the family line and they usually take responsibility for care of parents in illness and old age (CMAJ, 2011).
There may be some positive aspects of this easy access to sex selection. Access to prenatal sex determination probably results in an increase in the proportion of wanted births, leading to less discrimination against girls and lower female mortality (CMAJ, 2011). Also, it has been argued that an imbalance in the sex ratio could be a means to help to reduce growth in the population (CMAJ, 2011). It’s said to be thought that as numbers of women in society fall, they become more highly valued and their social status increases. Not only will this benefit the women’s self-esteem and mental health, but also their well-being overall.
Sex selective abortion can be extremely empowering for women attempting to have a son and experiencing pressure to fulfil their “womanly duty” by having a male child. Through choosing to terminate a pregnancy when the fetus is female or to carry on with it if the fetus is male, women in many Asian societies can gain legitimacy, earn recognition and acquire status in their family and community (Taylor and Francis, 2002). By using sex selective abortion, women may avoid having more children than they want and thus limit the size of their family (Taylor and Francis, 2002).
This practice isn’t something that every one may agree with, but it has proven to be useful in countries that are firmly dependent on their male counterparts to maintain their households and daily life.
