Genetics and abortion

The genetics and abortion issue is an extension of the abortion debate and the disability rights movement. Since the advent of forms of prenatal diagnosis, such as amniocentesis and ultrasound, it is has become possible to detect the presence of congenital disorders in the fetus before birth, leading some women faced with this situation to opt for abortion instead.

Legality of selective abortion

In many countries, abortion is available on request up to a certain point in the pregnancy. No particular reason is necessary, and so the results of genetic tests may be taken into account. In other countries, concerns over health or "fetal defect" may be one way of qualifying for an abortion that would otherwise be prohibited. In a small number of countries, all abortions are prohibited.

Not all genetic markers which can be checked are for disease, leaving open the possibility that where legal, parents may choose an abortion based on personal preference rather than avoidance of disease. In some jurisdictions, Sex-selective abortion is specifically prohibited, to maintain social stability against cultural norms which prefer one sex over the other.

Opposition to abortion for genetic reasons

*The European Blind Union has stated its opposition to abortion for genetic indications in its manifesto: "the right to life shall include the prohibition of compulsory abortion at the instance of the State, based on the pre-natal diagnosis of disability". [European Blind Union. (February 26, 2004). [http://www.euroblind.org/fichiersGB/reply.htm European Disability Forum Consultation on International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities] . Retrieved March 13, 2007.]

*According to an article in "Disability Studies Quarterly", the disability rights movement in Germany has disapproved of abortion in cases in which the fetus is found to have a congenital defect. This issue for the German disability-rights movement has continuity going back to the early eugenics movement, through to the Nazi era, when Nazi eugenic practices became a concern, and on into the present. [Köbsell, Swantje. (2006). [http://www.hrf.uni-koeln.de/sitenew/content/sozbeh/files/Kbsell.pdf Towards Self-Determination and Equalization: A Short History of the German Disability Rights Movement] . "Disability Studies Quarterly, 26 (2)." Retrieved March 13, 2007.]

*A report given to the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board and NSW Law Reform Commission by the AIS Support Group of Australia (AISSGA) reviewed the Australian incidence of abortion in cases when the fetus was diagnosed with an intersex condition. Between 1983 to 1998, the Victorian Department of Human Services reported that 98 out of 213 fetuses detected to have Turner syndrome had been aborted, 28 out of 77 found to have Klinefelter syndrome, and 39 out of 189 fetuses with sex chromosome anomalies had been aborted. The AISSGA proposed that parents expecting children with sex chromosome anomalies be advised by a genetic counsellor, and be given contact with support groups for people with these conditions, so as to gain a better understanding of the actual effects of the conditions. [Briffa, Anthony. (2003). [http://home.vicnet.net.au/~aissg/Submission%20about%20intersex%20discrimination%20in%20NSW%2022JAN03.pdf Submission to the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board and NSW Law Reform Commission Regarding Discrimination against People affected by Intersex Conditions] . Retrieved March 13, 2007.]

ee also

References