Re: Suggesting birth control to starving Africans against their human rights?

"REP" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> In article <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
>  "Mark Richardson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> > Counselling is not going to work. Something more effective, in terms of
the
> > culture of the people, is what is required. Right now, there does not
appear
> > to be any appreciation of "cause and effect". People know that having
sex
> > can result in having children, but that does not seem to register at the
> > moment critique.
>
> When women are given birth control and told how to use it, they do so
> and have smaller families. Many African women are not in a position to
> refuse sex (or to do it and live), so birth control that does not rely
> on the husband (like condoms) would be a terrific first step. Once women
> are able to control their fertility, they are better able to become
> economically independent. General education for women is another thing
> that lowers fertility rates, and I can't see any downside to that.
>
> I am no expert, but everything I have read on the subject says that
> readily available contraceptives for women would not only be more
> effective than involuntary sterilization, it avoids the ethical quandry.
> Of course, voluntary sterilization should be readily available to anyone
> who wants it.


Define "given birth control". Is this a reference to depo provera?

In fact, making sure that every "at risk" female had access to a method of
birth control will be as difficult as making sure that every HIV positive
woman has access to ARVs. It is not simply a matter of having the tools, it
is not only physically difficult to put such tools where they can be
accessed regularly and immediately, it is also difficult to make sure that
the woman can use them without the knowledge and permission of the man - and
there is still the question of cultural obstacles to be overcome and these
are just as difficult when relating to women as to men.

There is an obvious ethical question to be raised in regard to involuntary
sterilization, but what about the ethical question of bearing children when
there are no means to support them?

Mark Richardson