NEWS > HEALTH > CHINA SETTING THE GLOBAL STANDARD FOR ABORTION

CHINA SETTING THE GLOBAL STANDARD FOR ABORTION

August 2 2009

Beijing, China – For decades China has stood as the most populous nation on Earth. With almost 20 per cent of the human beings on Earth that standing has become both a boon and a burden. The vast numbers of people mean an almost endless
workforce that has allowed the country to flourish as manufacturers of inexpensive goods distributed around the world. Such huge numbers are of course also a major headache for administration and standard of living with more mouths meaning exponentially more demands on limited resources.

Because of that burden of humanity the Chinese government has long enforced a policy of one child per family. That action, taken in the 1970’s, has no doubt led to the current balance and rise of the nation as a global economic power. Those limitations have also had unforeseen consequences, both positive and negative, that could further influence the destiny of the country.
Now a new study has shown that nation is leading the way in global abortion with 13 million officially performed every year and some suspect the number may actually be higher due to back alley procedures. Those numbers have secured China’s position as a Mecca for abortion seekers and abortion givers alike, securing yet one more financial win for the nation.

“Abortion has remained an important social and moral debate in most western countries but in China where it is not only legal but encouraged and endorsed we are seeing incredible levels of growth that other nations can only dream of. Like manufacturing and foodstuffs that has put them in a unique and enviable position and allowed them to more or less corner the abortion market,” said Margaret Gan of the World Health Organization.
“China gives abortion whether people like it or not and that liberal attitude, combined with severe penalties fort unwanted children, have created an abortion gap between them and the West. Though we are only starting to see the effects of that advantage the long term results will likely secure China’s position for all things embryonic.”

The relative lack of contraception education is also leading to the rising abortion rate at least amongst younger people according to the government.

“The United States in particular is a country where abortion doctors are shot dead on their doorsteps. In China it’s an almost celebrated position. Couple that with the sheer amount of work and dollars available and I can’t see any reason why abortion doctors would not want to move to China. Young doctors especially are starting to see the opportunities and more and more are making their way across the Pacific,” said Scrape TV Health analyst Rebecca Phelps. “If the United States doesn’t do something soon they may be in an unwinnable situation and will risk losing their abortion doctors forever. That of course could result in catastrophic population
growth in the United States especially amongst the lower classes and less-educated who are more prone to accidental pregnancies.”

Though officially legal in the United States the issue has long been a firestorm of social and political debate. Those issues, along with contradictions between state and federal law, have resulted in many people having limited access to abortions across the country.

“The abortion issue is just one of the many that illuminate the difference between Eastern and Western thinking. China actively supports abortion and the U.S. has this moral quandary that has limited its
expansion. Whether China’s support has driven their rise to power or the choices that lead China to so actively support the action are a part of a fundamentally different philosophy is something that can debated. Either way, China is winning this particular battle,” continued Phelps. “The lesson here though can be drawn from the Cold War. The more open and free United States prospered while the restrictive nature of the Soviet Union limited it’s growth into the modern age, which ultimately proved its undoing. Whether or not that will occur here is something only the future will tell but it is very clear that there is a major abortion gap between these two nations.”

The Chinese government has made no comment on how many American doctors are currently performing abortions within the country. U.S. officials are reportedly ‘interested’ in the issue.    

Lauren Hebert, Health Correspondent

NEWS > HEALTH > CHINA SETTING THE GLOBAL STANDARD FOR ABORTION