BBC Chinese website wrote tonight (November 3): "In South Korea, 'lonely death' is increasing, which has given rise to a new profession known as 'heritage cleaners.' These people are responsible for tidying up the homes and belongings of those who died alone, facing lives that end without any farewell. Single-person households now account for about 42% of the country, meaning more people may die alone, including many suicides. South Korea has the highest suicide rate among developed countries. With the world's lowest birth rate and half the population over 50 years old, aging and single-living have also driven the rapid growth of the funeral industry."

[Witty] Comment: As one of the "three East Asian countries" - China, Japan, and South Korea - each has its own social issues. The aging and single-living phenomenon in South Korea is also common in some big cities in China. China should avoid the mistakes made by South Korea and learn from its lessons - the 42% share of single-person households in South Korea has given rise to the 'lonely death' cleaning industry, reflecting a deeper crisis of broken family ties and the disappearance of intergenerational mutual support. When the population over 70 years old exceeds the group aged 20-29, and when 200 billion US dollars invested in promoting childbirth has almost failed, the essence is the complete failure of South Korea's social reproduction system. Although China has not fallen into such an extreme situation, similar concerns have already emerged. What needs to be vigilant about is that if only economic measures (such as subsidies) are used to respond, it may be difficult to heal the wounds of social fragmentation. The three East Asian countries share a vicious cycle of "high-pressure society - individual atomization - fear of childbirth." South Korea is just the one that hit the iceberg first. The warning from South Korea is that if the development model focuses only on GDP while ignoring the human touch, it will eventually pay a heavy price.

Original article: www.toutiao.com/article/1847777654922307/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.