CHAPTER 7 THE RECEPTION OF VOLUNTARY STERILIZATION IN THE LEGISLATION OF BRAZIL AND FRANCE AND ITS MAIN CONSEQUENCES

Abstract

One of the biggest issues faced by lawmakers in the news revolves around the question of how to deal with the scientific discoveries uncovered by new technologies. Scientific developments in the field of health awaken, in human beings, the desire to try to go beyond nature, and developments in the field of sexual and reproductive health not only challenge the laws of nature itself, but also the laws put in place by humanity. Among the advances in the field of human contraception, we highlight voluntary sterilization, used throughout the world as a 99% effective contraceptive measure. In Brazil, voluntary sterilization was formalized by the Family Planning Law which imposed, among other restrictions, the need for the consent of another person for its realization. It is a violent imposition, in the service of control over the bodies, on the part of the State. This control is notably imposed on the woman’s body, thus reducing her autonomy, which is the basis of her dignity. That said, the purpose of this article is to question the foundations on which the adoption of such a limitation of bodily self-determination is based and justified. For this, the legal-philosophical contributions of authors Ronald Dworkin and Jürgen Habermas will be examined, in the light of bioethics. The focus of the questions will be on the analysis of the ways in which Brazil and France have welcomed the process of voluntary sterilization, and what have been the most important consequences of this legalization.