onechildpolicy

[onechildpolicy]

搞好计划生育 促进经济发展

Do a good job when family planning and promote economic growth

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source: https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/chinas-one-child-policy

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source: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-16/women-defied-chinas-one-child-policy-to-give-birth-twice/11869478

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GLOSSARY

OCP: One Child Policy

Filial Piety: derived from Confucianism; having respect for your elders and ancestors

Female Infanticide: the intentional murder of newborn baby girls

"Leftover Women" (shengnü): a term used for Chinese women who are unmarried, educated, and over 27 years old

The Bayesian Model: model used by the United Nations in 2011 for population projections

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A TIMELINE

1979: The OCP was first introduced and enforced in China

1984: The OCP is adjusted; couples who are both only children are allowed to have a second child

2013: The OCP is adjusted; couples where one is an only child are allowed to have a second child

2016: The OCP is overturned; all couples are allowed to have two children

2021: Couples are now allowed to have three children

source:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/15/china-one-child-family-policy-timeline

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/31/world/asia/china-three-child-policy.html

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source: https://fsi.stanford.edu/news/china-policy-shift-one-step-forward-bigger-population-challenge-eggleston-says

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OVERVIEW

After China's population exceeded 900 million, the government decided they needed to implement a population control technique, so they created the OCP. The Great Chinese Famine (1959-1961) was fresh in the governments mind, and they were worried that the rapidly increasing population would result in famine. The government also wanted to focus on economic development and decided a continuously growing population would hinder that. The OCP was enforced for decades, leading to some unforeseen side effects. Since the OCP was recently overturned, many people today have been directly effected by it, so the effects can be easily observed. Through studies, there are a few main side effects that have been noted:

Declining Birth Rates

Gender Disparity

A New Perspective on Only Children

Lack of Elder Care

"Man-Made" Twins

International Adoption

Fake Feminism

There were a wide variety of punishments given to those who violated the OCP. After giving birth to their first child, women were required to get IUD's (intrauterine devices).

Some women had forced abortions performed on them, while other families were harassed by government officials. Many families were heavily fined for breaking this policy, while others were physically harmed.

Some of the abortion techniques used were horrifying and painful. For example, some doctors would directly inject poison into the fetus's skull to kill it. Others would artificially induce labor and if the baby was alive, the would strangle or drown the baby. Sometimes, government officials would kidnap citizens if they tried to have two children. If they were in hiding, government officials would kidnap their friends/family.

Towards the end of the OCP, rural families were allowed two children, only if their first child was a girl or disabled. Ethnic minorities were permitted more children.

In 2016, China officially overturned the OCP " to improve the balanced development of population," but the damage was already done (3). On this page, the effects of the OCP will be further expanded on.

source:

https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3135510/chinas-one-child-policy-what-was-it-and-what-impact-did-it

https://www.npr.org/2021/06/21/1008656293/the-legacy-of-the-lasting-effects-of-chinas-1-child-policy

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/china-ends-one-child-policy

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2007/06/chin-j01.html

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1127087/

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source: https://xchmhlx.wordpress.com/position-one-child-policy-in-china/

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CIVILIAN OPINIONS

"Thousands of villagers in south-west China have attacked family planning officials, overturned cars and set fire to government buildings in a riot sparked by the state's 'one-child' policy"

A majority of civilians did not support the OCP. It eventually became a symbol of the wealth gap in China. Many wealthier families were able to have multiple children because they are able to afford the fines.

In 2007, there was a riot against the OCP in Bobai County, located in the province of Guangxi. The riot was targeted against the "family planning work squads" who were put in place to enforce the OCP.

source:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/may/21/china.jonathanwatts

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2007/06/chin-j01.html

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source: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTRQJun34/

[onechildpolicy]

source: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTRQJpRQ9/

baby girl death valley

thousands of baby girls were thrown into this valley

many of them died there

"if you go there early you get free baby organs."

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source: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-57154574

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1. DECLINING BIRTH RATES

Peer Reviewed Article: c. Population, Policy, and Politics: How Will History Judge China's One-Child Policy? -- Wang Feng, Yong Cai, and Baochang Gu

"A common claim is that the policy has prevented some 400 million Chinese births. This claim originated with the Chinese government..."

One of the most obvious effects of the OCP are the declining birth rates.

Originally, the OCP was enacted because of rapidly rising populations and a lack of resources. A study was conducted to determine if the OCP was actually necessary to lower fertility rates. The study used the Bayesian Model to predict hypothetical fertility rates (if the OCP was never enforced).

The results, based on the fertility trend in China before the OCP was enforced, are the following:

fertility would've continued to decline -- based on the rapid fertility decline in the 1970s

by 2010, the fertility rate would have fallen to the 2012 fertility rate of 1.5 children per women

On top of this, the lowering population numbers means there are less younger people who can join the workforce, which negatively effects the Chinese economy. This issue has introduced the possibility of the government raising the retirement age for the first time in 40 years.

In an attempt to solve the issue of the lowering population, China has been encouraging its citizens to have more children. They have pledged to improve their maternal healthcare through pre/post natal services. They have also launched reproductive health education campaigns in an attempt to "prevent unwanted pregnancies and reduce medical abortions that are not medically necessary" (2). On top of this, China offers 12 month maternity leave PLUS $10,000 USD.

Despite this push, many women are resisting the governmental efforts for more births. For the majority of the Gen Z population in China, getting married and having children is not a priority. Young Chinese women are more focused on their careers. There is a general sentiment among Chinese women of "lying flat." Lying flat (tang ping) is a term used in China to describe the mindset of literally lying down over being a productive member of society. Instead of studying hard, getting married, buying a home, or starting a family, young people reject all of this to lie down. To the young people in China, getting married and having children is synonymous to having a stressful life.

source:

https://www.npr.org/2021/06/21/1008656293/the-legacy-of-the-lasting-effects-of-chinas-1-child-policy

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/aug/17/chinese-government-birth-rate-policies-abortions-population

https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3162221/why-are-chinas-gen-z-women-rejecting-marriage-kids-more-their

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTRQJmVLh/

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source: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/charts-show-why-china-ended-its-35-year-old-one-child-policy-2015-10-29

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source: https://www.rfa.org/english/cartoons/china-one-child-cartoon-08132018213423.html

[onechildpolicy]

source: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-57154574

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2. GENDER DISPARITY

Peer Reviewed Article: b. Gender, Media, and Myth-Making: Constructing China's Leftover Women -- Hannah Feldshuh

"This narrative presents 'shengnü' as a problem, communicating implicitly and explicitly that 'shengnü' should be a major concern, a social problem for which highly educated, socially empowered women are to be publicly ridiculed and held responsible."

In China, there is a heavy preference for sons over daughters, so when the OCP was introduced, it motivated families to have sons as their only child. This resulted in sex selective abortions and female infanticide, creating the current society where the sex ratio is exceptionally skewed.

This gender imbalance has had negative consequences on Chinese society:

"This poses problems for the marriage market, especially for men with less socioeconomic resources," Dr Mu Zheng, from the National University of Singapore's sociology department, said.

Marriage Market: In China, the term "leftover women" has become increasingly popular. Leftover women refers to women over 27 who are educated and unmarried. Even though there is an excessive amount of men (due to the OCP), "women are blamed for marriage market challenges through sexist narratives and terminologies."

Rising Property Prices: Because of the lack of women, many men were left unmarried. Families would buy their son apartments in major cities in order to make their son seem more eligible for dating.

Elder Care: Daughters are expected to take care of her in-laws in their old age. However due to the lack of women, many elders do not have anyone to take care of them anymore.

source: https://www.npr.org/2021/06/21/1008656293/the-legacy-of-the-lasting-effects-of-chinas-1-child-policy