2015 China

28 April, Chengdu
Jiali Inn 151CNY

Rest day...

Did you know that, according to a CNN report, by 2020 men will outnumber women in China by a staggering 30 million? Think about the frightening implications...

[The information below about China’s One Child Policy is extracted from china-mike.com.]

The Chinese government says that the One Child Policy has prevented an estimated 400 million births since it’s inception in 1980, but critics say that the law is a violation of basic human rights.

In the aftermath of the colossal famine that under Mao’s Great Leap Forward killed 20-30 million, although people were no longer starving, there were widespread shortages of consumer goods; everything from soap and cloth to eggs and sugar was rationed.

By the early 1970s, China’s population passed the 800 million mark.

Under the slogan “Late, Long, and Few,” the voluntary family planning campaign advocated delaying marriage, having fewer children and increasing the number of years between children.

From 1970 to 1976, the country’s fertility rate plunged by more than half, dropping from about six births per woman to less than three. But the rate levelled off and the voluntary program went mandatory.

Under the original One Child Policy, couples needed to first obtain permission from local officials to have a baby.

Contrary to popular myth, the policy isn't a uniform, nationwide prohibition on multiple children. In 2007, the National Population and Family Planning Commission estimated that the policy applies to only about 36% of China’s population. The main exceptions include: ethnic minorities; rural residents; when both parents are only children, an allowance is typically made to have two children; a notable exception was made after the devastating 8.0 magnitude earthquake in Sichuan province in May 2008.

Enforcement of the one-child policy relies on combination of carrots and sticks.

Those who follow policy are awarded a “Certificate of Honour for Single-Child Parents” and given rewards in the form of longer maternity leave, interest-free loans, and other forms of social assistance and government subsidies such as better health care, state housing, and school enrolment.

For the vast majority of people caught breaking the law, the penalties are financial – large fines imposed (which vary by region but are typically several times the average annual income). For those unable or unwilling to pay the fine, more heavy-handed tactics can be applied, such as seizing property and houses, being dismissed from jobs, or having their kids pulled out of school. Although widely publicised in the media, the really draconian measures – such as forced sterilization or abortion – are relatively rare these days, the exception and not the rule. However, during the early days, these tactics were widespread.

A widely publicised negative effect of the One Child Policy is the practice of female infanticide, the act of intentionally aborting female fetuses (and even the killing of infant girls). Chinese culture has long had a strong cultural preference for boys to carry on the family name.   According to long-standing tradition, once a daughter was married off, she would move in with her husband’s family and became responsible for taking care of her new family (unlike males who remain permanent family assets who can add a daughter-in-law, as well as grandchildren). 

Since the policy went into effect, China has had a significant gender imbalance, an abnormal sex ratio. The imbalance steadily grew worse since ultrasound became widely available in the mid-1980s. Today, the ratio hovers around 120 boys to 100 girls (compared to a “natural” ration of about 105 boys to 100 girls around the world).