CHINA One Child Policy Because of it’s rapidly growing population, China adopted a policy of one child per family in The country also outlawed early marriage. A man must be 22 and a woman 20 before they can marry. Those policies have reduced China’s birthrate dramatically. However, the one child policy has run into major opposition over the years. Rural families, in particular, feel the need for more than one child to help work o their farms. IN 2002, the government reaffirmed the one child policy but promised extra help to rural families.

IMPORTANT FACTS China's One Child Policy was created in 1979 to temporarily limit China's population growth. It has been in place for more than 32 years. China's One Child Policy most strictly applies to Han Chinese living in urban areas of the country. In rural areas, Han Chinese families can apply to have a second child if the first child is a girl. One major exception to the One Child Policy allows couples to have two children if one of the parents is an only child. Also, if a first child is born with birth defects or major health problems, the couple is usually permitted to have a second child. With the One Child Policy in place, China is expected to achieve zero population growth by By 2050, China's population growth rate will be -0.5%.

China's sex ratio at birth is more imbalanced than the global average. Some of this ratio might be biological, and although it is illegal for doctors to reveal the sex of a baby before birth, there is evidence of sex-selective abortion, neglect and abandonment. For families who observe the One Child Policy, there are rewards: higher wages, better schooling and employment, and preferential treatment in obtaining governmental assistance and loans. For families who violate the One Child Policy, there are sanctions: fines, employment termination, and difficulty in obtaining governmental assistance. Families who are permitted to have a second child usually have to wait from three to four years after the birth of the first child before conceiving their second child.

GIRL vs. BOY Sons not only carry on the family line, they also are expected to provide for their parents in old age. A daughter, once she marries, is obligated only to her husband's family. The social message: Survival depends on sons, and daughters are only a burden. Boys responsible to take care of family. Girls responsible to take car of aging family.

NEGATIVE EFFECTS Disdain for female infants Abortion Neglect and Abandonment Hidden Children

CHINA’S LOST GIRLS What happens to all the girls born in China? Chinas One Child Policy (2:43) Chinas Lost Girls (3:05)

-KEEP IT- Why or Why Not? Should China keep their one child policy? Why or why no?