British Indians still aborting baby girls in UK

It’s just awful that some people from India and Pakistan who have lived here in the UK for a long time are still giving in to the idea that baby girls are a shocking disappointment and in many cases are unwanted babies.

Henry VIII managed this issue in a number of ways, divorce and execution among them. Medieval.

No let’s not, let’s concentrate on this particular problem which is the subject of this thread.

The full report does indeed confirm people travel abroad for many of the 400 cases over 5 years.

and its adds that "Groups like Jeena International work to empower women facing coercion and pressure to abort female fetuses".

I do think the O/P seems to rather hint it's an across the board problem in this culture but in fact is actually happening to a very small %.

Of course I don't approve, and believe that as time passes and both sons and daughters are introduced to improved cultural ideas of the status of women and girls that it will fade away. It has with the people I know:

as has been pointed out, it exists in some Christian cultures as well:

for me, the stories above, upthread, based in experiences and knowledge in the 70's and 80's *dont hack it*:

that is going back 40 or 50 years, the in fact is no current adequate evidence that says any more than

"work and campaign to change ideas"

Just as we have a lot of hard work to do within our very own host culture to improve rates of domestic and other abuse of women and girls - attitudes of white males have a great deal to yet be changed including those amongst the police and religious spaces.

Recent case of a wife being raped by her husband and other men whilst drugged up?

lets look at the issues of how women are regarded as a whole, whatever the culture

It’s one thing preferring to have a baby boy but quite another to have an abortion once it’s known that it’s a girl.

My DIL is Sikh Indian. This time last year we met a family friend of hers in town. She asked if his wife had had the baby and he replied "oh yes, two weeks ago". She immediately replied "A girl?", which he confirmed. She told me after he'd left that she knew it was a girl, because if it had been a boy, they would have announced the news immediately and delivered chocolates and celebrations to all the local families. Sad how these rituals persist.

Haven't read the article so assume must be illegal abortions here or go to India to have it carried out there. Absolutely awful.

A preference for boys is IMO a Thing in many cultures.

When I had dd2, my 2nd baby, we were living in the Middle East among an expat community with a lot of Greek Cypriots.

I’d never had an engagement ring, so right after the birth of dd2, dh bought me a lovely diamond and emerald ring.

When I showed it to a Greek Cypriot neighbour, she said, ‘You got that for a GIRL?’

It’s appalling but am not surprised it still goes on.

In the 70s, through our business at the time, we became good friends with a Sikh guy who's family had really prospered and he had all the trappings of a young, rich man about town.

He married a local girl, very pretty and in the year below me at school. She'd seemingly adapted to a different way of life, adopting his familial culture of living in his family's home & deferring to her mother-in-law.

All was well until they had two daughters but no son. We were out with just him one night and I was shocked to the core when he started to tell us of his plans to "get rid" of his wife if the next child still wasn't a boy.

I thought he was just sounding off but he was deadly serious.

Needless to say our friendship didn't last very long after that.

Thankfully, she did go on to have a son and in time become an equal financial partner in all the family businesses but it was so shockingly chilling to be faced with a completely overt and justified - as far as he was concerned - plan to get a son.

Completely different cultural mind set, entrenched, and I'm not surprised it's still there fifty years on.

FriedGreenTomatoes2

We meddle with nature at our peril.

You got that right......
My childhood dog had three litters of puppies and the balance was roughly 50:50 ish. So 7 of which 3 bitches and 4 dogs or vice-versa .......
A feminist I'm pro-choice and don't criticise anyone who has had an abortion but raised a Catholic I struggle with abortion and haven't had one myself.
Of all the reasons to have an abortion "because you're a girl" seems one of the most rotten ones.

We meddle with nature at our peril.

This "Boys Only" policy has certainly backfired on the Chinese. There's such an overwhelming imbalance of few girls but a glut of boys that in some isolated rural communities it's not an unknown practice for girls to be kidnapped by parents desperate to get a bride for their surplus sons.

Ditto the Indian community I should imagine.