The Impact Of Gender Selection And Discrimination On Human Dignity

Discussion

Write an essay about the human dignity.
 

Human dignity is something that every human being wants to acquire each day. If an individual can earn the dignity for his or her works and develop a sense of self-respect and self-worth, physical and psychological integrity and empowerment then dignity will automatically be enhanced (Afraz, Boyden & DiCarlo, 2015). In present time, human dignity is affected by various activities of people, which are not acceptable to the human society as benchmarks of dignity. In this study, the researcher has shed light on the issue regarding gender selection and gender discrimination, which has created a controversy now. The main issue is that parents in different countries are now undergoing test to determine the sex of their unborn child (Pennington et al., 2013). This very controversial topic is lessening the dignity of human that the morals and ethics of the people are declining regularly.

Therefore, in this study the researcher has discussed the two perspectives of human dignity related to gender selection. Between this two perspectives one is gender discrimination and the other is the disrespecting the moral norms and values of the society. The first perspective is referring to gender discrimination that is seen in many places whether it is in social activities or in any workplace (Bharadwaj & Lakdawala, 2013). The researcher has discussed another one perspective that is enforcing the speedy loss of moral values and ethics, which has created an alarming situation. Therefore, the researcher is concentrating on the matter that is now creating the more concern of the people in this sex selection case that is expressed in the discussion of this study. 

Perspective 1

In the study, the researcher discusses about gender discrimination among parents while undergoing pre-natal sex determination. Such behaviour is also indicative of their thinking process. It will signify the dignity of the human society that is expressed through the process of their behaviour in the cases of gender discrimination (Kelso et al., 2014).

It is a devastating trend seen in developing countries, which often discriminates against girls and women before birth. More than 100 millions girls has suffered due to discrimination of gender at birth and thereby abortion of girl child at their birth. These trends of the developing countries are minimizing human dignity largely. Due to this trend, it has been found that tragically, female infants are frail due to the trauma of being abortion. The human dignity has minimized with the feeling that every girl child is inferior in the society (Dag & Kullberg, 2016). It can also be found that many parents are willing to pay more to the hospitals for changing their fertilized eggs to have a baby with their desired gender.  In many communities, it has been found that girls child are getting short time breastfeed than the boys child with an intension of the women to get pregnant again for boy child. The trend of gender discrimination also decease the dignity of girl child in a way of getting less education and privileges from the society. Girls in the society are being eliminated in higher extent due to denying them as the most primal of the society and restricting their rights to take birth. In this way, sex selection, abortion and choosing the gender discrimination before birth are usually threatening the very subsistence of the women in the world. The leniency of parents towards gender discrimination and sex selectivity has meant that people are not viewing gender discrimination as the one of the great violation of human right. Due to this leniency of selective birth, girls in the society are presumed to be liabilities to their families rather than assets. This is also because of the getting low privileges in educational institution and well-paid employment in the workplace.

Perspective 1

Inequality and gender discrimination is one of the major issues around the world (Fitch & Anderson, 2014). Every human has the equal right to use his or her rights in the society. However, in the present scenario, it has been found that the common people of the people are using their rights in an unethical way in the society.  In this 21^st century, though the world has become enough advanced but still the mentality of the people in the society has not changed (Krieger, 2014). The sex discrimination still considered as one of the major issues in the society. It has been found that still the individuals are concerned during the birth of a child whether its baby boy or a baby girl. Especially the parents and their concerned families are much concerned before the birth of the child ‘about the sex of the child’. In the society discrimination are being made based on class, colour and creed. Everyone has equal right to be the part of the society. With advancement, the perception of the people has changed drastically in the society. Human dignity is considered as the ultimate principle in the society. It has been found that freedom is being misused in order to get personal benefit. In most of the cases, it has been found that the sex-selective abortion is rapidly increasing in the global scenario. With the advancement of technology, the level of sex-selective abortion has increased in the society. Additionally, gender ratio has also drastically increased in the society (Donnelly, 2013). In most of the cases, it has been found that the governmental bodies are not taking any sort action against the hospitals and the centre that are support sex-selective abortion during pregnancy (Bharadwaj & Lakdawala, 2013). As per the report, it has been found that the Chinese government has declared that due to sex selective abortion most of the women are being misplaced in the society.  

The perspective 3 states that the sex selection is against the social values because the children are valuable to the society (Donnelly, 2013). Therefore, the parents those are going for sex selection are going against the social norms and dignity. At the same time, the society must limit this type of activity.

According to this particular article, human dignity includes the love and respect that one individual provides to himself or herself and to the other individuals. This individual also includes children also (de Melo-Martín, 2013). Children are worthy part of the human society and it is the feeling of human dignity that shows the respect to the children by accepting them in any gender. According to perspective three, sex selection must be avoided in order to maintain human dignity (Donnelly, 2013). A person who selects between the gender of men and women shows disrespect to the opposite gender.  At the same time, when a person loses his or her dignity, it is considered that the person has also lost his or her morale.

On the other side, the person who fails to value the social norms and culture can be considered as an unethical person. There are many societies where the people perform sex selection for some non-medical reasons like, family balancing, religious expectations or individual autonomy. These types of activities are completely against the ethical values and have no meaning (Martin et al., 2013). Various people think that the selection of sex is very important to balance the family for setting a good and happy family relation in future. Therefore, if they can point out the gender before giving the birth of the child then they will enable to know the gender of the future member of their family (Fitch & Anderson, 2014). It will be very easy for them to plan their family according to the gender. However, it has a good side that the determination of the sex of their child can enable them to know about their future child but it has a drawback that It has made the parents to kill their child‘s sex before their birth. The human being cannot consider this huge crime. It will be against the human dignity for the people that are not afraid of killing a little life before their birth (Martin et al., 2013). It has raised the concern of the world now that they cannot able to stop this situation to go worst. Another section of people considers this process as non-medical purpose. There are a few countries, which supports the non-medical purposes of this gender selection on the time of childbirth such as Kazakhstan (Donnelly, 2013). In this country, the rule is strictly followed that every family have to consist of a son and daughter and in this way, the balance will be maintained in every family. Therefore, the parents of that country always try to know the gender of their children before their birth, which is completely against the social norms and the moral values of the humanity and human dignity (Chapman & Benn, 2013). The country therefore, supports the gender selection of the parents in the time of becoming the parents. However, it is done for the sake of balancing the family; still the families have not the right to select the gender before their birth as every child has the right to come in the world (Chapman & Benn, 2013).

Perspective 2

The parents have the acceptance of their child in any condition. This cannot depend on the gender of the child (Fitch & Anderson, 2014). Therefore, there is no such reason that can satisfy and justify the reason of this selection of gender. This is against the ethics of the human rights and the gender selection is proved unethical in this context (Martin et al., 2013). Therefore, it can be said that sex selection of child made the parents inhumane by nature and it will always decline the dignity of the human society (Donnelly 2013).

There is another concept regarding this gender selection of children. The child is the productive autonomy of the parents that cannot be determined before. According to de Melo Martín (2013), the gender selection of child by the parents always present the declination of the norms of the society that that has been practiced from the very past. The main victim of this non-ethical practice is mainly the girl child or the women. In the society, mainly the sex selection is proved problematic for the girl child who is normally the unwanted child in the families (Chapman & Benn, 2013). Therefore, it has been seen that if the sex is detected the girl child then there is a tendency to kill the child foetus (Fitch & Anderson, 2014). This is due to the social norms and morals that always blame the women folk and always try to dominate the girls. 

Conclusion

The study is focussing on the human dignity that is continuously declining in the present time. The researcher is trying to consider a case study of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) that is highlighting the issue of the gender selection by the parents regarding their child’s sex. This is observed in the case study that the parents are continuously doing sex selection in the cases of their child’s sex that has become a serious problem of the society. Therefore, the study has discussed the issue shedding light on the serious issue of a few people who supports the gender selection process on the behalf of the non-medical purpose. Then the study has revealed the various systems of different countries about the rules and social norms of the countries that support the unethical system of with their own logics. Although the reasons never can be considered for the sake of gender selection and cannot justify the utility of the sex selection the countries are following this rule even in the era of literacy.  Therefore, the system is the most relevant example of the declination of the human dignity, which is developed through the unjustified rules and morals of a group of people to get the opportunity to rule the society. Therefore, in concluding the study it can be said that the overall human dignity is falling down due to unethical practice such as, gender selection before birth of children. 

Reference List

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