China eyes change to one-child policy

[Jazzy]

WASHINGTON, November 2, 2012 — The world awoke to some very encouraging news out of China this morning. The country may scrap a 30-year-old policy that has resulted in millions of orphans.



The Chinese government leaked a report on the country’s one-child policy that it commissioned from a high profile Chinese think tank called the China Development Research Foundation. The report’s conclusion: China’s one-child policy should be abandoned immediately in favor of a two-child policy to be instituted until 2020 when all birth restrictions should be lifted.



This news is sending shock waves through the international community at large and most especially the adoption community. If the Chinese government adopts the report’s recommendations, the number of orphaned children—particularly girls, who make up the bulk of abandoned babies – will likely plummet in coming years.



The one-child policy has been in place since Deng Xiaoping passed the legislation in 1979. The actual policy sets forth rules a bit more complicated than simply one family, one child. Some parents, like married only children and rural parents whose first born are girls, are permitted two children. But, of course, these are the exceptions.



For the vast majority of Chinese, the one-child per family rule holds. The policy was designed to control an exploding population in the world’s most populous country and lift millions out of poverty. And by those measures the policy has been effective. It is estimated that in the years since passing the policy China has succeeded in reducing its population anywhere between 100 to 400 million people.

But at what cost?



Question: Do you think the 30-year-old policy should be changed? Why or why not.

 

[Evil Eye]

Well, the rule should be lifted, but they really ought to change people's mindsets first.

Think about it, most western countries don't have enough people to pay taxes anymore (or won't soon) without such a rule.