One-child policy

rdf:langString One-child policy

rdf:langString medic

rdf:langString 一孩政策

rdf:langString July 2022

rdf:langString wǎn

rdf:langString xī

rdf:langString hēiháizi

rdf:langString Yī Hái Zhèng​cè

rdf:langString shǎo

rdf:langString 黑孩子

rdf:langString 少

rdf:langString 晚

rdf:langString 稀

rdf:langString The term one-child policy (Chinese: 一孩政策; pinyin: Yī Hái Zhèng​cè) refers to a population planning initiative in China implemented between 1980 and 2015 to curb the country's population growth by restricting many families to a single child. That initiative was part of a much broader effort to control population growth that began in 1970 and ended in 2021, a half century program that included minimum ages at marriage and childbearing, two-child limits for many couples, minimum time intervals between births, heavy surveillance, and stiff fines for non-compliance. The program had wide-ranging social, cultural, economic, and demographic effects, although the contribution of one-child restrictions to the broader program has been the subject of controversy. China's family planning policies began to be shaped by fears of overpopulation in the 1970s, and officials raised the age of marriage and called for fewer and more broadly spaced births. Overpopulation, in the eyes of the state officials, would hinder their agenda to boost the national economy and improve people’s standard of living. After a full decade of concerted efforts, a near universal one-child limit was imposed in 1980. It was then officially written into the constitution of the People’s Republic of China in 1982. As it was written in the constitution, couples have the obligation to abide by the requirements of family planning. All families were restricted to having only one child. Later, some exceptions were allowed for specific groups of the population. In the mid-1980s rural parents were allowed to have a second child if the first was a daughter. It also allowed exceptions for some other groups, including ethnic minorities. In 2015, the government removed all remaining one-child limits, establishing a two-child limit. In May 2021, this was loosened to a three-child limit, in July 2021 all limits as well as penalties for exceeding them were removed. Implementation of the policy was handled at the national level primarily by the National Population and Family Planning Commission and at the provincial and local level by specialized commissions. Officials used pervasive propaganda campaigns to promote the program and encourage compliance. The strictness with which it was enforced varied by period, region, and social status. In some cases, women were forced to use contraception, receive abortions, and undergo sterilization. Families who violated the policy faced large fines and other penalties, such as firings and restrictions for future careers. The population control program had wide-ranging social effects, particularly for Chinese women. Patriarchal attitudes and a cultural preference for sons led to the abandonment of unwanted infant girls, some of whom died and others of whom were adopted abroad. Over time, this skewed the country's sex ratio toward men and created a generation of "missing women". However, the policy also resulted in greater workforce participation by women who would otherwise have been occupied with childrearing, and some girls received greater familial investment in their education. Even following the removal of the policy, birth rates in China remain lower now than they were previous to the implementation of the policy. The Chinese Communist Party credits the program with contributing to the country's economic ascendancy and says that it prevented 400 million births. Some scholars dispute that estimate, although objections focus on the impact of one-child limits.