Chinese female 'sperm examiner' tests society's openness

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The "embarrassing" experience of a female examiner of sperm samples is making a splash on Chinese social media, with online reactions showing that the once conservative society is now shattering sex taboos and tackling gender bias.

An interview with a 28-year-old lab technician whose job is to analyze sperm at the Shanghai Human Sperm Bank discussing her "awkward" job has caught the attention of social media users, shedding a light on the changing social views of the people in China.

In the video, the woman talks about how difficult it was to adapt to the new job and the smell of the sperm at first.

"My daily work is to examine whether the donated sperm meets the standards and to freeze the sperm," she said.

CGTN screenshot of the video on Pear Video platform.

"I collapsed [at the beginning], because back then I was quite young and had never been in a relationship. I felt so embarrassed."

The nature of her job proved to have repercussions beyond the medical facility where she worked.

When others asked about what she did for a living, the woman found any explanation to be difficult and embarrassing, especially when it came to her own parents.

Her job was also affecting the prospects of a satisfying personal life. She said she feared her potential partner would have misunderstandings about what she does.

Worries of preconceptions might have been hard to handle, but they were not invincible.

With time, she and those around her came to terms with her medical career, and problems dissolved.

CGTN screenshot of the video on Pear Video platform.

"I think there is still a lot of room for me to explore in this field, and it is good for my future career," the woman said.

Traditionally, sex and reproduction are not topics for public discussion in China. But times are changing, and so are people's views.

The woman's anecdotes received positive feedback online, with social media users encouraging her to pursue her career ambitions.

Her interview, posted on China's Twitter-like Weibo, generated more than 10,000 comments.

"She has made numerous contributions to human reproduction and she definitely deserves our respect," commented a Weibo user who goes by the name @yigegukexiaoyisheng.

CGTN screenshot of Weibo comments below the sperm examiner's video.

“It is a proper job that needs professional knowledge. I don’t see why some people take it as an inappropriate job just because she is a female!?” said another Weibo user @puppyhui.

This is not the first time sperm banks in China make headlines.

In 2016, the same facility in Shanghai caused a stir after it decided to tackle sperm shortage by offering free iPhones to qualified donors. A year later, Sichuan Human Sperm Bank promised eligible donors up to 5,000 yuan (over 760 US dollars) in subsidy.

Around 15 percent of Chinese couples are infertile, according to Jiang Hui, director of andrology at Peking University Third Hospital in Beijing. Those who wish to expand their family have few choices – and sperm donations are one of them.

CGTN screenshot of the video on Pear Video platform.

However, few men are willing to volunteer their seminal liquid, and quality sperm is hard to come by, partially due to the country's strict standards regarding sperm donations.

Eligible men must be taller than 1.65 m, between 22 and 45 years old, with a college degree and in good health. Smokers, and volunteers with vision problems, sexually transmitted diseases and hepatitis B are disqualified.

The shortage of qualified sperm has come under further pressure after China relaxed its family planning schemes, and introduced the two-child policy in January 2016.