2004
5 April 2004. [Europe] Modern
Society Pits Mothers Against Public Health
Systems. As
European women have fewer children at an older
age and continue to find new opportunities
in the workplace, a conflict is arising between
the preferences of pregnant mothers and the
capabilities of their public health systems
to cope with those preferences. Due to the
increase in education and expectations for
women in the region, pregnant women want to
have more of a say in the timing and process
of childbirth. Across Europe, the incidence
of scheduled Caesarean Section births has
risen, along with the requests for the procedure.
However, most public hospitals in the United
Kingdom, Italy and France are unable to handle
the large amount of requests, or are not outfitted
with the latest technology. They are turning
women down for the procedure and insisting
on more traditional forms of childbirth, with
a few compromises as far as equipment, location
and medications. Wealthy women and celebrities
have escaped this conflict, as they can afford
to pay for the more accommodating private
hospitals, but women who cannot afford this
privilege are forced to adhere to the confines
of the public health systems. (See "The
Battle Over Birth," by Jennie James. Time
Europe. April 5, 2004.)
13 April 2004. Varied Population Composition
Increases United Arab Emirates's Size. The
geographically small country of the United Arab
Emirates surpassed a population size of 4 million
people in 2003. With a growth rate of 7.6 percent
(compared with a US growth rate of 1.4 percent),
the UAE is the fastest growing country in the
Arab world, and has one of the highest population
growth rates worldwide. Also, the population
of men is double that of women in the country.
The composition of the UAE population accounts
for their staggering sex imbalance. UAE citizens
account for only 25 percent of the country's
population; the rest of the population is comprised
of expatriates from around the region and businesspeople
from other parts of the globe, two-thirds of
whom are male. Since population growth is not
primarily due to natural increase, but rather
immigration, an equal number of males and females
cannot be expected. (From "UAE Population
Crosses 4 Million at the End of 2003." Xinhua
General News Service. April 13, 2004.
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