Don't blame buyers for illegal trade practices

Not only investigators and journalists, but also some non-governmental organizations and enterprises use such means to realize their business interests.

But can a consumer be accused of wrongdoing only because the commodity he/she purchases has been produced through immoral or illegal means?

As long as a consumer purchases and uses products rationally, he/she cannot be faulted. In today's globalized society, labor is highly specialized and the production of a majority of commodities can involve various groups of people from several nations. A consumer can only be responsible for the specific role he/she plays and cannot be held responsible for, nor be expected to intervene in the industrial chain.

The moral responsibility of the consumer is to pay a fair price for a product and purchase it legally. To expose the immoral and illegal activities involved in the production process, we have professional reviewing agencies and law enforcement officers.

Of course, before a consensus is reached on whether certain deeds are illegal or immoral, media outlets can choose to speculate on what they consider immoral or illegal. But do consumers need to feel sorry, let alone ashamed, for buying certain products?

By speculating on the immoral aspects of the production process of certain products, media outlets risk falling into a moral trap. For example, blue jeans may cause environmental pollution or hurt workers' health, but that is primarily because the local governments and powerful companies neglect their responsibility of enforcing the law or reviewing background information, Also, retail companies purchase them at extremely low prices, knowing full well the money they pay is not enough to cover the costs of environment or workers' health. In such cases, it is the governments and companies that act irresponsibly or immorally, not the consumers.

More importantly, even the Pulitzer Prize-winning story did not blame consumers. The journalists only asked the governments of Thailand and Indonesia to enforce their laws and rescue those forced to do slave labor in their countries. The report just shared information with consumers by exposing the truth, instead of trying to instill a sense of wrongdoing among them. And the journalists were right in their discretion.

The author teaches psychology at Leshan Normal University and contributes articles to media outlets.