China looks to Vietnam for wokers and wives
Thousands of illegal Vietnamese workers are flooding into China's Pearl River Delta region, the country's manufacturing hub. At the same time, an increasing number of hard-up Chinese men are looking to Vietnam in search of the ideal wife.
Both stories speak volumes about changes in China's economic and social landscape. Double-digit economic growth has returned to the nation as the world climbs out of a prolonged recession, and the social stability so fretted over by the Communist Party leadership remains largely intact. But, although its economic juggernaut continues to roll, China is not the same country that it was only a few years ago.
Interesting stuff. The part about Vietnamese workers taking jobs even the Chinese won't do is amusing, but perfectly expected. Increasing opportunity and expectations makes it harder to get people to take the terrible jobs. The jobs the Chinese won't take now pay around 1800 Yuan a month, roughly $284.
In the long run, the marriage part is probably more important though. China has a serious shortage of women and a rapidly changing culture. This is giving men a lot of motivation to look outside China for wives. Simple necessity means millions of men will have to marry outside China, and many are looking intentionally for a more "traditional" wife. "Tradition" meaning submissive in this case. The end result is going to be more changes to China's culture, and probably a backlash at some point, both inside and outside of China.
Jay
