Monday 13 June 2011

A Cultural Cruelty?

To be cruel, by one definition, implies a willingness to cause pain and an indifference to suffering. Going by this definition then, if an act is cruel then it might be assumed that a person is aware of the cruelty of his or her actions and yet, still carries on with it. This is simply about one person though. However, what happens if a cruel action and its consequences are shouldered by a culture or a country?

Abortion is highly controversial in today’s society even without adding the gender-based discrimination in the issue. Unfortunately, this is precisely what is plaguing India at present. Sex discrimination and foeticide go a long way back in India’s past though. But where killing girl babies happened at birth before, now sex-select abortions are being practiced. Recent census of 2011 showed that for every 1000 male babies born, 914 female babies are born. Ultrasound clinics can be found all over the sub-continent and many clinics are still unregistered. The Indian government is trying to come up with girl-friendly schemes but as the results have shown, they are not working to the advantage of girl babies. In addition, sex-select abortions are more common among the affluent, not the poor. The wealthier families are aware of ultrasound and hence, are able to have abortions if the woman is pregnant with a girl.

The prevalent question is if the problem lies behind the practice or the mentality. Even though having abortions after finding out the gender of the baby is a huge problem, the bigger problem is the reason behind doing such a thing. To put it simply, having a boy in a family is considered to be a boon and having a girl is seen as a curse. There is more than one reason behind this mind-set. Girls are seen as a burden because of the dowry requirements. Many people in India are poor and when they try to get their daughters married, the worry about meeting the dowry requirements haunts their minds. Another worry associated with this is that parents are concerned about whether or not their daughters will be well treated by the in-laws. The stories of bride burnings and domestic abuse run rampant all over the country. As is commonly practiced by many cultures, when girls in India get married they also take on the surname of their husbands’. Therefore, parents want boys to keep the lineage going and having girls is seen as a hindrance to that dream. The worst thing is that these actions that are a by-product of the culture are not seen as cruel and wrong. The few who speak up against these atrocities faced by girls are silenced by the centuries-old traditions and customs. As they say old is gold, right?

It is distressing that the mainstream, patriarchal culture forces women to pay the unfortunate price of suffering. From the moment of conception, women’s fate is sealed and more often than not, it is a downward spiral. Those who are fortunate enough to survive birth are still likely to face death due to neglect, abuse, or malnutrition. It is, in many ways, a man’s world. Women are so brainwashed that many believe they are not equal to men and they have a subservient position to men in society. From an early age, this view is imbedded in their minds and many spend their whole lives believing it to be the truth. They would not dream of raising an objection to the practiced cultural norms for fear of facing backlash. Nevertheless, this does not mean that the situation of women can’t improve. Laws that support women’s status in society need to be upheld. The integral step is to appeal to the psyche of each person. Until people’s mentality is challenged and the awareness of the injustice faced by women is publicized more, laws and economic sanctions can only do so much. Education has not served as a complete answer to the question of gender discrimination. People’s belief that women are inferior to men can be eradicated through enlightenment about equality between both sexes. People throughout India, in villages, towns, cities, all need to be targeted. Perhaps then, respect for women will arise in society and baby girls will be gifted the opportunity to have a future.

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