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REAL Women was concerned about information provided by Statistics Canada that abortions for gender reasons were being performed in several areas in Canada that were highly populated by immigrants from India and China. Apparently the normal gender rates of birth of 105 males for every 100 females has been altered in these areas, so that there is now a marked gender gap in the birth rates between males and females.

This discrepancy can be plausibly explained by the use of ultrasound, which, among other uses, determines the child's gender prior to birth and can lead to sex selection abortions.

Some cultures traditionally desire to preserve the bloodlines through the male offspring, and it is this preference that now seems to be in effect in certain areas in Canada.

Unfortunately, there is no distinction under Canadian abortion law between abortions performed for medical reasons and abortions preformed for any other reason. That is, under our current federal abortion law, there is no prohibition of abortion on the grounds that the child's gender is not acceptable.

As a result of our concern, REAL Women wrote to every provincial and territorial Minister of Health on June 15, 2006 requesting that they look into the matter and, should gender bias be confirmed, that they consider regulating the ultrasound procedure to prohibit the disclosure of a child's gender prior to birth so as to preclude abortion being performed for gender reasons.

We were encouraged by the fact that the Ministers of Health did subsequently review the matter as requested.

Curiously, however the Ontario Minister of Health, George Smitherman, who is a well-known homosexual, did not respond to our request, despite the fact we sent him a reminder on September 20, 2006. Why not? Did Mr. Smitherman think it was a trick question? Or did he not respond because REAL Women, which is well known for its rejection of same-sex marriage had asked the question? Or did he not bother to reply because the issue was not one of his own pet projects?

It would appear that REAL Women's concerns were justified. According to an article published in the Globe and Mail (January 19, 2007), there is a discernable imbalance between boys and girls in families of East Indian origin born in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) of Mississauga and Brampton. In an editorial in the Globe and Mail (January 22, 2007), it was stated:

…health workers in the Indo-Canadian community will affirm, some immigrants from India have brought with them the traditional desire to have boys rather than girls, and that has meant severe family pressure to arrange abortions - unacceptable bullying that can help traumatize the women. …

The editorial then stated that this issue needs to be addressed.

As a result of this further information, REAL Women again wrote to Mr. Smitherman on January 24, 2007 requesting he review this matter. Because of our previous experience with Mr. Smitherman, we took the precaution this time of writing to Mr. Smitherman's boss, Premier Dalton McGuinty, as well, as we thought he might be able to convince Mr. Smitherman to act on this issue.

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