DOES THE ONE-CHILD POLICY HAVE A MORE

NEGATIVE THAN POSITIVE IMPACT?

INTRODUCTION
I have chosen the one-child policy for my report because it fascinates me why the policy was only held in
China and why didn’t other countries follow along and support China’s rule. Research has shown that
the new pragmatic leadership was quite eager to prevent what had become a rapid increase in
population, the program was announced in 1978 to decrease the fertility rate to one child and was
therefore named the one-child policy. (Pletcher. K, 2022)

MY PERSPECTIVES
In my opinion, the one-child policy was not effective in China. The purpose of this was to reduce
overpopulation. The government might claim that the policy has helped the country achieve 400 million
fewer births during the past 30 years, but I feel that many mothers must have been outraged that they
couldn’t grasp their basic human rights. Most couples and families traveled to Hong Kong, Singapore, or
even America to give birth and avoid paying a social compensation fee. Honestly, I think it was brutal for
the pragmatic leadership to interfere in anything to do with the womb.

LOCAL/NATIONAL PERSPECTIVES
I feel that the one-child policy had its share of consequences, positive and negative. The policy stopped
the rapid increase in population. Although, it comes at a cost that many families and young couples
must have been heartbroken at the limit of only one child for their upcoming generation. Apart from
families, the country’s population had been leaning forward to a sex ratio of mostly males which caused
civilians in the rural areas to discourage female births(Barnard A.J, n.d) There were also many reports of
female fetuses abortions, the country, and its policies did not approve and tried to prevent it from
happening although, the families and people kept on practicing it. Over time, the gap widened and when
the children came of age, there were fewer females available for marriage (Pletcher. K,2022). The one-
child policy may have been trying to prevent overpopulation, but instead, led to an aging and
underpopulated nation.
GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES
The one-child approach in China had an extraordinary effect on other nations, particularly America. The
backhanded benefits incorporated a huge influx of Chinese understudies in the US instructive education
and around 80,000 adoptees in American family units. A wave of birth visitors had been swelling the
American regenerative centers. A few came looking for illicit or unregulated medicines in the US due to
the one-child policy. I think that the medicines must have been some sort of drug for the parents to
receive twins because many young couples wanted two kids but didn’t have enough money to pay the
fine of 20,000 yuan. For a long time, US legislators denied recognizing the one-child policy as a shape of
mistreatment commendable refuge. It was not until 1996 that the illegal Immigration Reform Act made
it conceivable for those escaping the one-child approach to claim refuge within the United States.
Shockingly, numbers were kept at an insignificant 1,000 a year, a token sum. In 2005, that cap was lifted.
But a long time afterward, America’s entryways closed once more after a Department Of Justice report
that China’s one-child policy was upheld utilizing “noncoercive” strategies. In my opinion, China should
be a questioning lesson on the dangers of state intervention in the womb. (Fong. M,2016)

CAUSE AND CONSEQUENCES

CAUSES:

The one-child policy was designed in 1980 as a temporary measure to put a brake on China’s population
growth as well as to facilitate economic growth under a planned economy that faced severe shortages
of capital, natural resources, and consumer goods.

CONSEQUENCES:

Most young men and women were not able to serve the economy by working and paying taxes, thanks
to the senior citizens who depend on their children to care for them, as a result, caused a very high
shortage of labor drive. Some countries might experience overpopulation due to Chinese citizens
escaping the one-child policy. As for others, I don’t think that the policy would affect them as it had in
China and its people because it was not happening in their own country. (Wang. F, 2017)

POSSIBLE SCENARIOS IF IT CONTINUES

-On the chance that the one-child approach had never finished, China would likely confront extreme
underpopulation because many people would migrate to other countries due to families who don’t
support the one-child policy. This is because of the fine for breaking the rule and other reasons that
might affect their social and personal life. Apart from migration, there would be almost no female
children because families would continue to discard female births. As a result, there would be fewer
marriages and lead to an aging population with fewer children. There would be a lessening labor drive
since no businesses would take place in a nation with less accessible laborers and customers. Apart from
businesses most of the economy would move to other nations and those countries may have to
confront overpopulation due to the huge flood of refugees from China. (Feng. E,2021).

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
Some possible solution to benefit the one-child policy is to prevent an aging population by China
increasing children’s pediatric care, this can develop their life expectancy and reduce underpopulation.
Since there is a shortage of labor force, the country should increase its capital by investing more in
robotics, automation, and machinery to fill in the gap of labor shortage. As for families, to reduce female
fetuses’ abortions, there should be a strict no-sex determination rule until after birth. If any of the
doctors reveal their gender, their medical license should be provoked and if anyone kills the newborn
child, they must face serious legal consequences of murder. Apart from reducing abortions, this could
help to get rid of the aging population because there will be more females available for marriage and for
giving birth. The same procedure is held in India. (Hayes. A,2022)

CONCLUSION
After years of hesitation, the Chinese government finally announced the repeal of its controversial one-
child policy, which was replaced with a two-child policy in the early beginning of 2016. To answer the
question, “DOES THE ONE-CHILD POLICY HAVE A MORE NEGATIVE THAN POSITIVE IMPACT?” Yes, the
one-child policy was not beneficial for the economy and that is why it ended. (Jackson. R, 2015)

BY NAISHA BHAN

YEAR 8A
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