China’s One Child Policy

Allie PettitMay 25, 2011World History

Period 8

In 1973, China made a strict law called the One-Child Policy that requires couples to have no more than one child. They made this law due to a dramatic increase in population. The People’s Republic of China (PRC) feared that by having such a large population would stunt the economic and social growth of China. They felt that would have no room for expansion, thus the creation for this law to prevent China from being a small Nation compared to competitors. The PRC force abortion and sterilization unto women who are pregnant with their second child and will also force a couple to put their child up for adoption if they snuck and had more than one child.

ISSUES

The one child policy in China is inhumane and goes against human rights. A country has no right to limit a person to a certain amount of kids and they have no right to force women into abortion and sterilization.

ARGUMENT

Map of China. As you can see China is a huge territory and has no reason to limit a couple to one child.

FACTS•From 1964 to 1974 the population increased from 700 million people to 900 million people, thus the reason for their one-child policy.

•From 1974 to 1995 the population increased again from 900 million people to 1.2 billion people.

•China also passed a marriage law as well as the one-child policy that refused a couple to marry unless the male was 22 years old or older and the woman 20 years old or older.

Shows the dramatic population growth of Nations. China is the lead.

Another chart showing dramatic increase in population. Still, China has no right to take away human rights of birthing children. They should find a new approach.

Fertility rate has decreased when Policy was introduced.

FACTS•When a woman becomes fertile she is forced to take birth control pills, shots, or use contraceptive bands.

•The female suicide rate in China makes up 56% of worldwide suicides for women which is approx. 500 female suicides per day.

•Abortion and sterilization surgeries leave a majority of the women crippled for life or with mental disorders.

SUPPORTING IDEAS

•If a woman skips an exam she will be hunted down and taken to her exam forcefully and be fined.

•In order to birth a child in China, a couple must get a certificate allowing them to give birth and if a couple tries to give birth without a certificate, the child will be aborted through the partial-birth abortion method.

•Usually after a woman has her first child she is required to have a sterilization surgery or sign a joint pack which is rare because she would have to find five others to pledge that she will not get pregnant anymore and if broken there would be severe consequences.

Picture of people signing a “pact”.

A propaganda poster promoting the one child policy (also referred to as Family Planning).

A sign found in China from supporters of the One-Child Policy.

This is the “Blind Lawyer” that brought attention to the media of the abusive One-Child Policy. He was arrested and spent four years in jail.

Since policy has been introduced, China has had a huge gender imbalance (because they prefer males as their one-and-only child) of 120 males to every 100 females. But, when first introduced, the ratio was 160:100.

Quiz Questions

•Why did China start the One-Child Policy?

•What were two ways China carried out this law?

•Were they forceful in their methods?