Abstract
Today, preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) is one of best ways of selecting the sex of a preborn baby. Although the Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology does not allow PGD for sex-selection, it is reported that a number of Japanese couples have gone abroad to use PGD. In light of this trend the author has conducted a literature review and critical analysis of the bioethical arguments concerning PGD in Western countries, in order to examine their merit in a Japanese settings. As a result, the paper summarizes and classifies the arguments against PGD for sex-selection into four types: (1) risk and safety for women, babies, and embryos; (2) sex discrimination against females; (3) imbalance in the sex ratio; and (4) parental attitude toward (preborn) babies. Objections to PGD for sex selection are often made with reference to parental autonomy and freedom. These arguments are analyzed with reference to the Japanese context. Every new biomedical intervention has risk and safety problems, but they can eventually be resolved through technical innovations. Sex discrimination is also problematic, but it is not always true that the use of PGD leads to such discrimination. The imbalanced sex ratio, as a result of sex selection, has been the subject of heated debates in some countries, including India, China and Korea. However, it seems unlikely that Japan faces this problem. This is because an imbalanced sex ratio in Japan would happen only when almost all the couples who use IVF select a male baby, with the help of PGD. Finally, the paper explores virtue ethics that take parental attitudes toward (preborn) babies seriously. The paper concludes that virtue ethics are not always resistant to PGD for sex-selection. It advocates, rather, sex-selection by means of PGD only in certain conditions.
