In ‘Towards an ethics of pronatalism in South Korea (and beyond)’
I broadly align with Lee’s ethical concerns regarding possible state-sponsored coercion and the instrumentalisation of citizens for the national interests whether with South Korean government-backed pronatalism or incentivised sterilisations in Indian states. What I want to challenge here is the plausibility of the ‘and beyond’ part of her title, which seems to extend their reach beyond the Korean context.
To this end, I explore the acceptability of Lee’s positions given significant cross-national variation in economic, social, structural conditions and value. Below, I sequentially address her proposals: moving beyond treating symptoms to uncovering and remedying an aetiology that is often grounded in oppressive social norms, addressing systematic social injustices especially those impacting women and avoiding human…