Preface~ (for those like myself, who like to know the background... and learn new things!)
This policy was put into effect to help regulate the population growth in China. In the 1950’s Emperor Mao Tse- Tung encouraged the people of China to have many children; in turn strengthening the country. This increase in the population did the opposite of its intention. With the rising numbers of people, came the rising of worry of the government. There were too many people to feed, and China was on the verge of famine. To resolve the problem, the government issued the ‘One Child Policy’ in 1979. The goal for the policy was to get China’s population under 1.3 billion by the year 2000. The reason this act remains in effect is because the population of China is over 1.2 billion people. The government wants to keep these numbers at this point (under 1.3 billion), so they have kept the adopted policy. Any couple who violates this law is subject to receiving fines and possible jail time. There are a few exceptions to this law however. For example, in many rural areas the limit of children has been increased to 2 children if the firstborn is a daughter or has disabilities. This law is influenced by the culture of the area. The preference for sons in China is centuries old. Chinese families feel that if they do not have a son they are incomplete and feel they are a lower class than the other families in the region. When their daughters grow up they go to live with their husbands and their families. On the other hand a son will stay with the family, and take care of his parents when they are old. Currently this principle has been taken too far. Many Chinese families feel the pressure for a son to be too great, and will therefore do anything to get one. Instead of paying the fine for having a second or third child (this fee can be the equivalent to three years’ salary for many people living in China), they would rather pay approximately half that fee to buy a stolen child off of the black market.
Reaction~
When I first read this article and found all of this information, I was really taken aback. I could not believe all of the terrible actions that are occurring right now. I can’t even imagine the mourning pain and agonizing guilt that befalls the parents of the stolen children. When you read something like this, you think it’s horrible and then many move on with their lives. Many people don’t take these situations as seriously as they should. They are on the opposite side of the world, and can’t truly see the extent of the pain these tragedies bring. However, in some cases, even people who are close to the situation have trouble believing it. The Chinese government believes this to be a great policy that has helped the government in many ways. It does not see the horrible repercussions of these actions. As stated in the article “the Chinese government insists there are fewer than 2,500 cases of human trafficking each year… but advocates for abducted children say there may be hundreds of thousands” (Jacobs 1). These numbers are frightening, and will not get better unless something is done. Another problem with the Chinese government believing so greatly in this policy is that “desperate families… get almost no help from the local police. They say the police insist on waiting 24 hours before taking action and then claim that too much time has passed to mount an effective investigation” (Jacobs 1). This proves that the government is not helping these families and does not want to help even to the slightest degree. This fact really bothers me because it is very hypocritical and unjust. To me, this sounds like an excuse; a way out of having to admit that they might have made a mistake, that this policy is doing more harm than good.
Pros and Cons~
The ‘One Child Policy’ has some good pros but many major cons. The positive purpose of this act was to help alleviate social, economic, and environmental issues. As a result of fewer births, the Chinese health care has become stronger in helping women with pregnancies. They provide free pre-natal classes and closely monitor their health. Also because there are fewer children for the adults to care for, the individual savings rate has increased. Young Chinese no longer can rely entirely on their children to take care of them when they are old, and are therefore saving more of their money for retirement. A continuing problem in China is the pollution. With less people the pollution is becoming better; however it still needs some help. The original intent for the ‘One Child Policy’ was economic. Fewer people in China meant a decrease in the demand for natural resources, and it maintained a steady labor rate by reducing unemployment. It also kept the country safe from overpopulation. In doing so the people of China were protected from famine. Overall these positive goals were achieved; however they came with a price. With the strong demand for sons, many citizens will go to extreme measures to get one. The stolen children can be bought on the black market for less than the fine of having another child. This keeps the demand for the injustice high, and does not show signs of stopping. Often when a family ‘suddenly’ has a new child in their home, the government will turn a blind eye. This is because the child is not new to the country and does not need to be registered. He is not a new mouth to feed, and therefore they let the family go no questions asked. On the other side of this issue, the families in which the sons are stolen from are completely devastated. One minute the children are playing outside, and the next they are gone; out of the parents lives forever. These stolen children are a direct result of the ‘One Child Policy’. Since the citizens cannot have more than one child, the black market for human trafficking has been set up. The only hope for this situation is the parents of the stolen children. Many of them have formed petitions, and are doing everything in their power to find the one thing in the world that will give them joy; their child.
Opinions~
Was it worth it? This question has caused a lot of controversy about the ‘One Child Policy’. Personally, my opinion is that it is not worth it. To sacrifice people’s lives and those that they love for only a few positive aspects isn’t right. I do accept and understand that this policy has helped China in the past, however with the new problems; I believe it would be better to start anew. There are other ways of fixing these social, economic, and environmental issues. I believe that China should look to these other ways, and stop the horrible injustice that is going on today. This policy is no longer working, and something needs to be done.
Information found at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-child_policy
I wonder what adverse effect the policy and the cultural bias for male children is having on male vs female percentages in the overall population.
ReplyDelete