11th September 2024
This presentation critically reflects on disability selective abortion under UK law, arguing that the current legislative framework is disability discriminatory according to UN standards. This is because, under the UK law, a scale of severity of disability for termination of a pregnancy is absent, meaning that abortion can happen up until full term as compared to a non-disabled foetus where the restriction for terminating pregnancy is 24 weeks gestation. Therefore, currently the UK law on abortion perpetrates negative stereotypes and displays a negative image of the value that society places on the existing disabled people. This paper also argues that disability-selective abortion stems from a eugenicist philosophy. Eugenics seeks to purify society from those who are considered “inferior” and to encourage the rate of births considered “superior.” Eugenics continues today through selective abortion of children with disabilities.
Maral is a Postgraduate Researcher in Law at the University of Leeds. She was awarded the University of Leeds Faculty of Social Sciences Doctoral Scholarship in October 2023, following her undergraduate degree in Law L.L.B in 2022 and her Masters LL.M in Law and Social Justice. Her PhD examines the effectiveness of advocacy in securing rights to independent living for disabled people in Iceland and England, with reference to the CRPD; how rights to independent living are accessed, and the practical difficulties that disabled people encounter when trying to enforce their entitlement. Her research interests include in social justice, gender studies, discrimination, International human rights, and disability rights both within the legal and wider framework.
