장애에 대한 부정적 인식이 장애가능성이 있는 태아의 낙태에 대한 태도에 미치는 영향 (법률적, 의료적, 기독교적 태도를 중심으로)

It’s generally believed that the social prejudice against the physicall/mentally -impaired seems to be a contributor to inducing the abortion of a fetus having likelihood of disabilities, and furthr such a social atmosphere could have an influence on legal, medical, Christian attitude as well. This study took a look at people’s legal, medical, Christian attitude toward the abortion of a fetus having the possibility of disabilities through the precedent research works on the social sense of distance, bias, and life quality, etc. against the physically/mentally-impaired and also on abortions. Through such a research process, this study drew some conclusions as follows: First, people’s social prejudiced ideas and awareness of the physically/mentally -challenged cause them finally to treat the disabled as incompetents and perceive them as inferior beings, having a social sense of distance. The viewpoint that the life quality of the people, who are suffering from disabilities. canhet but drop supported by of a multitude of the non-disabled is quite attributable to the principle of strength, and thus such a viewpoint tend to lead them into the abortion of a fetus just because it has likelihood of disabilities. However, human life cannot be a criteron of judging value by any means and anything must not be in the order of priority over human life. Second, viewed from the current law about abortion, the legal system in Korea in principle forbids abortion, but the reasons for allowing abortion are prescribed in Mother and Child Health Law, so it can be called a half-baked law. In Mother and Child Health Law which was made for mother’s right, there are provisons for permitting abortion, among which the reason for eugenical justification are so extensively acknowledged that the life of the embryo is greatly threatened. The provision of ‘the reason for eugenical justification’ permits the abortion of the embryo suspected of the likelihood of hereditary diseases. However, the position that abortion is allowed just because of having disability must be reconsidered. Third, from the medical viewpoint, abortion should be acknowledged only in case of the reason for eugenical justification, but if the medical treatment site openly or secretly performs abortion due to the probability of birth defect, which is prognosticated by a prenatal test, such an irresponsible behavior should most definitely be improved, considering generally negative aspects from the medical, eugenical, and bio-ethical field. Fourth, looking at the abortion from the position of Christianity, every human have a dignity as a being created in God’s own image as specified in the Bible, and this dignity is also applied to the fetus as a potential human as well. Though church shows an approval of the diagnosis of a fetus, but it doesn’t mean at all that church approves an abortion. The purpose of fetal diagnosis is to give relief to an expecting mother that her fetus is healthy and in the second place, in case of discovery of some diseases or defects, to necessitate the prenatal treatment or save the fetus as far as possible[Kang, Hyeok-joon, 1996]. This study took a look at the legal, medical, religious attitude toward the abortion of a fetus having likelihood of disabilities and put its significance on improving such a wrong idea of disabilities.