Sieren's China: Women's right to their eggs

  07.08.2015

Single women in China are banned from freezing their eggs. Only married couples experiencing problems with fertility are allowed to use the technology, but DW's Frank Sieren says there are no ethical reasons.

Recently, Xu Jinglei, one of China's most famous actresses, announced in public that she had had used egg-freezing technology two years ago in case she wanted to have children in future. Since single women are banned from freezing their egg cells in China, the announcement has sparked a huge debate over the government's right to decide on what women do with their own reproductive systems. Egg-freezing technology can be used in conjunction with in-vitro fertilization techniques by women who have cancer and are about to undergo chemotherapy or by married couples where it is proven that one partner has fertility problems.

Considering the government in Beijing is influenced directly by neither the Pope nor the Catholic Church, why does it not let women freeze as many eggs as they like? One answer could be that the Chinese government thinks that the traditional family unit is best. Otherwise, the message can only be: Don't go thinking that you can do what you want. However, this message irritates people in China's urban centers, especially modern women. They are in a minority, however, compared to the rural population. Nonetheless, they are vocal and have a large audience.

Worried about losing control?

Of course, women want to plan their own lives and futures by freezing their eggs before they turn 40. This kills two birds with one stone. They do not have to find the right man to marry and they do not have to compromise on their careers, getting on with their professional life instead of changing diapers and looking after their babies. In the West, research has found that many women feel less psychologically burdened in the knowledge that the possibility to freeze their eggs and thus prolong their fertility exists. This would of course be true for Chinese women too.

There are no official statistics on how many eggs there are currently in China's egg banks, but one Beijing hospital recently said that it had 300 cases and the trend was growing. One might think that the government would be pleased about this development since China urgently needs children to finance the pension system in future. Li Yinhe, one of the country's leading experts on sex, describes the situation as follows: The state thinks that by giving single women the right to freeze their eggs, it will lose control of demographic development in the big cities.

Currying favor with the conservative farmers

Li Yinhe adds that the lifting the ban would undermine the significance of the family as a traditional unit. However, the phenomenon is not widespread enough for this to be the case. The government's reasoning is probably much more simple and has political implications: It's a question of stability. Beijing is currying favor with the conservative majority of farmers and it is prepared to put up with the debate over women's reproductive rights raging in the cities. In any case, the government cannot stop women from going to South Korea or Hong Kong for fertility treatment. Successful women can afford to do this. Therefore, although the decision is irritating for some, it is not dramatic and can be understood from the government's perspective.

DW's Frank Sieren has lived in Beijing for 20 years