Doctors in India Turning Girls into Boys

Man, being born a woman in India must be tough, as it appears some parents are paying upwards of ￡2,000 to turn their female children into boys using a procedure called a genitoplasty. According to the Madhya Pradesh government, up to 300 young girls were surgically altered to become boys, presumably over fears such as marriage costs and dowries. Those against the practice, which include women’s and children’s rights campaigners such as Ranjana Kumari of the Centre for Social Research called it “social madness.” “The figures are getting worse,” she said. “In 2001 there were 886 girls born to every 1,000 boys in Delhi. Today there are only 866. The more educated and rich you are, the more there is killing of girls. People don’t want to share their property or invest in girls’ education or pay dowries. It’s the greedy middle classes running after money. It is just so shocking and an outright violation of children’s rights.”

During the course of the investigation, the doctors accused of performing the surgery claimed that it was being done to “correct” children that were born with characteristics of both a male and a female. Those speaking out against this practice make the claim that this was just a ruse, or a case of misidentifying the condition, in order to gain a boy in the household. Ranjana Kumari goes on to explain the spiritual significance of having a woman in the household, but also points out that women should be supported financially and with jobs of their own. Wise words indeed.