Government says clampdown is aimed at improving women’s reproductive health, but it comes amid anxiety about the nation’s falling birth rate

China has already enacted strict measures aimed at preventing sex-selective abortions, and health authorities also warned in 2018 that the use of abortion to end unwanted pregnancies was harmful to women’s bodies and risked causing infertility.

The state council said the new guidelines, issued on Monday, would aim to improve women’s overall access to pre-pregnancy healthcare services.

    • Zuzak [fae/faer, she/her]
      ·
      3 years ago

      The drift towards more limits on abortion has been under way for several years. Jiangxi province issued guidelines in 2018 stipulating that women more than 14 weeks pregnant must have signed approval from three medical professionals before having a termination.

      Guess we can just downplay and minimize the issue too, that works :yea:

      China doing a bad thing is whatever, doesn't affect me, but internet leftists defending bad things because China's doing them makes me feel like my only options are uncritical support or uncritical opposition, at which point I will say, "Screw all y'all."

        • Zuzak [fae/faer, she/her]
          ·
          3 years ago

          This isn't official policy but rather a statement of goals. It's perfectly reasonable to have concerns that further legal restrictions on abortion may be coming, and the recent implementation of restrictions in a province seems pretty fucking relevant in that context of understanding how the government will approach the issue.

            • Zuzak [fae/faer, she/her]
              ·
              3 years ago

              happens previously

              "Why are you bringing up something from three years ago?"

              signs that it may be happening again

              "I'm gonna wait until it actually happens before I criticize anything"

              There is a five minute window immediately after China does something bad in which you are allowed to be critical of them.

                • Zuzak [fae/faer, she/her]
                  ·
                  3 years ago

                  There are pretty clear signs that more restrictions may be coming. China does have a history of meddling in the reproductive affairs of its people, so if they start talking about abortion being bad, it's reasonable to expect them to approach the issue with a heavy hand. You don't have to criticize them but I'd appreciate it if you didn't dismiss other people's concerns and criticism. If nothing else it's shitty optics.

      • panopticon [comrade/them]
        ·
        3 years ago

        If that's all it takes for you to default to western chauvinism then it sounds like your mind is already made up

        • Zuzak [fae/faer, she/her]
          ·
          3 years ago

          Yep, I am a "Western chauvinist," because I hold values like "restricting abortion is bad" or "banning femboys is bad" even when China does it. In order to not be a "Western chauvinist" I would have to hold no actual values or principles and just let my beliefs sway with the wind depending on whatever China does.

          Of course, the fact that I support China does not have any bearing on this.

            • Zuzak [fae/faer, she/her]
              ·
              3 years ago

              The drift towards more limits on abortion has been under way for several years. Jiangxi province issued guidelines in 2018 stipulating that women more than 14 weeks pregnant must have signed approval from three medical professionals before having a termination.

                • Dinkdink [none/use name]
                  ·
                  3 years ago

                  Jiangxi is one of the good provinces, though. Coastal, developed. The New York State of China. If it were one of the hick Alabama provinces that would be another thing, but it's not.

          • panopticon [comrade/them]
            ·
            3 years ago

            No like I said I get that your mind is already made up, i don't care enough to struggle session with you about this.

            Frankly you're right that your opinion of the internal affairs of a sovereign country is mostly irrelevant and definitely not germane to anything substantial, what really matters is whether or not you're contributing to the intentional campaign to demonize and isolate that country.

            I.e. what narratives you're helping to propagate, among the social context you're surrounded with.

            Anyway buddy, you do you :yea: