[wanita-muslimah] Abortion in Middle East
Number of abortions rising in Middle East, experts say Changing social values and economic realities, along with demographic shifts are among the reasons, observers in the Arab world say. By Borzou Daragahi, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer June 29, 2008 BEIRUT -- Unmarried and pregnant, Ranya gathered up her courage and confided to a friend that she was considering a drastic step: an illegal abortion. She braced for criticism. But to her surprise, her friend disclosed that she had had one too. Ranya asked another friend, who also said she'd had an abortion. And another gave her the phone number of a doctor in Beirut who would perform the procedure on the sly. The doctor used no anesthetic. The pain lingered for days, but the guilt engulfed her weeks later. It doesn't make me feel guilty because of Islam, said Ranya, 29, a short, brown-haired artist, struggling with her words. It's a very complicated guilt to explain. I tend to philosophize things. I feel guilty in a weird way. It crosses my mind all the time. Despite legal and religious restrictions against abortion in much of the Arab world, changing social values and economic realities as well as demographic shifts have contributed to an apparent increase in the number of the procedures in the Middle East. There's definitely an increase compared to 10 to 15 years ago, said Mohammed Graigaa, executive director of the Moroccan Assn. for Family Planning. Abortion is much less of a taboo. It's much more visible. Doctors talk about it. Women talk about it. The moral values of people have changed. In most Middle East countries, the 15-to-24-year-old age group has grown to make up about a third of the population, but the percentage of early marriages is dropping. In Egypt, only 10% of 15-to-19-year-old females were married in 2003, down from 22% in 1976. As young people wait longer to marry, they're increasingly engaging in premarital sex. I think abortions are going up for just for one reason: Sex is becoming more permissive, said Wissam Ghandour, a Lebanese obstetrician and scholar. I assure you that the majority of girls getting married now are non-virgins and sexually active. In addition, Arab youths receive little in the way of birth control or sex education, say family planning experts in the Middle East, many of whom work discreetly to provide reproductive health services in conservative Muslim societies that hold women's maternal roles as sacrosanct. If access to contraceptives was widely and freely available, abortion wouldn't be necessary, said an official at a Western family planning organization in Yemen. She spoke on condition of anonymity for fear her organization would be targeted. Abortion, she said, is a last resort. According to most interpretations, Islam strictly forbids abortion after the fetus has reached 4 months, and allows it before then only in cases of violent rape or when birth poses an extreme threat to the physical or psychological health of the mother. Otherwise, abortion is tantamount to killing a living soul, a major sin in Islam, said Abdel Moati Bayoumi, a professor of the fundamentals of Islam at Cairo's Al Azhar University, the world's premier Muslim school of higher education. The rise of abortion and its acceptability in the Arab world reflects the decadence of societies in the region and how much people are drifting away from the teachings of Islam, he said in a telephone interview. Abortion should not be taken lightly, because it involves killing a creature that belongs only to God. According to a poll released this month by WorldPublicOpinion.org, 53% of Egyptians, 57% of Palestinians and 55% of Iranians oppose their governments' policies of making abortion a crime. But abortions are often tolerated, with law enforcement officials and prosecutors looking the other way unless a parent or husband files a complaint. Even open-minded clerics give tacit approval for abortions in some cases. They are performed by doctors or back-alley amateurs, many of them midwives. Statistics are sparse. Family planning experts said they detected a 100% increase in the number of abortions from two decades ago. Graigaa, for example, said the number in Morocco had doubled. According to the United Nations, about one in 10 pregnancies in the region ends in abortion, half the rate of the United States. A study by the International Planned Parenthood Federation estimated there were 7 million abortions in the Arab world from 1995 to 2000. A 1993 study showed that 14% of women in one rural Egyptian hamlet had had an abortion. Researchers estimate that 100,000 abortions are performed a year in Iran, a non- Arab nation that stands out for its relatively progressive sex education and family planning policies. Moroccan family planning experts estimate that 600 abortions a day are performed in the North African country, most involving unmarried women. Only a small percentage are victims of rape or sexual abuse, they
[wanita-muslimah] Abortion (dari Nety Nurda)
A letter from an unborn baby: Hi mom!, how are you?, I am doing just fine thanks. Only a few days have gone by since I was conceived and I am now growing in your tummy. To tell you the truth I can't explain how happy I am to know that you are my mom. I am sure I am going to be the happiest baby alive. It also makes me proud to know that I was conceived out of love. Mommy, a month has gone past and I have started to notice how my body is forming. I know I am not much to look at now but just wait and see I'll make you so proud! Even though I am feeling happy I sense something is wrong!... You seem to be having strange thoughts that leave me restless and worried, but I am sure everything is going to be ok! Don't despair. Two and a half months have gone by mom, I now have hands that I can use to play with. Oh I am so happy. Mommy, please tell me what's wrong? Why are you crying so much lately? Why do you and dad argue every time you meet up with one another? Don't you guys want me anymore? I'm going to do everything I can to make you want me… 3 months have now past mom, but you still seem to be so sad. I am not sure what is going on, I am so confused. Today we went to see the doctor and he booked an appointment for you tomorrow. I don't understand why I am feeling so good and you aren't mom! Uh!!! What is this thing doing inside of my house? Mommy, where are we going?, What's happening? Mommy, this is not normally the time you take your afternoon nap, don't lie down. Besides I am not tired I still want to play. Is it a new toy?! Hey! It's sucking up my house… Mommy!!! Stop them, that's my hand!!! Please…, don't tug at me! No…. Don't hit me you hurting me?! Defend me mom!!! Can't you see I'm still small I can't defend myself! Mommy, my leg, they ripping it out!!! Help me mom!!! Tell them to stop, I promise I'll stop kicking them if they do. How is it possible that a human being can be doing this to me? Oh mommy, I can't go on anymore… he…lp me… 17 years have gone by since you made that fateful decision. How you still suffer over the very thought of it. Please don't cry, remember that I love you and I'll be waiting for you with open arms. Love you lots!!! Your baby. Participate in the campaign: All AGAINST ABORTION! Pass this presentation on…. ...so we can help save lives. A photographer decided to do coverage on one of medicines greatest achievements. An operation of a 21 week old foetus inside of it's mothers womb, known to be suffering from 'spina bifida'. Little did he know that the image he captured was to be of such importance in this fight for life and is still used for this purpose to this very day. This extraordinary moment of a baby stretching out his tiny little hand and holding on to the finger of the surgeon was captured by Paul Harris. The story behind this touching picture, reflects the struggle experienced by a couple who fought against all odds to save the life of their first child. This amazing photo was published by various newspapers across the United States, travelling the world over eventually reaching Ireland where it became one of the most powerful voices AGAINST the legalization of ABORTION. Say yes to life! Please, pass this message on to all your contacts. File kiriman mbak Nety asalnya adalah PowerPoint lengkap dengan gambar dan suara. Hanya teks yang saya copy and paste di sini. Bagi yang berminat untuk melihat/mendengarkan file lengkapnya silakan download dari http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wanita-muslimah/files/Info_Sehat salam, DWS Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ~-- Check out the new improvements in Yahoo! Groups email. http://us.click.yahoo.com/4It09A/fOaOAA/yQLSAA/aYWolB/TM ~- === Milis Wanita Muslimah Membangun citra wanita muslimah dalam diri, keluarga, maupun masyarakat. Situs Web: http://www.wanita-muslimah.com ARSIP DISKUSI : http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wanita-muslimah/messages Kirim Posting mailto:wanita-muslimah@yahoogroups.com Berhenti mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Milis Keluarga Sejahtera mailto:keluarga-sejahtera@yahoogroups.com Milis Anak Muda Islam mailto:majelismuda@yahoogroups.com This mailing list has a special spell casted to reject any attachment Yahoo! Groups Links * To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wanita-muslimah/ * Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional * To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wanita-muslimah/join (Yahoo! ID required) * To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] * To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] * Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
Re: [wanita-muslimah] abortion
ya tetap ngga bisa mbak. Jangan kirim attachment ke milis (wanita-muslimah@yahoogroups.com) coba begini: - ubah dulu filenya (word/doc, pdf, xls) menjadi teks biasa (txt), copy and paste ke email. - kalo sulit, kirim saja ke moderator terlebih dahulu ( [EMAIL PROTECTED]) salam, DWS =Moderator On 2/25/07, nety nurda [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: semoga yg ini attach nya bs kebuka Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[wanita-muslimah] abortion
semoga yg ini attach nya bs kebuka Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[wanita-muslimah] abortion
FYI, Best Regards, Nety Nurda,Skom Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
