In 1978 the government of the People’s Republic of China introduced one child’s policy. Today, almost three decades after implementation of the policy, it becomes possible to discuss its impact on population growth, economic development of the country, social and human rights.
Without any doubts, the changes in demographics of China are remarkable and they can be seen in the following table, which represents changes in population growth for every five year interval between 1970 and 2010.Of course such radical reform has various aspects and today a lot of people all around the world express concerns about such policy and its probable consequences for population, economics and other essential life spheres.
The first noticeable impact of single-child reform was a decrease of fertility rates. If in 1970s approximately each Chinese woman gave birth to about 5 children, at present time there is 1,8 births per woman. In other words, in a result of a rare historical policy, about 90% of modern urban children and 60% of children, who live in rural areas of China, do not have siblings. Such tendency is a ground for numerous concerns.
For instance, it is suggested that in a result of one-child policy, there is a chance that the majority of China’s population will grow selfish, less independent and even socially-awkward. In order to find out evidences to these assumptions, numerous surveys were conducted.
It is remarkable that the results of such studies proved that the majority of single children were not spoiled by their parents and therefore they cannot be viewed as selfish. In addition, only-children do not have problems with adjusting to their peers, have more self-confidence and show perfect academic performance. It is proved that those single-children, who go to kindergartens, do not experience lack of communication and problems with socialization.
One of the reasons to consider one-child policy and guarantee slow population growth was a need to be able to ensure adequate level of life for China’s population. Overpopulation created a number of sever problems fort the country. Nowadays, the one-child policy is inevitably associated with China’s economic growth. If previously China was suggested to be a country of cheap labor force, today this country boasts a new generation of Chinese workforce. Contemporary Chinese personnel can be characterized as highly skilled and well educated.
When speaking about the one-child policy, it is necessary to say that not all consequences of this policy are positive. That is why it is crucial to mention criticism related to abuse of human rights.
Thus, the principles of the one-child policy are frequently opposed by many people, who suggest that with the help of such reform Chinese government commits a blatant violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Special Family Planning Commissions report about the cases of forced abortions and sterilizations. Although, officially it is not allowed to force women to abortion, such incidences occur, when families do not want to adhere to rules.
Unfortunately, one more negative aspect of the one-child policy is widespread cases of infanticide. As far as families are allowed to have only one child, they prefer to give birth to boys, who will definitely continue to carry their family’s name, provide financial support and help on the farm. In addition, today there are many cases of children abandonment, which are also associated with the one-child reform.
In conclusion it should be said that in a result of such tendency, at present time modern China can be characterized by an ageing population, because of low birth rates. Such tendency is an obvious threat to both economic and social stability of the country.
Today the majority of people are not satisfied with such perspective. They believe that allowing families to have two children will not lead to immediate and uncontrollable growth of population. Moreover, it is suggested, that changes are needed in order to avoid negative impact on Chinese demographics. Unfortunately, although there are obvious negative costs of such reform, the government of the People’s Republic of China is planning to continue this policy for at least one more decade.
Works Cited
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. FAO , 2011. Web. 28 Apr. 2011.
<http://faostat.fao.org/>.
Jeff Hays. Facts and Details, n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2011. <http://factsanddetails.com/>.
