Editing Sex-selective abortion (section)

=== China ===
{{Further|Son preference in China|Missing women of China|Female infanticide in China|List of Chinese administrative divisions by gender ratio}}
[[File:G106-Dajipu-to-Daye-hills-0068.jpg|thumb|250px|A roadside slogan calls motorists to crack down on medically unnecessary antenatal sex identification and sex-selective pregnancy termination practices. ([[Daye, Hubei]], 2008)]]
[[File:PRC family planning don't abandon girls.jpg|thumb|250px|Roadside sign in Danshan Township, which reads "It is forbidden to discriminate against, abuse or abandon baby girls"]]
China, the most populous country in the world, has a serious problem with an unbalanced sex ratio population. A 2010 BBC article stated that the sex birth ratio was 119 boys born per 100 girls, which rose to 130 boys per 100 girls in some rural areas.<ref name="news.bbc.co.uk">{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8451289.stm| title=China faces growing sex imbalance| date=January 11, 2010| access-date=December 15, 2017| archive-date=October 16, 2018| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181016195046/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8451289.stm| url-status=live}}</ref> The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences estimated that more than 24 million Chinese men of marrying age could find themselves without spouses by 2020.<ref name="news.bbc.co.uk"/> In 1979, China enacted the [[one-child policy]], which, within the country's deeply patriarchal culture, resulted in an unbalanced birth sex ratio. The one child policy was enforced throughout the years, including through [[forced abortion]]s and [[forced sterilization]]s, but gradually loosened until it was formally abolished in 2015.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34665539| title=China to end one-child policy| work=BBC News| date=October 29, 2015| access-date=June 20, 2018| archive-date=November 21, 2016| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161121005729/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34665539| url-status=live}}</ref>

When sex ratio began being studied in China in 1960, it was still within the normal range. However, it climbed to 111.9 by 1990<ref name = "Junhong_2001" /> and to 118 by 2010 per its official census.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-08/16/c_131052436.htm | title = China's sex ratio declines for two straight years | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150222173509/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-08/16/c_131052436.htm | archive-date=February 22, 2015 | work = news.xinhuanet.com | location = Xinhua, China }}</ref><ref>{{cite report | vauthors = Kang C, Wang Y | title = Sex ratio at birth. | work = Theses collection of 2001 national family planning and reproductive health survey. | date = 2003 | pages = 88–98 }}</ref> Researchers believe that the causes of this sex ratio imbalance are increased female infant mortality, underreporting of female births and sex-selective abortion. According to Zeng et al. (1993), the most prominent cause is probably sex-selective abortion, but this is difficult to prove that in a country with little reliable birth data because of the hiding of "illegal" (under the One-Child Policy) births.<ref name=zengyi93>{{cite journal | vauthors = Yi Z, Ping T, Baochang G, Yi X, Bohua L, Yongpiing L | year = 1993 | title = Causes and implications of the recent increase in the reported sex ratio at birthin China | journal = Population and Development Review | volume = 19 | issue = 2| pages = 283–302 | doi=10.2307/2938438| jstor = 2938438 }}</ref>

These illegal births have led to underreporting of female infants. Zeng et al., using a reverse survival method, estimate that underreporting keeps about 2.26% male births and 5.94% female births off the books. Adjusting for unreported illegal births, they conclude that the corrected Chinese sex ratio at birth for 1989 was 111 rather than 115.<ref name=zengyi93 /> These national averages over time, mask the regional sex ratio data. For example, in 2005 [[Anhui]], [[Jiangxi]], [[Shaanxi]], [[Hunan]] and [[Guangdong]], had a sex ratio at birth of more than 130.<ref>{{cite web | vauthors = Branigan T | url = https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/nov/02/chinas-great-gender-crisis | title = China's Great Gender Crisis | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230901175527/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/nov/02/chinas-great-gender-crisis | archive-date=September 1, 2023 | work = The Guardian, UK | date = November 2, 2011 }}</ref><ref name=Hesketh />

Traditional Chinese techniques have been used to determine sex for hundreds of years, primarily with unknown accuracy. It was not until [[ultrasonography]] became widely available in urban and rural China that sex was able to be determined scientifically. In 1986, the Ministry of Health posted the Notice on Forbidding Prenatal Sex Determination, but it was not widely followed.<ref>Ministry of Health and State Family Planning Commission.1986. "Notice on strictly forbidding prenatal sex determination," reprinted in Peng Peiyun(ed.), 1997, Family Planning Encyclopedia of China. Beijing: China Population Press, p. 939.</ref> Three years later, the Ministry of Health outlawed the use of sex determination techniques, except for in diagnosing hereditary diseases.<ref>Ministry of Health. 1989. "Urgent notice on strictly forbidding the use of medical technology to perform prenatal sex determination," reprinted in Peng Peiyun (ed.), 1997, Family Planning Encyclopedia of China. Beijing: China Population Press, pp. 959–960.</ref> Individuals or clinics that violated the ban on prenatal determination at the request of the mother were subject to financial penalties, and the ban was repeatedly affirmed in the 1980s, early 1990s, and early 2000s.<ref>{{cite book | vauthors = Rodriguez SM |url= |title=Reproductive realities in modern China : birth control and abortion, 1911-2021 |date=2023 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=978-1-009-02733-5 |location=Cambridge, United Kingdom |pages=191 |oclc=1366057905}}</ref> However, many people have personal connections to medical practitioners and strong [[son preference]] still dominates culture, leading to the widespread use of sex determination techniques.<ref name="Junhong_2001" />

Hardy, Gu, and Xie suggest sex-selective abortion is more prevalent in rural China because son preference is much stronger there.<ref name="Xie">Hardee, Karen, Gu Baochang, and Xie Zhenming. 2000. "Holding up more than half the sky:Fertility control and women's empowerment in China,"paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Population Association of America, March 23–25, Los Angeles.</ref> Urban areas of China, on average, are moving toward greater equality for both sexes, while rural China tends to follow more traditional views of gender. This is partially due to the belief that, while sons are always part of the family, daughters are only temporary, going to a new family when they marry. Additionally, if a woman's firstborn child is a son, her position in society moves up, while the same is not true of a firstborn daughter.<ref name="Junhong_2001" /> Families in China are aware of the critical lack of female children and its implication on marriage prospects in the future; many parents are beginning to work extra when their sons are young so that they will be able to pay for a bride for them.<ref name="Junhong_2001" />

[[File:Sex ratio at birth in mainland China.png|thumb|450px|Birth sex ratios have dramatically changed in China since the implementation of the [[One-Child Policy]].]]
In a 2005 study, Zhu, Lu, and Hesketh found that the highest sex ratio was for those ages 1–4, and two provinces, Tibet and Xinjiang, had sex ratios within normal limits. Two other provinces had a ratio over 140, four had ratios between 130 and 139, and seven had ratios between 120 and 129, each of which is significantly higher than the natural sex ratio.<ref name="Hesketh">{{cite journal | vauthors = Zhu WX, Lu L, Hesketh T | title = China's excess males, sex selective abortion, and one child policy: analysis of data from 2005 national intercensus survey | journal = BMJ | volume = 338 | issue = 7700 | pages = 920–923 | date = April 2009 | pmid = 19359290 | pmc = 2667570 | doi = 10.1136/bmj.b1211 | jstor = 20512658 }}</ref>

The birth sex ratio in China, according to a 2012 news report, has decreased to 117 males born for every 100 females.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.china.org.cn/video/2012-03/31/content_25036729.htm|title=China sees decrease in male-to-female birth ratio gap - China.org.cn|website=www.china.org.cn|access-date=October 23, 2019|archive-date=February 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190218122734/http://www.china.org.cn/video/2012-03/31/content_25036729.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> The sex ratio peaked in 2004 at around 121, and had declined to around 112 in 2017.<ref>{{cite web | vauthors = Somaia P, Islamiah Zahroh R, Bohren M |date=March 11, 2020|title=Where are all the missing girls?|url=https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/where-are-all-the-missing-girls|access-date=September 12, 2020|website=Pursuit|language=en|archive-date=February 15, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220215134155/https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/where-are-all-the-missing-girls|url-status=live}}</ref> The ratio was forecast to drop below 112 by 2020 and 107 by 2030, according to the National Population Development Outline by the State Council.<ref>{{cite web|title=Report: Sex ratio to balance out by 2030 - China - Chinadaily.com.cn|url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2017-01/27/content_28064356.htm|access-date=September 12, 2020|website=www.chinadaily.com.cn|archive-date=February 15, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220215134205/https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2017-01/27/content_28064356.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

In December 2016, researchers at the [[University of Kansas]] reported that the missing women might be largely a result of administrative under-reporting and that delayed registration of females, instead of abortion and [[infanticide]] practices. The finding questioned the earlier assumptions that rural Chinese villagers aborted their daughters on a massive scale and concluded that as many as 10 to 15 million missing women hadn't received proper birth registration since 1982.<ref>{{cite web | vauthors = Steger I |url=https://qz.com/848715/its-a-myth-that-china-has-30-million-missing-girls-because-of-the-one-child-policy-a-new-study-says |title=It's a myth that China has 30 million "missing girls" because of the one-child policy, a new study says |work=Quartz |date=November 29, 2016 |access-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230429225829/https://qz.com/848715/its-a-myth-that-china-has-30-million-missing-girls-because-of-the-one-child-policy-a-new-study-says |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/11/30/researchers-may-have-found-many-of-chinas-30-million-missing-girls/ |title=Researchers may have 'found' many of China's 30 million missing girls |newspaper=Washington Post |date=November 30, 2016 | vauthors = Denyer S |access-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-date=July 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230729003039/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/11/30/researchers-may-have-found-many-of-chinas-30-million-missing-girls/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The reason for underreporting was attributed to families trying to avoid penalties when girls were born, and local government concealing the lack of enforcement from the central government. This implied that the sex disparity of the Chinese newborns was likely exaggerated significantly in previous analyses.<ref name="shi_kennedy">{{cite journal| vauthors = Shi Y, Kennedy JJ |date=December 2016|title=Delayed Registration and Identifying the "Missing Girls" in China|journal=The China Quarterly|volume=228|pages=1018–1038|doi=10.1017/S0305741016001132|issn=0305-7410|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name="cnn_161201">{{cite web |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2016/12/01/asia/china-missing-girls/index.html |title=Study finds millions of China's 'missing girls' actually exist |website=CNN |date=December 1, 2016 | vauthors = Jozuka E |access-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-date=April 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230402034411/http://edition.cnn.com/2016/12/01/asia/china-missing-girls/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | vauthors = Zhuang P |title=China's 'missing women' theory likely overblown, researchers say |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2050444/chinas-missing-girls-theory-likely-be-overblown-study |website=South China Morning Post |date=November 30, 2016 |access-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-date=December 15, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215011815/https://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2050444/chinas-missing-girls-theory-likely-be-overblown-study |url-status=live }}</ref> Though the degree of data discrepancy, the challenge in relation to sex-ratio imbalance in China is still disputed among scholars.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/china-quarterly/article/abs/missing-girls-or-hidden-girls-a-comment-on-shi-and-kennedys-delayed-registration-and-identifying-the-missing-girls-in-china/61E21855F8A1D958660973841BBC46FD |title=Missing Girls or Hidden Girls? A Comment on Shi and Kennedy's "Delayed Registration and Identifying the 'Missing Girls' in China" |journal=The China Quarterly |issue=231 |date=2017 |pages=797–803 | vauthors = Cai Y |volume=231 |doi=10.1017/S0305741017001060 |s2cid=158924618 |access-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230429232049/https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/china-quarterly/article/abs/missing-girls-or-hidden-girls-a-comment-on-shi-and-kennedys-delayed-registration-and-identifying-the-missing-girls-in-china/61E21855F8A1D958660973841BBC46FD |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2017/01/chinas-missing-girls-along/ |title=Have China's Missing Girls Actually Been There All Along? |website=New Security Beat |date=January 9, 2017 | vauthors = den Boer A, M Hudson V |access-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230429232050/https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2017/01/chinas-missing-girls-along/ |url-status=live }}</ref>