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Reward for farmers with only child
Unlike most other Chinese women farmers of her age, 64-year-old Lian Zhengfang has only one child. And because of that, Lian is rewarded by the government. From this year on, Lian will be granted 600 yuan (US$72.55) in subsidy by the government each year until her death. "I never expected that I would be rewarded for having only one child," said Lian, a farmer in Yongfeng Village, Dingxi in Northwest China's Gansu Province, where it is quite common for a woman of Lian's age to have four to six or more children. "I will persuade my grandchildren to have fewer children," said Li Rewarding farmers who have fewer children is a new family planning policy adopted by the Chinese Government. According to relevant stipulations, farmers who have only one child or two girls will be awarded 600 yuan (US$72.55) by the government annually from the age of 60. This policy will be implemented on a trial basis in 15 provinces and municipalities in western and central parts of China this year and is expected to be gradually practiced nationwide in the future, according to an official with the State Commission for Population and Family Planning. Pan Guiyu, vice-minister of the commission, said the reward policy is an important step to encourage farmers to act in accordance with the state family planning policy of maintaining a low birth rate in the country. He added that the policy will help settle the population problem and achieve coordinated development between population and economic and social progress. It is also a breakthrough in building the social security system in China's rural areas, according to Pan. As the world's most populous country, China faces serious pressure on economic development and social progress from population growth. Statistics show that in the 30 years following the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, China's population grew by 430 million. China saw its population approach 1.3 billion by the end of 2003. China began implementing the family planning policy to curb fast population growth and improve population's well-being in the early 1970s, encouraging couples to have only one child. Farmers, who often have difficulties in maintaining their lifestyle with just one child, are allowed to have a second child with the approval of relevant department. Ethnic minorities enjoy the right to have more children. Over the past three decades, China mainly implemented its family planning policy by administrative measures and those who had more than one child without special approval faced punishment and fines. As a result, China's new-born population was reduced by more than 300 million over the past more than 30 years. But the compulsory policy caused other social problems, such as an unbalanced sex ratio and a drop in living standard of some families, especially in rural areas. Some experts and local officials, therefore, exhorted the government to set up a system to financially assist rural families which actively respond to government's family planning policies. The State Council decided that the central and local governments split the cost of the subsidies given to qualifying families. Accordingly, farmers who will be rewarded must meet the following requirements: both husband and wife are farmers; they had no children born between 1973 and 2001 in violation of state policies and regulations; they have one child, two girls or no children, and; they are at least 60 years old. In Jiaozuo, a city of Central China's Henan Province, 30 farmers have recently received the subsidy. Local officials said over 2, 000 more farmers were expected to get money soon. Like Lian Zhengfang, the woman farmer of Gansu Province, a total of 143 farmers in the province have received 600 yuan given by the government. Xie Houyuan, 49, a farmer of Jinping Village, Dingxi City of Gansu, had had three girls before getting the son he expected. According to state policies, the last two children of Xie's were born in violation of state family planning law. He was fined severely. He struggled for many years to support his large family of six, but their living standard did not improve much. "At that time, I desperately want to have a son to take care of me in my remaining years," said Hou. "But now, I admire those who have fewer children and are rewarded by the government." "If only I knew that having fewer children would be rewarded, I would not have had so many children," Hou said. Liu Junzhe, an expert of population, said that the change from "punishing those who have many children" to "rewarding those who have fewer children", proves China's family planning policy has begun to place more value on human rights. The reward mechanism is also expected to change the traditional view that boys take responsibility to support their parents and carry on the ancestral line, and help resolve the problem of unbalanced sex ratio, said Liu. |
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