One Child Policy
Current China’s One-Child Policy
sibo ma
Current China’s One-Child Policy On October 31st, 2011, with a particular enfant born, the population of the world reached seven billion. Once again, population problems have aroused concerns in all circles of the society, which is also a big problem to China. As we all know, “With just over 1.3 billion people, China is the world’s most populous country. China represents a full 20% of the world’s population so one in every five people on the planet is a resident of China” (Rosenberg). After 32 years of carrying the One-Child policy in China, it has had important effects on Chinese younger generations and families, causing both positive and negative consequences for the society. Considering the side effects derived from the One-Child policy, the current situations about the policy implement have slightly changed. China’s One-Child Policy is based on the Family Planning policy, which calls for young couples “later children bearing, greater spacing between children, and fewer children” (Hesketh, Li, and Zhu 1172). Considering the population carrying capacity, the stability of the country, and the development of economy, “in September 1980, the government formally adopted the “One-Child policy” and a target population of 1.2 billion in the year 2000” (Naughtonn 185). After 32 years, the One-Child policy has tremendous impacts on China. In some respects, the policy has been highly successful and brings about advantages. The direct positive consequence is the success of limiting the population growth. According to Chinese authorities, as for now, “the policy has prevented 250 to 300 million births” (Hesketh, Li, and Zhu 1172), which is approximate to what they estimated before; meanwhile, the fertility rate has decreased, “from 2.9 in 1979 to 1.7 in 2004” (Hesketh, Li, and Zhu 1172). Because the current total fertility rate, which means how many children born by per
sibo ma
Current China’s One-Child Policy On October 31st, 2011, with a particular enfant born, the population of the world reached seven billion. Once again, population problems have aroused concerns in all circles of the society, which is also a big problem to China. As we all know, “With just over 1.3 billion people, China is the world’s most populous country. China represents a full 20% of the world’s population so one in every five people on the planet is a resident of China” (Rosenberg). After 32 years of carrying the One-Child policy in China, it has had important effects on Chinese younger generations and families, causing both positive and negative consequences for the society. Considering the side effects derived from the One-Child policy, the current situations about the policy implement have slightly changed. China’s One-Child Policy is based on the Family Planning policy, which calls for young couples “later children bearing, greater spacing between children, and fewer children” (Hesketh, Li, and Zhu 1172). Considering the population carrying capacity, the stability of the country, and the development of economy, “in September 1980, the government formally adopted the “One-Child policy” and a target population of 1.2 billion in the year 2000” (Naughtonn 185). After 32 years, the One-Child policy has tremendous impacts on China. In some respects, the policy has been highly successful and brings about advantages. The direct positive consequence is the success of limiting the population growth. According to Chinese authorities, as for now, “the policy has prevented 250 to 300 million births” (Hesketh, Li, and Zhu 1172), which is approximate to what they estimated before; meanwhile, the fertility rate has decreased, “from 2.9 in 1979 to 1.7 in 2004” (Hesketh, Li, and Zhu 1172). Because the current total fertility rate, which means how many children born by per
Cited: “China Tweaks its Family Planning Policy.” China Daily USA 31 Oct. 2011: 22. Ebenstein, Avraham. “The “Missing Girls” of China and the Unintended Consequences of the One Child Policy.” Journal of Human Resources 45(2010): 87–115. Fong, Vanessa L. Only Hope: Coming of Age Under China’s One-Child Policy. Stanford University Press, 2004. Hesketh, Therese, Li Lu, and Zhu Wei Xing. “The Effect of China’s One-Child Family Policy after 25 Years.” The New England Journal of Medicine 353 (2005): 1171-76. Naughtonn, Barry. The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth. MIT Press: Cambridge, Massachusetts, 2007. Rosenberg, Matt. “China’s Population.” Geography. 2 Nov 2010. 16 Nov. 2011 . Li, Xiaohong. “China Braces Itself for Population Aging.” People’s Daily 4 Nov.2011: 15. Zhang, Xiao. “A Post-80s Photographer.” Chinadaily USA Videos, 7 December, 2010. 17 Nov. 2011. < http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/video/focus/2011-04/06/ content_12279507.htm>.