CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- A new novel by a businesswoman and author from Bangladesh is highlighting the ongoing tragedy of female \u201cgendercide\u201d in many Eastern cultures.<\/p>\n\tFemale infanticide and sex-selection abortion constitute \u201cdiscrimination against women in its cruelest form,\u201d Rukhsana Hasib told CNA on June 6.<\/p>\n
\tIn her latest book, \u201cShadows in the Sun,\u201d Hasib deals with the serious problem of male preference, which is prominent in many parts of the world.<\/p>\n
\tA first-generation American who works to promote human rights for women in the East, Hasib said she was shocked when she realized that female infanticide and sex-selection abortion are still happening regularly in Eastern cultures.<\/p>\n
\tAnd the girls being killed are not just from poor and uneducated families, she noted, but they also come from people who have schooling and economic means.<\/p>\n
\tReports estimate that about 50,000 girls are aborted in India each month, and approximately one million girls in the country \u201cdisappear\u201d every year.<\/p>\n
\tDriven to take a stand, Hasib decided to write a novel based on the \u201ctruth of female infanticide.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tShe hopes to help readers realize that \u201csuch atrocities against women \u2013 who are the nucleus of the family \u2013 still exist\u201d and that women are \u201cwilling participants\u201d in acts of violence against their own gender.<\/p>\n
\tOriginally from Bangladesh, Hasib graduated from Holy Cross College before moving to America, where she earned her MBA and has spent her adult life.<\/p>\n
\tHasib pointed out that in many Eastern cultures \u201cwomen are not valued.\u201d They often face violence and discrimination, and are treated as inferior in a male-dominated culture.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cShadows in the Sun\u201d tells the fictitious story of \u201cone poor mother\u2019s stand\u201d to give her daughter a chance at a better life, she explained.<\/p>\n
\tThe book begins in Bangladesh and then ties into India and the United States, highlighting the universal nature of the gendercide problem.<\/p>\n
\tWhile male-preference practices are prominent in China as a result of the country\u2019s one-child-policy, they are also common in other areas that have no legal restrictions on childbearing.<\/p>\n
\tHasib observed that sex-selection abortion is not legally encouraged in India. In fact, it is illegal, she said. However, the laws are not always enforced and can easily be circumvented through bribery.<\/p>\n
\tThe fundamental problem is not the legal system, but the cultural fact that girls are not valued, Hasib stated.<\/p>\n
\tIn these cultures \u201cthe birth of a son is celebrated\u201d because boys will help provide a living and carry on the family\u2019s future.\u00a0 But the birth of a daughter, she explained, is \u201cconsidered a burden,\u201d because the family must protect her virtue, find a husband for her and provide a dowry.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cGirls are a burden,\u201d Hasib said. \u201cThat is the beginning of this horrific crime.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tSo if any real change is to take root, the author believes that it must be cultural as well as legal.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cOur attitude needs to change,\u201d she said, arguing that girls must be seen not as a \u201cmisfortune\u201d but as being \u201cas valuable as the sun itself.\u201d People must recognize the dignity of women and the value of their nurturing and life-giving role, as well as their many contributions to society, she added.<\/p>\n
\tHasib stressed that if the movement to value women is to gain momentum, then \u201cthe world needs to get involved,\u201d and if the world is watching, change will take place more quickly.<\/p>\n
\tIn particular, she believes that the United States, as the \u201cmost powerful country\u201d in the world, needs to do more to fight the injustice of female gendercide.\u00a0 Once the U.S. speaks up, the \u201ccollective conscience\u201d of the world is raised, she said.<\/p>\n
\tHasib applauded recent efforts to raise awareness of the issue within the United States. She praised a bill introduced in the House of Representatives which attempted to prohibit sex-selection abortion in the U.S.<\/p>\n
\tThe bill came to a vote amid the release of several undercover videos showing Planned Parenthood clinics around the country cooperating in sex-selection abortions.<\/p>\n
\tAlthough the legislation did not succeed, Hasib called it \u201cfantastic\u201d that people are \u201ctaking notice\u201d and word of gendercide is beginning to spread.<\/p>\n
\tAs a woman from an Eastern culture, the Bangladeshi author feels that she has a responsibility to speak up for the many women and girls who cannot.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cI am one of the fortunate ones,\u201d she said. \u201cI have a voice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tShe hopes that her book will help draw greater attention to the horror of gendercide in all of its manifestations throughout the world.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cWe have to be aware of this,\u201d she insisted.<\/p>\n
\n
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Washington D.C., Jun 7, 2012 \/ 01:49 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- A new novel by a businesswoman and author from Bangladesh is highlighting the ongoing tragedy of female “gendercide” in many Eastern cultures.<\/p>\n
\tFemale infanticide and sex-selection …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-250","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-asia-pacific"],"yoast_head":"\n
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