- Canada is a nation that has long promoted the right to equal protection and equal benefit of the law. The unfair discrimination against females as manifested by sex-selective abortions is something Canadians don’t tolerate and I believe parliament ought to condemn this misogynistic practice.
- A comprehensive study[1], published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal in 2012 verifies that many more boys than girls are being born in some Canadian ethnic communities.
- A 2012 CBC undercover investigation[2] found that 15 out of 22 ultrasound clinics that they investigated were willing to share the sex of the child prior to 20 weeks. Some of these clinics also discussed the possibility of abortion after learning the child was male. The same investigation reported that women are being abused and coerced to have an abortion when the sex of the child is determined to be female.
- The Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia, and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario have all publicly[3] condemned sex-selective abortion.
- Representatives from the Conservative, NDP, and Green parties have condemned[4] sex-selective abortion in response to a CBC under-cover investigation that revealed it was a common reality in Canada.
- A 2012 Angus Reid poll found[5] that 66% of women believe “there should be laws which outline whether a woman can have an abortion based solely on the gender of the fetus.”
- A 2011 Environics poll found that 92% of respondents believed sex-selective abortion “should not be legal”. (Environics Research Group 2011, “Canadians’ Attitudes Towards Abortion,” page 11.)
- Around the world, female feticide denies millions of girls the right to be born merely because they are girls. Canada has taken a lead role amongst the international community in recognizing this unfair discrimination against girls will not be tolerated by initiating the first ever “International Day of the Girl” which took place on October 11, 2012.
- Preventing the birth of baby girls through sex selective abortions is an affront to the dignity and equality of women and girls.
- Selectively terminating female fetuses (female feticide) perpetuates discrimination against women and girls.
- This is a non-partisan issue. Sex-selective abortion has been strongly condemned by political leaders across party lines.
[1] http://www.cmaj.ca/content/early/2012/04/16/cmaj.120165.full.pdf+html
[2] http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2012/06/12/ultrasound-gender-testing.html
[3] http://www.cmaj.ca/content/184/4/387
[4] http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/story/2012/06/13/ultrasounds-entertainment-ban.html
[5] http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/44310/canadians-call-for-legislation-to-deal-with-gender-based-abortion/