The Effects of China’s One-Child Policy

In the early 1960s, Chinese policy on birth control and family planning was introduced to China by Mao Zedong to prevent the spread of “unnatural” children such as those from a poor or illegal background,

Lifestyles & Social Issues Jan 29, 2022 0 824 Add to Reading List

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Lifestyles & Social Issues The Effects of China’s

One-Child Policy

In the early 1960s, Chinese policy on birth control and family planning was introduced to China by Mao Zedong to prevent the spread of “unnatural” children such as those from a poor or illegal background, and to curb the growth of a large number of people who were destined to be criminals due to their lack of ability in math and science. This practice became known as the one-child policy.

The United Nations estimates that in the period between 1942 and 1973, about three million Chinese citizens died from natural causes, primarily childbirth but also accidents; there also were approximately ten million deaths related to violence. However, the total death toll stands at 2,715,000 worldwide due to natural causes with half of these deaths being caused by birth-related issues.

China’s 1-child policy gave priority to reproduction, and this has had serious effects on the social, economic, health, and educational lives of many women, especially those whose families are already deeply patriarchal, such as single-mother and female-headed households. It may seem strange that a government would put so much emphasis on reproduction as opposed to other areas of life, but it is important for women to know the full extent of the impacts of this policy.

As most young people today have access to information on contraception, family planning, and abortion, it is possible to conclude that many women have been forced into having unsafe abortions and unwanted childbearing during the era under China’s one-child policy. Some studies have shown that the rate of miscarriages increased 4 times between 1994 and 2001 and that since then there has been an average of two miscarriages per woman, a very high risk of dying in abortion. It isn’t surprising that even before China became aware of the dangers posed by the one-child policy, its leaders considered this to be a necessary evil because of the gender disparity in birth rates.

These data raise some important questions that need to be answered. First of all, does the one-child policy pose the highest risks to not only women but also men? Second, how does this policy affect the environment? Are the landfills overflowing? Third, what should we do about the Chinese government and society that wants this policy in place?

Policies like the one-child policy, along with the current efforts to stem the global child population, have given the world an opportunity to look beyond our own country and see other parts of the globe where these attitudes toward life have also taken hold and the resulting effect on the livelihoods and future prospects of women and girls has been severe. Although the issue seems hopeless now, it will not be long until we find out what we don’t know, and this can start with taking part in projects like Project No Plan that aims to combat gender-based disparities in the development and implementation of policies and initiatives that create opportunities for women, specifically to bring them into line with China’s new one-child policy.