The one-child policy (simplified Chinese: 计å'ç"è²æ"¿ç; pinyin: jìhuà shÄ"ngyù zhèngcè; lit. "policy of birth planning") is the population control policy of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The Chinese government refers to it under the official translation of family planning policy.[1] It officially restricts the number of children married urban couples can have to one, although it allows exemptions for several cases, including rural couples, ethnic minorities, and parents who are only children themselves.[2] A spokesperson of the Committee on the One-Child Policy has said that approximately 35.9% of China's population is currently subject to the one-child restriction.[3] The policy does not apply to the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macao.
The Chinese government introduced the policy in 1979 to alleviate social, economic, and environmental problems in China,[4] and authorities claim that the policy has prevented 250 million births from its implementation to 2000.[2] The policy is controversial both within and outside China because of the manner in which the policy has been implemented, and because of concerns about negative economic and social consequences. The policy has been implicated in an increase in of forced abortions and female infanticide, and has been suggested as a possible cause behind China's significant gender imbalance.[5] Nonetheless, a 2008 survey undertaken by the Pew Research Center showed that over 75% of the Chinese population supports the policy.[6]
The policy is enforced at the provincial level through fines that are imposed based on the income of the family and other factors. Population and Family Planning Commissions (Chinese: 计å'ç"è²å§"åä¼) exist at every level of government to raise awareness about the issue and carry out registration and inspection work. Despite this policy, there are still many citizens that continue to have more than one child.[7]
China's National Population and...