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watch One-Minute World News Last Updated: Wednesday, 2 August
2006, 10:40 GMT 11:40 UK China vow on sex-based abortion Newborn
babies in China's Qinghai province Officials say cases of
selective abortion have been prosecuted China will punish health
workers who help to abort female foetuses, despite a recent
decision not to criminalise the practice, an official said.
China's legislature scrapped a bill in June that would have
introduced fines and prison terms for aborting girls.  But an
official said that did not mean there was any relaxation in the
policy against selective abortion.  The practice stems from a
preference for sons, especially in rural areas, and China's one-
child policy.  As a result, official figures suggest there are
119 boys born for every 100 girls in China, Xinhua news agency
said, a figure much higher than the global ratio of 103 to 107
boys for 100 girls.  However, some population experts are
cautious about these figures, sus