The ratio of men and women tends to be more or less constant in most societies, but the remarkable decrease in the number of female in proportion of male births has set the alarm bells ringing in Nepal. The roots of preference of sons over daughters go deep in Nepali society, supported by religious scriptures .In modern times, such beliefs are underscored by the expectation that sons provide for parents in old age.
The result is that a son is a matter of prestige in much of Nepali society, and parents have been known to birth daughter after daughter in expectation of a son. In a recent study by Thapathali Maternity Hospital of 288 women who were pregnant for the third time at, only 16 admitted to carrying a daughter, while 123 were carrying sons. The rest professed not to know the sex of their child. In urban areas, the skewed male to female ratio often has a sinister reason: abortion of female fetuses after sex determination. [break]
In a country where abortions used to be illegal, women have recently succeeded in obtaining more control of their reproductive faculties through legal recognition of abortions. Abortions are necessary to avoid unwanted or underage pregnancies and risks to the mother’s health, but most importantly, having a child or not should be the prerogative of the mother.
But instead, women are losing this hard-fought victory to families that pressurize them into aborting girl children, sometimes multiple times. Such pressure is not just physically exhausting, but also mentally distressing, and sometimes ends up permanently damaging a woman’s reproductive organs. The hormonal fluctuations involved may inflict lifelong health problems on the concerned women.
Apart from this, recent researches indicate that a skewed male to female ratio may have disastrous repercussions on society as a while. Such societies are noted for their violence. Even though a direct cause and effect chain cannot be established, violence is usually perpetrated by young males who lack enough social ties. Also, it has been noted that such societies end up developing authoritarian regimes.
Already, the results of China’s one child policy implemented in 1979, when female infants were remarkably more likely to die in infancy than male infants, are apparent. Men of this generation are reported to have a higher than normal rate of mental health problems and antisocial behavior. Indian states of Haryana and Punjab with sex ratios as low as 86 women per 100 men are facing similar problems.
The gap is growing in Nepal, especially in urban areas where instruments for sex determination are easily available, and abortions are cheap, easy, and often anonymous. If Nepal is to avoid the fate of the aforementioned states, we must take steps right now. We need a strong monitoring of abortion clinics to ensure that sex determination tests do not take place, and that sex selective abortions are punished. In the long term, we need awareness raising programs to educate society about the consequences of sex selective abortions, and programs to financially support parents who give birth to girl children. Let us hope Nepal avoids the road to a skewed society.
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