MarGao: High literacy rate and strong influence of the teachings of Church drive the high female-male ratio among the Christian community in Salcete.
The economic survey findings reveal that Salcete has 1,025 females for every 1,000 males among the Christian community as per the 2011 census. The statistics further reveal that the Christian community has 1,23,427 females as against 1,08,534 males in South Goa which is a relatively higher figure when compared to the other communities in the region.
Episcopal Vicar and Benaulim parish priest Fr Lucio Dias feels that the high female-male sex ratio among the Christian community could be due to the community being open to the teachings of Church. He said the Church promotes the birth of children and strongly condemns abortion in the belief that life is God’s gift and we must treasure it.
Fr Kenneth Teles, director of the Diocesan Family Service Centre, Goa, says human life is sacred because from its beginning it involves “the creative action of God” and family is the sanctuary of life. Sadly, the culture of death prevailing in today’s society treats human beings as an object. Fr Teles said that the Diocesan Family Service Centre has been working to promote life through its six departments namely: family life education (FLE), pro-life department, family social issues department, responsible parenthood department, pastoral counselling and marriage formation programmes working at every level from school children to youth.
He said emphasis is laid on responsible parenthood by teaching the beauty of God’s plan for the family through weekly courses on natural family planning, breastfeeding and women health issues. while the marriage formation programme organised nearly every weekend of the year helps engaged couples to stand up for life, form and live family life according to the divine plan of God. This teaching is reinforced by the priests in each parish through their especially organised courses and Sunday sermons.
Fr Teles said that most couples stand for life, rejecting contraception and abortion, and live out God’s design in their spousal life through the practice of natural family planning and responsible parenthood. Accepting a child as a gift from God could be the primary reason for the high female-male ratio as families accept children irrespective of the sex as gift of God, he said.
Dr Rajendra Borkar, medical officer, Curtorim primary health centre, said that this is an encouraging sign that the number of girls is more than the number of boys and attributes the high female-male sex ratio primarily to high literacy rate and the influence of Church on the community. “Hence, families do not look at abortion or determination of the sex of the child,” he said.
Amancio Fernandes of Goa Central Council of Society of St Vincent de Paul says, “Families do not consider girls as a burden, in the Christian community as dowry is not a factor. As a result, families do not mind if they have girls. On the other hand, the Church plays a major influence on families to accept children as gift of God. Hence, they accept a child as God’s gift, irrespective of the gender and today every family believes that the family is complete when they have a girl child.”
Dr M Braganza of the Infant Jesus Nursing Home said that it is difficult to point out why the sex ratio among Christians is high. She, however, said that the possible reason could be the stringent enforcement of law to prevent sex determination. She said that Church could also be playing its role to prevent abortions. “However, it is difficult to exactly pinpoint the reason.”
Advocate Radharao Gracias said there could be several reasons and added that the sex ratio could be driven by gender equality in the Christian community. Hence, families do not bother if the child is boy or a girl and there is no emphasis on a male child. This also reduces female foeticide, he said.
Noted cardiologist Dr Francis Colaco said the high sex ratio shows the wholehearted acceptance of females in families. He said many families believe that girls make better children than boys and hence do not mind having girls. Dr Colaco said there is no magic by which one can determine the sex of the child at the time of conception, Navhind Times reported.