Tuesday 11 December 2012

Selective abortion and our girl fetus

A traditional Hindu son has lot of responsibilities in his house. He carries his family name, inherits family property, keeps his family traditions alive and looks after his sisters, their families and other female relatives. He is not to accept anything of monetary value from them.
 
Traditional Hindu men and women yearned to have a son in their family for another reason too. And, that is until a few years ago, religious rituals following the death of a parent could only be fulfilled by sons. In most Hindu families that responsibility is still reserved for sons only even in this day and age.
 
The role of a son in Islamic traditional families also seems to be similar to that of a Hindu son. For example, the eldest son in Islamic family holds the responsibilities of looking after his younger siblings, his parents and inherits their property (house, land or business) after his father’s death (or in his inability).
 
These stories partly explain why there is so much demand for a boy in the traditional households. However, times have changed! Most of us don’t live in a farming-society. Sons don’t stay with their parents and carry on their family trade. They don’t marry the lady selected by their parents. They don’t take their responsibilities more seriously than daughters do. Parents can’t expect financial support from their sons anymore than from their daughters. Instead of supporting their parents, most sons these days marry at the cost of their parents, ask for their share of property and separate. In this modern time, there seems to be less and less loyalty left in sons.
 
Even in these modern days, millions of mothers selectively abort female fetuses around the world. I personally know a few mothers who, without pressure from their husband or in-laws, have gone for check ups and aborted their girl babies not once, but twice or even thrice! Does this make sense?
 
Without the intervention of selective abortions, the natural ratio of boys to girls has been 103-106 boys for 100 girls for years, according to the demographer, Nick Eberstadt (The Economist, March 4, 2010). With the mortality rate slightly higher for the boy infants than the girl infants, we should have equal number of boys and girls living today, but that is not the case study after study show.
 
Girl fetuses are massacred at an alarming rate in China and India; however, the story doesn’t seem to end there. Mr. Eberstadt asserts that there are gender imbalances in South Korea, Taiwan, and a few Southeast European countries, also. So, is it the culture of Asia and the surrounding countries that craves for boys?
 
For years, we kept blaming for China’s one child policy and the mythology of heaven and hell stories most Asians so dearly hung upon. But now, we have changed our story and we blame for the failing fertility rate and the cheap technology as the culprit of the selective abortion, as done by Mara Histendahl in her book Unnatural Selection: Choosing Boys over Girls and the Consequences of World Full of Men.
 
Whatever the case may be, the most disturbing trend to me is the research findings that suggest: Higher the income and education levels, higher the selective abortions occurring in the modern days. This should not be happening! If education doesn’t help today’s men and women to realize that killing their innocent baby fetuses is not the solution to economic and social problems, what will?

For more gendercide stories, you can visit these sites and educate your friends and families how barbaric these behaviors are: The worldwide war on baby girls: http://www.economist.com/node/15636231 Save every girl child: https://www.facebook.com/#!/Save.every.girl.child My husband threw us out: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/My-husband-threw-us-out-Neera-Chopra/articleshow/4451333.cms