A Miscarriage....
August 14, 2008
had written in her LJ:
My heart goes out to you. You are a brave couple and I cannot imagine facing such an issue in front of the media and having the country talk about such a personal thing. I wish that there was something I could do. Not just for the system, but for you. In an overburdened world, it is archaic of some law to decide that we must foster a compromised life.
I feel angry that anyone else should decide for you what the rest of your life and your child's life must be like. I feel angry that anyone should arbitrarily decide to cheat you out of the parenting experience you desire, or that they should rob a child / person of the right to live well. Isn't keeping someone on life support the same thing as playing God ? Pulling the plug is letting nature take its course. Who decides to play God by forcing a compromised life or compromised health on anyone ? Especially when they really don't have any investment in the circumstance.
The line drawn at 20 weeks is INDEED fully arbitrary. If it is medically substantiated by anything, I haven't found it yet. I abhor the idea of abortion as an "oh-shit" method of birth control. But I also abhor the idea of having to reject the knowledge that we have given ourselves through science and technology. I abhor the idea of being irresponsible with life. Is it not irresponsible to force a hard and difficult life upon not one, but three people - and all those around the family ?
Harsha & Niketa I pray for your continued strength. And the best outcome.
********************
That said EXACTLY what I wanted to say, so I didn't say it.
Today, I heard the news item that Niketa suffered a miscarriage and lost the baby.
I think that this is the second miscarriage the couple has had to suffer; the first one was a miscarriage of justice, upholding the letter of the law while violating its spirit...and putting these people through untold mental agony.
The law is meant to protect people, not harass them....
The icing on the cake was that I read in the Deccan Herald that it was because someone made a mistake in the typing out of the case presentation, that caused the judges to think that there was "fair chance" of the baby being born without defects, and rule that the couple could not have a Medical Termination of Pregnancy.
Well...fate appears to have taken a hand...but my heart still goes out to the couple and their families. There are no winners in this instance...everyone's a loser. I pray that the couple gather strength to move on, while they mourn their loss.
