I keep hearing of the skewed sex ratio in India where many more boys than girls are born. This is supposedly created by aborting female fetuses. Apparently, ultrasound labs have popped up all over the country and even in remote villages and for a small "fee", they will tell you the sex of your baby. To be fair, not all labs will do this but a significant number will.
This scenario seems like a plot in a science fiction movie and I remember a few years ago (well, more than a few) there was a debate that ultrasounds could be used for this purpose but people denied that it would ever happen...too barbaric and the medical professionals are too ethical to do this. Well.....apparently not. It brings to mind the ethical ramifications of cloning that are being debated today and again, the proponents use the arguments of government regulations and ethics of medical professions which, in some areas, are not enough to stop unethical behaviour.
Anyway, back to my original question: Why don't Indians want girls? I know that this is a very small minority and also that it is a problem in other countries as well so please don't think that I am accusing all, or most of this crime. Just trying to figure out why it is happening at all.
One thought is that dowries are the culprit. In India, traditionally girls (or their families) have had to pay a dowry to the grooms family. These dowries can be very large. My maid is substantially in debt so that her daughter could get married. The boys family demanded quite a large sum and my maid felt it was necessary to ensure her daughter was able to marry into a "good" family.
Also, girls go to live with the grooms family helping with the household chores etc. Therefore, the girls family loses out financially and also loses help around the house. Not much of an incentive to have girls, especially for a poor family.
If there are other reasons for not wanting girls, please add them to a discussion. There might be cultural or religious aspects that I have no idea about.
I hope with modernisation, this trend will reverse but so far, urban centres with supposedly more educated and affluent people are also to blame for the skewed sex ratio. Will dowries ever go away in India and will this stop the practice of aborting female fetuses?
Back to my maid again, she has 2 boys and 2 girls. Since she is so in debt because of the dowry for her first daughter, I said that it will ease up when she receives a dowry for her son from his bride but she said that she thinks dowries are very wrong and will not take one for her son. She just wants him to marry a nice girl, who will keep him happy and help her around the house. That is so admirable of this poor woman that it puts me to shame. She said that she only paid a dowry for her daughter because she believed it was the only way to ensure a good marriage (turns out it is not so good, but that is another issue). It takes more people like my maid to break the cycle of dowries.
This scenario seems like a plot in a science fiction movie and I remember a few years ago (well, more than a few) there was a debate that ultrasounds could be used for this purpose but people denied that it would ever happen...too barbaric and the medical professionals are too ethical to do this. Well.....apparently not. It brings to mind the ethical ramifications of cloning that are being debated today and again, the proponents use the arguments of government regulations and ethics of medical professions which, in some areas, are not enough to stop unethical behaviour.
Anyway, back to my original question: Why don't Indians want girls? I know that this is a very small minority and also that it is a problem in other countries as well so please don't think that I am accusing all, or most of this crime. Just trying to figure out why it is happening at all.
One thought is that dowries are the culprit. In India, traditionally girls (or their families) have had to pay a dowry to the grooms family. These dowries can be very large. My maid is substantially in debt so that her daughter could get married. The boys family demanded quite a large sum and my maid felt it was necessary to ensure her daughter was able to marry into a "good" family.
Also, girls go to live with the grooms family helping with the household chores etc. Therefore, the girls family loses out financially and also loses help around the house. Not much of an incentive to have girls, especially for a poor family.
If there are other reasons for not wanting girls, please add them to a discussion. There might be cultural or religious aspects that I have no idea about.
I hope with modernisation, this trend will reverse but so far, urban centres with supposedly more educated and affluent people are also to blame for the skewed sex ratio. Will dowries ever go away in India and will this stop the practice of aborting female fetuses?
Back to my maid again, she has 2 boys and 2 girls. Since she is so in debt because of the dowry for her first daughter, I said that it will ease up when she receives a dowry for her son from his bride but she said that she thinks dowries are very wrong and will not take one for her son. She just wants him to marry a nice girl, who will keep him happy and help her around the house. That is so admirable of this poor woman that it puts me to shame. She said that she only paid a dowry for her daughter because she believed it was the only way to ensure a good marriage (turns out it is not so good, but that is another issue). It takes more people like my maid to break the cycle of dowries.
I agree that doweries are the biggest culprit. This is a custom followed more closely by the poor than the upper or middle class, in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteThat would be my experience too just based on people we meet etc. but commentaries I have read say that the practice of dowries are common in all socio-economic groups. Not sure about this.
ReplyDeleteAnother factor to consider is that the middle class in India is not actually the "middle" or any where near the majority like it might be in the developed world. It is a small elite percentage compared to the masses.