Which countries in the twentieth century were carried out forced sterilization

One of the first actions of Hitler as head of Germany was the adoption in 1933 of the "Law on preventing the birth of offspring with hereditary diseases". It fell under the men and women, who suffered from dementia, epilepsy, schizophrenia. At the same time, many countries carried out similar sterilisation up to 80-ies of XX century, that did not prevent them to be considered a Bastion of democracy and civil liberties.

In Nazi Germany, in addition to the mentally ill, sterilization were exposed to people with hereditary deafness, blindness, physical deformities, chronic alcoholics, Jews and Gypsies. Only Germany went through the procedure from 200 to 500 thousand people. The decision on forced sterilization took a Commission of two psychiatrists and judges. However, not only the Nazis were fond of eugenics.

"We are not alone": German poster 1936 with flags of countries where it is permitted forced sterilization

Forced sterilization of Roma women was carried out in the Czech Republic from 1979 to 1989. The same operations were forcibly held in Switzerland until the late 1980s. Under the law were mentally retarded, and Gypsies. However, the largest scale experiments in eugenics received in prosperous Sweden, where people are forcibly sterilizeable from 1934 to 1976.

According to the law "about the purity of the race" the operation was done to citizens with mental health problems, hereditary diseases, and persons of mixed race. For the operation has not required the consent of the person, and supervised the program of the State Institute of racial biology.

USA is the first country which introduced a law on sterilization. In different States the procedure is done to people with mental disorders, mental retardation, deaf, blind and epileptics. In Indiana and Ohio to have children were forbidden to alcoholics, and in Virginia and new Hampshire marriage between people of different races were allowed only after complete sterilization.

The procedure was supported by the 30th US President Calvin Coolidge, who said:

By 1939, the operation was done 30 thousand citizens. The US government encouraged the sterilization of women of the Indian tribes and black women. When they got to the hospital for various reasons, unbeknownst to them, they did sterilization.

In one California from 1909 to 1964 after the operation it took 20 thousand people. In North Carolina in 1973 was sterilizeable 8 thousand citizens. In the US sterilization in the framework of the policy of eugenics lasted until 1974.

Forced sterilization was widely used in China and India. In the 1970-ies in the framework of the policy of "one family — one child" officials of individual Chinese provinces sterilized women. Today, this practice is not used, however, in 2010 the Fund Amnesty International has accused the city authorities in Puning of forced sterilization of citizens.

The procedure is especially widely used in India. After coming to power of Indira Gandhi and the national Congress was introduced by the "politics of emergency". The country was forbidden opposition, limited freedom of citizens, impose censorship and repression.

From 1975 to 1977, India has operated a program of forced sterilization, which were 10 million Indians. Thus, the Gandhi government tried to fight poverty in the big cities.

The Japanese government officially apologized for the sterilization of, and payments to victims of the law of compensation