© 2002 Archives of Disease in Childhood Fetal and Neonatal Edition
EDITORIAL
"Right not to be born"
Is there a "right not to be born"? Reproductive decision making, options and the right to information
Editor Journal of Medical Ethics, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute & Centre for the Study of Health & Society, University of Melbourne, Australia;
savulesj@cryptic.rch.unimelb.edu.au
Keywords: Right not to be born; reproductive decision making; right to information; law and medical ethics
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
An Indian Court recently awarded 50,000 rupees damages to a couple who gave birth to their fourth daughter. The couple were mistakenly told they were carrying a male fetus. The doctor mistook a section of the umbilical cord for a penis. The husband said: "We are already struggling to raise three children. This was a big sacrifice for us to have a fourth child. We would have had an abortion if we had known it was a girl". The cost of damages amounted to the dowry they would have to pay at the time of their daughter’s marriage.
This is a fictional case. But the cases of Nicholas Perruche and Lionel1 are not fictional. According to reports, damages were paid to these children on the basis of what the media has described as a "right not to be born". Is there a "right not to
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