Invisible Dogmas

Diving into the ethical whys and wherefores of

the debate over abortions

A032
Moitreyee Bhattacharjee
Table of Contents

01 | Acknowledgement

02 | Abstract

03 | Introduction

04 | Aims

05 | Methodology

06 | User Groups

07 | Literature Review

08 | Result and Discussion

09 | Conclusion

10| Bibliography

11 | Appendix
Acknowledgment
I would like to express my deep and sincere gratitude to Prof. Sefi George for
providing me the opportunity to do research and providing invaluable guidance
throughout this research, who also taught me the methodology to carry out the
research and to present the research works as clearly as possible. I would like to
thank all those who responded to the survey and the discussions and put forth
their beliefs and views regarding factors relevant to this study. I extend my
heartfelt thanks to my interviewees, and my family for their acceptance and
patience during the discussion I had with them on research work and thesis
preparation.

I would pay my deep sense of gratitude to Prof. Manisha Phadke (Director) and
NMIMS School of Design to encourage us and provide a wonderful opportunity to
explore and prepare the project. I am immensely obliged to my friends for their
elevating support, encouragement, supervision, and guidance in the
accomplishment of the assignment. Thank you

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Abstract
Abortion is supposed to be a key component of reproductive and sexual health care, but
it has been stigmatised to extents where it influences the decision-making processes of
women seeking abortion and relevant health services. The deep rooted beliefs, stigma
behind the practice and people’s perceptions, play an influential role for women and
their decision-making processes regarding abortion, even in a metropolitan city like
Mumbai.

This ethnographic study explores people’s mindsets and philosophies that have been
passed onto them since generations, with a focus on people living in urban areas. There
are two sides to the study- one, contributing to people who are willing to adopt new
mindsets, and second, where people are unintentionally connected to their cultural
myths which keeps them grounded to their reservations. Significant patterns with deep
rooted beliefs,“societal norms”, cultural beliefs and superstitions are some aspects
observed. This ethnography looks through a lens where people living in urban areas are
still driven by myths and social philosophies which have been fed or passed onto them
since generations, while thinking about their own ideologies as well.

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Introduction
Imagine yourself in the setting provided- it’s the 21st century, and socio-cultural
issues aren’t hotly debated anymore, and open-mindedness is considered to have
a positive approach… It is that way, right? ...It isn’t?

Well, clearly we know the answer as numerous instances counter that. No matter
your open-mindedness, there will always be someone in your vicinity, either
parent, some relatives, friends, or just someone you know, who would oppose the
same thinking as yours. I guess that’s all right until it emerges as a political debate.
A simple-choice-converted-to-political-issue. One of the hotly debated topics
related to choices would be abortion, and how ethical is it to be biased towards the
prejudices.

Several questions emerge here, such as, which side should one be on- pro-life or
pro-choice? Why is the topic still an issue? Isn’t it supposed to be an age-old
stigma, long gone? Or does it still thrive deep-rooted? Is it talked about enough?
Do people strongly address this topic if asked about it? Or is the abortion debate
made dogmatic? Has this deeply been influenced by societal and religious norms?
Or are there actually ulterior reasons, purpose, or any motives?

The ethnography had originally been started by looking at whether or not people
considered the concept of selective abortions ethical or not. But researching and
diving further into this topic has unveiled divergent angles, further exploring and
exposing the hidden whys and wherefores.

Growing up in a metropolitan city like Mumbai, being a girl exposes you to a

buzzing crowd with a variety of mindsets, which induces you to look further into
people’s minds. I was also intrigued and keen to research this topic as one of my
relatives went through all the pressure that is induced onto someone who takes up
the decision of abortion, and how fast a single bodily choice can be spun into a
controversial outlook.

Abortion has been around since time-immemorial and has been a hushed-up topic
till date. Generations of people have moved from rural to urban areas, in seek of
better life and salary, but till what stretch have their mindsets been influenced?
Speaking of abortions, there is a lot of stigma surrounding the topic and it is
considered a taboo, regardless of where people live- urban or rural areas.

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Aims
The study aims to investigate the mindsets of people and what mental models
they have regarding abortions

The study aims to investigate the mindsets of people and what mental
models they have regarding abortions
To identify the reasons behind the stigmatization of abortion as a whole
Analyzing how the geographical location would play an immensely
important role in differing mindsets of subjects
To understand how social norms and societal pressures can affect and
manipulate the decisions of a woman, mother or the family for personal
issues
To delve into why a single bodily choice has been spun into a political
debate
Investigating whether people actually know the real reason for the
stigma created behind abortions
Analyzing how aware people are about the concept and what are their
socio-cultural beliefs regarding the same
To discover the misconceptions behind this topic and how often
abortions are considered taboo, and not talked about openly
To critically review how frequently and why a personal decision such as
abortion is transformed into a societal and religious decision
How often and why is female foeticide overlapped with the term selective
abortion
To investigate the emerging challenges faced by women, who are
subjected to pressures regarding abortion and post-abortion trauma
To find how ethical do people think is selective abortion
To find out how religion and culture are used as a moral objection to the
use of genetic testing and selective abortion.
Verifying certain aspects that generate this behaviour (choosing
selective abortions)
Understanding the dilemmas for selective abortion processes.

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Methodology
This section contains all the methods and procedures that will help to carry out the
analysis, finding and insights.

Participants
The study contains the demographic target of young to adults from age
ranging from 16 – 60 and above. Initially, a pilot survey would be conducted
on the targeted audience to evaluate the questionnaire. Further, the study
includes 155 real participants who will be a part of an online survey. Data will
be gathered by the survey conducted with these participants.

Process:

Brainstorming
It helped generating ideas within the group. After brainstorming, mind map
was created which helped to record and document the most relevant details
in a visual format to make a connection within information and ideas. It helped
determine the area of interest.

Desk research
Desk research helped in accessing meaningful data from various sources
articles, papers, documents, and different case studies. It helped gather
information from other existing sources and research.

Selection of the topic

After research on the main topic, several sub-topics of interest were noted
down. This involved topics from various domains. A brief analysis was
performed on this specific subject to assess importance, knowledge, and
interest

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Discuss
Discussions were conducted within the group to understand what topics are
important as well as interesting to address. After brainstorming and
discussing the idea, the group agreed to select one subject

Questionnaire
This includes series of question in order to gather information on the
selected topic. An online questionnaire will be conducted on google forms
for this analysis

Pilot trial
A trial survey would be conducted on the targeted audience to evaluate the
efficiency of the questionnaire. It will be held in the small scale before the
final survey

Final Survey
After analysis the pilot survey, the final survey would be conducted on target
audience to get accurate and real insight for the study. It will be conducted
in a large scale and help accumulate many insights in a short period of time

Empathy interview
The Primary research started with on field data collection through empathy
interviews and questionnaires. Face-to-face empathy interviews were
conducted and recorded to understand the user group’s emotions, thoughts,
feelings and opinions. The interviews helped in gaining a better insight and
understanding of the perception of names by users.

Synthesis and Analysis

The insights acquired from the survey will be the sorted, studied and
analyses and an ethnographic study will be structured.

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User Groups
Participants : 138 survey respondents and 4 interviews

Age Range: 16-60 year old and above, there are several age ranges that are segregated
as per age groups
The interviewees and respondents were from different parts of the country
43.2% of the respondents were Female
56.1% of the respondents were male
And 0.6% of the respondents were Bigender

This age range has been selected for the following reasons:
Different age groups have faced different exposure.
Similar or different mindsets
Cultural and Social influences and opinions

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Significance/Rationale:
The ability to test for these diseases raises numerous ethical considerations
involving severity of the condition, quality of life of a child, possible
contributions of the child, and even economic factors that should be
considered. "virtually all the major work in the disability critique of prenatal
testing emerges from those who are also committed to a pro-choice, feminist
agenda". Regardless of their stated commitment to feminist pro-choice
politics as a policy matter, a serious question must be raised concerning the
compatibility of a particular ethical objection to genetic selection with a
feminist politics of abortion, especially when the ethics of anti-selective
abortion can so easily be used to legally curtail women's access to abortion.
While it is rare for feminist scholars who write about reproductive politics to
address genetic testing and genetic selection, those who do often reaffirm
biased assumptions about the supposed tragedy of giving birth to a child
with disabilities. In the popular press, the woman seeking an abortion after
her fetus tested positive for a genetic abnormality becomes the basis for a
narrative.

Motivation
Few years ago, one of my kin’s aunt had gone through the procedure, and
they were content about it. I had been curious about their opinion and how it
would have affected their family, issues and health. Later, she told us that
the child was detected for certain “disabilities'', so they took the step further.
It had taken a toll on her health for quite some time. They now have a child
and are beyond happier than before. I would want to study about whether
the choices of selective abortion are to have further recognition, and not
stick behind medicalized stigmas

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Literature Review
What is selective abortion?
“Selective abortions, are a small fraction of all abortions, occur in those cases where a
particular foetus is perceived as having undesirable characteristics. Selective abortion is
also done when there are too many foetuses in a pregnancy.
These include cases where:
the unborn child is a girl, and the parents, for cultural or other reasons, want a boy
the foetus is defective
the foetus does not suit the parents in some other way
the pregnancy is intended to produce a child with specific genetic properties, and this
foetus doesn't have them” (BBC, 2014)

In a global society that has such technologies as prenatal genetic testing, in vitro
fertilization, and ovulation induction, it is crucial to have a full understanding of the
historical, social, and moral contexts that surround this very personal and very important
debate of selective - abortion due to genetic disease diagnosis, sex preference, or fertility
treatments.

Historical Background

The use of selective – abortion is usually discussed in three situations: testing positive for
the possibility of a genetic disease, gender preference, and reduction of multiple fetuses
usually due to fertility treatments. While the effects of these three outcomes have been
historically significant, the ability to predetermine and change the outcome of these
pregnancies is a new phenomenon that is still an issue for wanting parents.
The understanding of the fertilization process has undergone rapid changes and
advancements in the past few decades, but in vitro fertilization (IVF) does have a long
history of scientific research. Experiments attempting to fertilize a human oocyte were first
performed in 1878. During the first half of the 20th-century experiments, mostly on
animals such as rabbits or hamsters, continued to be done with little success and poor
background understanding. Finally, in 1969 the first confirmed case of IVF in humans was
reported, but it was not until almost a decade later that a human birth resulted from this
procedure. This technology has truly advanced throughout the 1900s, and it is an
important reproductive technology that questions the creation of human life which
ultimately leads to the question of ending that life with abortion (Bavister, 2002).

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IVF technology is not an isolated technique, and it is often used in conjunction with
ovulation induction. Women typically release only one mature oocyte per month, but with
gonadotropin therapy it is possible to increase this number raising the chance of the
sperm finding the egg. It is also used to provide enough oocytes to make IVF feasible. In
1981, the first successful IVF with ovulation stimulation baby was born in the US (Jones,
2003). The first estrogen antagonist, Clomiphene, was developed in 1956 for women
suffering from endometriosis and other reproductive problems. The researchers found
that this drug was able to reestablish a normal menstrual cycle. Over the decades, the
use of anti – estrogen drugs in order to stimulate ovulation has been well developed and
remains the primary way that ovulation is artificially induced (Dorn, 2005).

Preference for a child of a certain gender has its roots in societies that reward maleness
and make the female position one of struggle socially and economically. Some cultures
still have major disparity in the opportunities offered to male and females throughout their
life, and this has led to the issue of reproductive ethics when technology meets
disadvantage. The ability of a physician, on the order of the parent, to discriminate
between sexes and consider sex-selective abortion is only possible with the use of
ultrasound and amniocentesis procedures (Weiss, 1997). Removal of fetal amniotic fluid
has been described in clinical literature for over a hundred years. Ultrasounds were first
used for clinical diagnoses by Karl Dussik, a neurologist from Vienna, but it was another
decade before they were used for obstetrics (Woo, 2004). These procedures have
allowed for reasonably accurate determination of a fetuses sex, and this technology has
brought selective abortion on the basis of sex into the modern debate of reproductive
ethics.

Genetic Testing and Abortion:

The ability to test fetuses and even newly fertilized “preembryos” for genetic diseases is a
new technology that is an important one to consider. Since the mapping of the human
genome, scientists have been able to pinpoint the genes responsible for diseases such
as cystic fibrosis, sickle-cell anemia, hemophilia, Huntington’s disease, and polycystic
kidney disease (Strong, 1997). The ability to test for these diseases raises numerous
ethical considerations involving severity of the condition, quality of life of child, possible
contributions of the child, and even economic factors that should be considered.

What range of diseases should be tested for? This is the question of severity, and it is
important because there are different implications for severe, mild, late-onset, and
treatable diseases. These labels have significant meaning when a parent and their
physicians receive the news of a prenatal genetic test. The increase of available
information to young mothers may increase their likelihood of desiring an abortion in
order to avoid complications.

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In cases like phenylketonuria, the disease is very easily treatable, so testing seems like a
logical step in ensuring a healthy baby. A survey conducted by the New England
Regional Genetics Group found that 6% of couples would abort a fetus if it was found to
be susceptible to Alzheimer’s; 11% would abort if susceptible to obesity. This study
assumed that they had the information already in hand (Strong, 1997).

There are competing views on the question of what types of diseases to test for. A group
of geneticists and general physicians agree that tests should only be performed for the
most severe disorders. Diseases in this category would be ones that result in serious
mental or physical disabilities or that would cause long term suffering such as
Huntington’s. In 3-5% of positive prenatal diagnoses, “the genetic disorder is so severe
that no approximation of a fulfilling life is possible” (Peters, 2003, pg. 182). Another view
tries to limit testing to somewhere in the middle weighing factors such as the onset of the
disease and the probability of occurrence (Strong, 1997). The lines that physicians and
geneticists draw is difficult, and there will be ethical pros and cons of each choice based
on the desire for information weighed against the desire to preserve life without too much
interference.

The option to terminate the pregnancy on the basis of the genetic test has been available
for parents since genetic tests were developed. It is important to consider that this
decision is usually made within the context of physicians and hopefully genetic
counsellors helping the couple make the choice that is ultimately theirs. It is important to
point out that for parents who either have already suffered from a sick baby or feel certain
of that outcome, terminating the pregnancy may bring about relief, happiness, and a
chance to have a substantially healthier child (Strong, 1997). This argument lies strictly
opposed to those who argue that a positive result for a genetic disease cannot be an
indication for the living child of the future. It is impossible to understand the severity of
certain diseases that can have ranges (of disability, and the contribution of even a
moderately disabled child should not be underestimated. The test should not define the
child’s identity (Asch, 1999). The results of genetic testing have been and will continue to
be a reason for abortion, and the ethical discussions will undoubtedly continue over this
controversial combination of two hotly debated issues.

Sex-selective Abortion:
The preference for male heirs is a common occurrence the world over, but in some Asian
societies, female babies have become a liability for families for a variety of reasons. Sons
are able to help in fields and care for the elderly, but girls can even be seen as an
economic concern when dowries have to be paid prior to marriage. Poverty can have an
enormous impact on family planning decisions, but there can also be social reasons for
choosing to terminate a female fetus. In some societies prestige can only be achieved
with a male child, and for some families that is incredibly important (Weiss, 1997).

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Unfortunately due to economic realities in China, the decrease in births has not been
evenly distributed between the sexes. The altered sex ratio in urban Chinese cities is
hard to ignore. Hesketh, et. al. (2005) state that it has risen from 1.06 to 1.17 between
1979 and 2001. They continue to discuss how the sex-selective abortion is most likely the
number one cause. They say, “Actual figures are impossible to obtain, because sex-
selective abortion is illegal but is known to be widely carried out, helped by a burgeoning
private sector” (p.1173). Other explanations for the sex ratio are possible such as not
registering girls, but the reality of abortion is undeniable. When technology to test the sex
of the child became available the decrease in female infants was marked. Legislation
against sex-selective abortion may help, but a change will only come when attitudes
toward familial preservation are changed in the society.

Fertility Treatments

Many couples who desperately want children undergo ovulation stimulation either to
improve the fertility of the woman or to stimulate oocyte production for in vitro fertilization.
This technology is sometimes difficult to control, and it often results in higher than normal
prevalence of multiple births. Fertility Weekly reports that ovulation stimulation increases
multiple births from 10-40% per cycle (2005). Triplets or higher order multiples are
caused by fertility treatments 50% of the time, and this type of birth comes with much
greater risk to the fetuses and the mother.
Single fetuses have a much greater start on life than those who share the womb with a
brother or sister or several. The mortality rate for triplets is six-fold higher than individual
births says Fertility Weekly (2005).

Thus, it is plain to see that multiple deliveries are dangerous, and their prevalence has
risen astoundingly over the most recent decades. Currently, reducing the number through
abortion is widely practiced as a means to accomplish the desired one child per
pregnancy goal. The ethical question raised is similar to that of genetic testing; if we are
certain that the quality of life will be better if such reduction occurs, then is selective-
abortion the best option? Many people would say that this way one or two babies will be
able to lead normal, happy lives. This also preserves the health of the mother since
multiple births can be so dangerous to her health.
The question lingers on what can be done to prevent damage and pain caused by
artificial reproductive technologies (ARTs). Fauser et. al. list a number of clinical options
that are tailored to the individual woman’s reason for being infertile. For example,
anovulatory women (with polycystic ovary syndrome) could undergo lifestyle changes or
laser surgery on the ovaries (Fauser et al., 2005) to increase natural fertility.

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One reason is that it is analogous to an argument that some disability rights advocates
have made, to the effect that prenatal testing likewise broadcasts a hurtful, disrespectful
message about the value of disabled lives. If someone were to argue, on these grounds,
that selective abortion for disability is not only ethically problematic but ought to be
banned, pro-choice people would no doubt reply (a) that there is no intention to express
any such message, and (b) that in any case preventing women from obtaining needed
abortions is not an equitable way of pursuing justice and equality for the disabled. These
replies seem applicable in the case of sex selection too.

All this indicates that the ethical case for prohibition is less straightforward than one
might expect. We can agree, of course, that much more progress needs to be made
towards a world without the pervasive sex inequalities that lead some women to choose
sex-selective abortion in the first place. The dilemma is that, while such abortion can
plausibly be seen as reinforcing relevant inequalities, prohibiting it arguably involves a
perverse shift of the burdens of achieving gender justice onto vulnerable women
themselves.

//15
Reproductive autonomy is simultaneously about self-determination, social participation,
and the dignity that so tenuously connects the two (McReynolds-Pérez 2017). Included
in, but not co-extensive with these reproductive rights, is the right to end a pregnancy
through abortion as a means for family planning, reproductive health, and the well-being
of the pregnant person. Globally, an estimated 40% of pregnancies are unintended, and a
quarter of pregnancies end in abortion, by one means or another, each year.

When performed in legal and safe conditions by trained healthcare providers, abortions
are one of the safest procedures available, safer even than childbirth. In 2019, headlines
of “abortion bans” mostly across mid-western and southern states in the United States
spread rapidly across news platforms. Seventeen states enacted restricted access to
abortion, while nine states secured or enhanced access.

Craig Lissner, acting Director for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research at WHO
says, “Being able to obtain safe abortion is a crucial part of health care. Nearly every
death and injury that results from unsafe abortion is entirely preventable.

Medically, abortion is a common procedure and important element of reproductive health

care. Despite that quite a large amount of women still face barriers to safe abortion. Their
thought process is quite influenced by a number of socio-cultural and legal factors.
Among these, the social norms - the unwritten rules of unacceptable and acceptable
behaviours - play major roles.
Urban Culture with Modernness

People in metropolitan cities are generally considered to have a “modern” approach to

life. A city comprises of its people and that's how it is known further and beyond.
Mumbai is one such example, and is considered India’s modern megacity. A pulsating
metropolis, Mumbai is India’s most modern and most happening city (Mahapatra, 2022).

Mumbai indeed has a developing urban culture, including certain living habits and
patterns, but till what stretch has the “urban” element been imbibed in the mindsets of
the people? When asked, people use modern and urban synonymously, and have
similar understandings regarding people residing in urban areas having a more modern
approach to almost everything. The most coined explanation by them are- people who
live in urban areas are modern and are up-to-date with everything.

But has this modernness been applied to every individual residing in urban areas?
Surely Mumbai has its slum areas, but most of the city is still in development. The
modernness comes from peoples mindsets and their perceptions.

Now how would an individual be judged on how modern-minded he/she is? To a great
extent, by looking at their moral values, religious sentiments; how invested they are in
their healthcare, mental health and reproductive health. Reproductive health is a key
determiner of this, but little do we know about how cultural myths that have been passed
down through generations, and how people have been conditioned with them, regarding
an essential right - reproductive autonomy. In shorter words, it is having the power to
decide, and control when a woman herself wants to bear a child or not.

And with the reproductive autonomy comes their individual decisions- whether or not to
terminate a pregnancy. In India, it is legal for women to decide whether or not they want
to continue their pregnancy, upto 20 weeks, and 24 weeks under special circumstances.

Reproductive autonomy has been legal in India since the MTP Act (Medical Termination
of Pregnancy Act) was passed in 1971, but the decision making processes of women for
abortion are heavily affected by other people's opinions and the invisible social norms.
Result and Discussion
Analysis

Abortions have been around forever. But at different points of time in history it has
received attention for differing reasons, some in support of it, but often against it. The
purpose of this project is to study people’s opinions about the ethical concept of selective
abortions and finding out about the issues or related to this conceptual taboo.

Selective abortions raise all the other ethical issues associated with abortion, but they
raise several issues of their own as well. People either try to not address the situation or
try their best to be diplomatic about it. The entire focus of the research has not only been
on the aspect of fetal disability but also sex-selective abortions, and unwanted
pregnancies. Other insights also include the barrage of abortions due to family or societal
pressures, and being viewed as a taboo or abomination; along with several responses
include points touched upon the area of pregnancies due to rapes and irresponsible
measures.

The research is in the phase where different kinds of data are being collected, i.e.
qualitative, primary and secondary as well, being accumulated, and made concise, to
follow the schedule that I have prepared for the compilation and achieve the goal of the
research.

Out of the 138 responses that I received, the maximum participants were 33.6% of
people, who were under the age group of 16-26, whereas, for the age group of 49-59, the
percentage was 29.2% respectively. Rest others were 21.2% for the age group 38-48,
and 27-37 having 8.8%, with 60 and above, age group being 7.3% respectively.

In the analysis, I focus mainly on aspects that would help predict the social construct of
people and what opinions they have about selective abortion. Henceforth, while
questioned if they knew exactly what selective abortion was, only 64.5% of them knew
about it and others either did not know or weren’t really sure.

//16
A lot of people feel that it is okay to have a selective abortion, but there is a large amount
who disagree with it and state that the child should be allowed to have the right to live.
This leads us to the point where it becomes debatable whether a woman should be pro-
life or pro-choice.

There is a conflicting stage in the survey (conveyed in the graph above), where 39.1% of
people agree that selective abortion is pro-choice, but 31.2% of the people oppose it, and
29.7% say that the decision depends on the family. It was clear in certain areas that
people would choose not to openly admit but also stay diplomatic over this.

From this graph, it is evident that people’s recognition of the term “selective abortion” is
limited, as they coin it with the practices of abortions that are performed due to unwanted
pregnancies. This was achieved by allowing respondents to choose multiple options and
whatever they felt right, and also include other insights that they felt would be valuable.
55.8% votes for “Abortion due to unwanted pregnancies”, whereas 50% votes for
“Abortion due to fetal disability”, and others standing 36.2% for “Sex-Selective Abortion”,
and 13% for “Abortion due to religious practices”. There were varied responses that
added to the data.

//17
Interestingly, I carried forward an in-depth follow-up that was created using Pivot Table to
cross-examine a part of the data; the result being, the people who say they are religious
are found to accept the fact that selective abortions are key and it harms societal norms,
even if it differs from family to family. 30.43% of respondents were Hindus and they claim
that it might affect some norms and it differs from family to family, whereas 22.46% of
Hindus believe that it harms societal norms.

Further are some self-explanatory infographics that were interpreted.

//18
People would mostly suggest someone to have a selective abortion if and when it is
required, but also a huge amount would not choose to speak about it, along with a large
portion being skeptical to even support the cause. In a range from 1-8, 28.3% of the total
peaked at 1 for choosing not to suggest and speak about abortion, whereas only 23.2%
would wholly choose to suggest it to someone who would require it, peaked at 8. Others
ranged between 2-7.

People have also pointed out that there are consequences to having the abortion and it
would harm sentiments of social groups.

//19
After analyzing the survey, it was clear that the gender of the fetus does not play a major
role in abortions but the practice might harm some societal norms.
A large chunk agreed that even selective abortion might affect families and social norms,
and different families have different cultures. Further are some of the interpreted
comments that people have made in order to put forward their thoughts.

“If abortion is being done purely due to the gender of the foetus, or due to some "religious
reason", then it is completely unethical and illegal as well. Abortion should be considered
only and only when there is danger to life of the mother, the foetus or both.”

“If the fetus has medical concerns then we can avoid the pain for the growing soul and
the parent. It is Heartbreaking for the parents and can affect the other children and
family's lifestyle and life choices. Also for mothers/ parents who are not ready for such
responsibility( raising a kid financially, emotionally) it's advisable to avoid the trouble for
the soul.”

Following are the inferences from an interview with a gyneacologistas well, a woman is
legally allowed to be pro-choice under certain legal allowances and validations, but that
can only be officialised by a doctor or two signing off. There are laws and regulations that
have to be followed, and only under certain circumstances, can the woman “choose” an
abortion for herself. The doctor would decide whether or not the woman should have an
abortion, and everything has to be legalised. The mother would be allowed the right to
privacy about who she wants to convey the situation or situation to. The doctor is also
responsible to emotionally handle the mother, and/if any member of the family chooses to
accompany. Doctors say that aborting till 24 weeks of pregnancy is now absolutely safe,
owing to scientific advancement. Many doctors even say that abortions today are safe
even till much beyond.

//20
Conclusion
The debate over being pro-life and pro choice is never ending. As long as people
consider abortion as a taboo, there is no progress. Conclusively there will always be
people opposing something. Thus implying that, the conversation over abortion and
selective abortion or just the idea of abortion is yet till date considered a taboo in various
aspects. The mother does not wholly possess the power to be pro-choice. There are
always people who are conflicted in relation to religious aspects. Most people choose to
be diplomatic and not take any sides, even it has to be a helpful suggestion. Selective
abortion is usually overlapped with the concept of sex-selective abortion. And it is a
major construct in religious aspects till date.

One could always want to have source to tickle their brains. So why not take these
questions further- Why is pro-choice for a mother or a woman yet considered a taboo?
Why is ethical abortion or even abortion an aspect to be shamed on? Why would people
not want to talk about or suggest selective abortion to someone who might require it?
How and why would selective abortion be harmful to social norms?

Although India has made abortion legal and passed the updated MTP act in 2021, it is
interesting to see how unaware people are about the act, and still are driven by cultural
myths.

//21
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A vision Weekly, July
statement, 25, 8-9
call-to-action or quote from your leaders are powerful ways
to conclude your progress report. Leave your audience inspired, and motivated
to help your organization achieve its SDG-aligned goals!

//22
Appendix