The Financial Times has a report today from China that describes a situation in which the growth of wages for factory workers is now sending manufacturing, currently done in China, to places like Thailand, where wages are still low. It really illustrates the flexibility of the free market system, for better and for worse. One of China’s priorities is to raise domestic consumption, which, of course, requires higher wages. But in the cutthroat world of Chinese capitalism, that could mean some diminution of the jobs available. In the end, I believe higher wages are a good thing, since the alternative is to maintain workers in poverty and the fruits of their labor enriches capital, rather than the laborers themselves. It does, however, suggest some limits on China’s explosive economic growth as their economy adjusts to a more developed model.
But here was the chilling sentence in the report:
Selective female foetus abortions because of China’s one-child policy and a societal preference for boys has created the perverse effect that there are fewer women working in China’s factories. Factory owners in southern China report that the ratio of factory workers is now 60:40 male to female, whereas it used to be predominantly female.
This matter-of-fact assertion is remarkable. It layers a practical challenge on top of the moral one regarding abortion. As a liberal Catholic, I have to admit I am torn on the issue of abortion. I think it’s a bad thing. As a liberal Catholic, I hope that I never have to confront the issue in my personal life, but if I do, I hope I have the courage to “choose life.” But I also recognize that circumstances matter and that there are some circumstance where the moral imperative is not clear. Even in this situation in China, when a society imposes an incentive to accept abortion for sex selection, I can understand why an impoverished family might be driven to abortion for that reason if they conclude that it is in their long term survival. Who am I to judge.
But it still makes me very, very queasy.