Definition of female foeticide
The words suicide, assassination, fratricide, murder and feticide have something in common: the idea of killing someone, because the suffix CIDE means, precisely, kill. Thus, a feticide is the action of ending the life of a human fetus. Frequently refers to two similar concepts: infanticide and foeticide. The first is to end the life of a child, while the second focuses on the human fetus.
Infanticide as a form of discrimination to women
The idea of female foeticide is applicable to a male or female fetus interchangeably. However, this theoretical definition does not correspond with reality, since female foeticide has historically been practiced from the knowledge that the human fetus is female. The rationale for this practice is due to the idea that the birth of a girl is a problem for women, usually because the male is most appreciated. This contempt for the female sex is a form of discrimination with deep cultural and economic roots. The preference for male children is a concept rooted in some countries of Asia and Africa. In some studies that analyzes the causes of female foeticide is maintained the idea that this practice occurs mostly in patriarchal societies. On the other hand, female foeticide is linked with the idea of marriage, since in some cultures women must pay a dowry to marry and this is a financial burden for families. In this way, infanticide is a strategy to avoid having to take an economic cost in the future. Another element that explains female foeticide in certain social contexts is the difference in roles between men and women. In this sense, some castes granted a special role in the India males, who are responsible for a series of functions (keep the family name or the management of burial rituals). Cultural traditions that explain the feticide have been consolidated thanks to the advance of medicine, since ultrasound allow to know the sex of a fetus's way early in the pregnancy. This technical progress has made it possible to them justifying infanticide have an ally to keep practicing this habit.
Debate ethics
Female foeticide is an obvious fact: ending the life of a human fetus. For some it's a murder and has no justification, since human life must be protected from the moment of conception. This position is rejected by those who consider their cultural traditions to legitimise the feticide.