Sterilization of Mentally Ill Ladies
The sterilization of mentally ill people began in German during the Nazi regime. It was argued that that this procedure was necessary to prevent defective genes from being spread to future generations. The decision by Nazi of Germany to have people with abnormalities sterilized was borrowed from the United States of America where between the years 1907 and 1939 more than 30,000 people were sterilized against their will because of their mental condition. This was mainly done to people incarcerated in prisons or institutions of mentally disabled people. However Germany goes on record as one of the countries that carried out massive sterilization of mentally challenged people during Hitlers regime (Mappes, T. 2001).
There are various pros and cons of carrying out such a procedure. Some of them are discussed below According to those who champion for sterilization of mentally disabled people this procedure is important as people who are mentally challenged may not be able to care for their off springs if they were allowed to reproduce. This would mean that the work of caring for the young ones would be left to their parents who may also be mentally challenged. This would therefore mean that their off springs would have to be surrendered to the state. It is also argued that by sterilizing mentally challenged people there would be a considerable reduction in the number of people who are mentally challenged as the genes would not be allowed to spread
(Allen. R. 2005).
Further argument in support of this procedure is that there will be less people in the society who will need to be cared for and thus this procedure will reduce the burden of caring for the mentally disabled in the society. However, those who argue against this practice equally have their reasons ( HYPERLINK httpwww.uky.eduClassesPHI305.002ret.htm httpwww.uky.eduClassesPHI305.002ret.htm). Firstly they argue that sterilization of mentally challenged people is a violation of their rights as human beings and a violation of Bill of Rights as enshrined in the constitution. It is grossly unfair to force any person to undergo this medical procedure against their will. This procedure should only be carried out with the full consent of a person. Furthermore, it is not always the case that a mentally handicapped person will always give birth to an offspring who is mentally handicapped. It is therefore fair that mentally challenged people be given an opportunity to give birth (Moya, W. 2005).
It is further argued that this procedure could lead to loss of potential generations who may have great intellectual capacity. By sterilizing mentally handicapped people we are condemning other generations to come and thus denying the society a generation of people with great potential. Again by denying the mentally challenged people an opportunity to procreate, we reduce the diversity of the society. A diverse society is one that has people who are diverse in nature including those who are mentally handicapped. Life is what it is today because we are all different. If we were all the same then the world would not be an interesting place to be in. In addition those people who have laid their lives and dedicated themselves into caring for the mentally handicapped people would not have jobs to do if there were no mentally challenged people. Besides violating their constitutional rights this procedure is also a violation of the natural rights of the mentally disabled people. They are human beings entitled to their privacy and the freedom to choose what they think is best for their lives. It therefore is seen as going overboard when they are forced to undergo such a medical procedure (Mappes, T. 2001).
In this particular case we are looking at a person who has a mental age of five. This means that their thinking capacity is that of a child who is in kindergarten. In essence this means that such a person has no clear understanding of parenthood and may not be able to make a valid decision. There have been a couple of cases where this form of sterilization has been seen to clash with the individual rights of mentally ill ladies. An example is one of a lady whose name is Laura. Laura who is 34 years old was born with a rare condition of moderate mental illness. Her condition is such that her brain is damaged and she also has epilepsy. She can neither read nor write and she is also not bale to care for her (Moya, W. 2005).
Laura wishes to give birth. Her parents are opposed to this move arguing that if Laura was allowed to give birth she is not likely to be able to care for her child due to her condition. They further argue that due to her condition, she may not have clear understanding on the relationship between intercourse and pregnancy (Macklin, R. 2008). She can not be put under contraceptives as they might interfere with her other medication. In such a case, it is quite a dilemma in deciding the way forward. Although Lauras parents want the very best for her, they are also looking into the future. What would happen if Laura gave birth to an equally retarded child Secondly, even though the child that Laura may have may not be retarded, will she be in a position to take care of the baby in her condition
In conclusion therefore I am of the opinion that sterilization of ladies with a mental age of 5 years or less should be encouraged. This is because although it may seem as a violation of human rights it is a way of reducing the burden of the society. It is more preferable if such ladies are sterilized rather than allowing them to have children that they may not be able to care for. Their understanding capacity is way toll low and thus should not be allowed to give birth.
Categories:
0 comments:
Post a Comment