Friday, November 15, 2013

China reforms: One-child policy to be relaxed

China reforms: One-child policy to be relaxed

The one-child policy already exempts rural dwellers and ethnic minorities

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China is to relax its policy of restricting most couples to having only a single child, state media say.
In future, families will be allowed two children if one parent is an only child, says the Xinhua news agency.
The one-child policy already exempts rural dwellers and ethnic minorities.
The move comes after this week's meeting of a key decision-making body of the governing Communist Party. Other reforms include the abolition of "re-education through labour" camps.

Analysis

Though the scale of the Chinese leadership's new social and economic reforms are vast, affecting millions across China, none of these changes should come as a shock. Many of these changes have been discussed in the Chinese state media in the past, and many have been test-driven on a smaller scale in different parts of the country.
For example, in some Chinese cities for the past few years, couples who are both single children have been allowed the option of having a second child. The latest change will give couples the option of having two children if just one of the parents is an only child.
Similarly, Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed to abolish the much-hated "re-education through labour" system when he first came to power. Quietly, officials have been winding down the system over the past few months.
The Communist government is not prone to making rash decisions. In order to gain the consensus it needs to carry out its plans at the local level, officials need to announce them well ahead of time. Surprises aren't popular in China, it seems.
The network of camps created half a century ago holds thousands of inmates.
Police panels have the power to sentence offenders to years in camps without a trial.
China's leaders have previously said they wanted to reform the system.
The decision to do away with the camps was "part of efforts to improve human rights and judicial practices", Xinhua said.
The BBC's Celia Hatton, in Beijing, says most of these changes have already been tested in parts of the country.
Officials announce their plans well in advance to gain the consensus they need, she adds.
Private firms
The Third Plenum of the Communist Party under President Xi Jinping, who took power last year, also announced plans for economic reform.
Traditionally reforms are expected from the Third Plenum, because new leaders are seen as having had time to consolidate power.
On Tuesday, when the meeting ended, China's leaders promised the free market would play a bigger role, and farmers would have greater property rights over their land.
State firms will be required to pay larger dividends to the government, while private firms will be given a greater role in the economy.

China's one-child policy

  • China's population-control policy was introduced in 1979 and restricts couples in urban areas to only one child
  • In rural areas, families are allowed to have two children if the first is a girl.
  • Other exceptions include ethnic minorities and couples who both lack siblings themselves
  • The policy has meant that about one-third of China's 1.3 billion citizens cannot have a second child without incurring a fine
  • Campaigners say it has led to forced abortions, female infanticide, and the under-reporting of female births
  • It is also implicated as a cause of China's gender imbalance
There will be greater liberalisation in both interest rates and the free convertibility of the yuan. More overseas investment will be allowed.
There will also be an increase in the number of smaller banks and financial institutions funded by private capital.
Other reforms announced on Friday include a reduction in the number of crimes subject to the death penalty.
The one-child policy would be "adjusted and improved step by step to promote 'long-term balanced development of the population in China'", Xinhua said, quoting a Communist Party statement released on Friday.
China introduced its one-child policy at the end of the 1970s to curb rapid population growth.
It has on the whole been strictly enforced, though some exceptions already exist, including for ethnic minorities.
In some cities, both parents must be only children in order to be allowed to have a second child.

Ageing China

Graphic
By 2050 more than a quarter of China's population will be over 65 years old and younger generations face an unprecedented burden of care.
In the countryside, families are allowed to have two children if the first is a girl.
Rights groups say the law has meant some women being coerced into abortions, which Beijing denies.
The traditional preference for boys has also created a gender imbalance as some couples opt for sex-selective abortions.
By the end of the decade, demographers say China will have 24 million "leftover men" who, because of China's gender imbalance, will not be able to find a wife.
Most of the elderly in China are still cared for by relatives, and only children from single-child parents face what is known as the 4-2-1 phenomenon.
When the child reaches working age, he or she could have to care for two parents and four grandparents in retirement.
After decades of population growth, China's working-age population has recently begun to shrink.
By 2050, more than a quarter of the population will be over 65.

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