Reading my latest issue of Celebrate Life, I found an article that spoke of a tragedy for China. There was an earthquake and there was an estimated 7,000 school classrooms and a large percentage of school children were killed. This meant many parents had no child from that kind of aftermath.
We have all heard of China's one child policy, in this article that issue was addressed. The couples who lost children that day have been allowed by their government to try to conceive another child so they would not have to remain childless.
We have all heard of China's one child policy, in this article that issue was addressed. The couples who lost children that day have been allowed by their government to try to conceive another child so they would not have to remain childless.
This article spurred a thought process in me. Here in America, where we all have a right to so many freedoms, there are many that balk and cry out at the suggestion of abortion becoming illegal again. How would these same people feel in a country like China, where the government forces you to have no more than one child?
I feel that this is a darker law than a law to abolish abortion. Ideally, I would love to see some strong feminists go to China to work with them on the strict oppression of reproductive rights.
There have been two other problems seen with Great China's Population control; one is the population age proportions between the elderly, working class and youth. It is estimated that if the trend continues, by 2050, the 60+ generation in China will make up an alarming 31% of the population while Chinese people aged 15-24 will only be about 11% of the whole population. The other problem with the one child policy is the growing sex imbalance.
There have been two other problems seen with Great China's Population control; one is the population age proportions between the elderly, working class and youth. It is estimated that if the trend continues, by 2050, the 60+ generation in China will make up an alarming 31% of the population while Chinese people aged 15-24 will only be about 11% of the whole population. The other problem with the one child policy is the growing sex imbalance.
The importance in my thinking lies in this: Due to couples only being allowed one child, they are handpicking only male children to birth and keep.
The female children of China, if they do not get aborted, many go to orphanages or put up for adoption overseas. Because of these happenings, the gender ratio are becoming dangerously unbalanced. Since China's one child law has been in effect for decades (its been in effect since 1979) there are "bachelor colonies" being seen develop. They have not enough women for the men these days, it almost seems to be something out of a science fiction novel.
With the numbers as they stand now, is has been predicted that 30-60 million Chinese men will not be able to have a Chinese wife. Already, there has been the occurrences of kidnappings and selling of women. Families who don't want to kill their female children have been known to sell the girls, as there are people who will buy these daughters of China to have future wives for their sons. The number of those kidnapped each year run into the tens of thousands and in accordance to Chinese government parents are forbidden to search for or even put up missing child signs.
With the numbers as they stand now, is has been predicted that 30-60 million Chinese men will not be able to have a Chinese wife. Already, there has been the occurrences of kidnappings and selling of women. Families who don't want to kill their female children have been known to sell the girls, as there are people who will buy these daughters of China to have future wives for their sons. The number of those kidnapped each year run into the tens of thousands and in accordance to Chinese government parents are forbidden to search for or even put up missing child signs.
Why the "weeding out" of their female children do you ask? It's a combination of the one child law and tradition. Tradition holds that it is the male children that hold value to the parents, as they are the ones who will take care of them when they are old. Female offspring are not as valuable to the parents because they join their husbands in caring for his parents.
Equal rights for humanity? Not so much in China. This is why I would greatly desire some strong feminists to meddle in such affairs. It seems they feel there are still battles in America to be fought for equalities and rights; there may be, but I think that there are bigger problems on a global level that may need to be scrutinized.
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