GRSJ224/AbortioninChina

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Overview

Fig.1. SRB in China. (1982-2015) Source: Eklund and Purewal. 2017. [1]

Sex-Selective Abortion (SSA) is a practice by which people prematurely terminate a pregnancy based on the sex of the fetus. This phenomenon is most prominent in cultures (i.e: Korea, India, China) where males are heavily preferred over females. Multiple reasons lie behind such preference, including but not limited to disparities in earning capacity, social status and men as bearers of family name[2]. Although this practice was common in the feudalistic eras, there was a decline before the introduction of one-child-policy in 1979[3]. To measure sex equity and infer rates of sex-selective abortion, Sex Ratio at Birth(SRB) is a measurement commonly used. SRB refers to the number of boys born alive per 100 girls[4]. A natural SRB is considered to be 105(± 2)[5]. In 2011, Nie gathered available SRB data since the 14th Century[3]:

Year 1381-1391 1789-1835 1851 1908-1928 1932-1936 1946-1947 1950
SRB 113 116-121 118 120-123 112 110 108

The latest SRB in China is estimated at 115 in 2017, according to The World Bank[6]. Although it has declined considerably since the peak of 121 in 2005, it still tops the list as the country with most unbalanced SRB. Due to the huge population in China, it is thus estimated that approximately 32 millions of men men around age 20 will be unable to find a spouse[7].

One-Child Policy (1979-2015)

In 1979, China enacted the One-Child Policy (OCP) through an Open Letter, addressing the potential overpopulation of the state whilst acknowledging the sacrifices Chinese families would have to endure by downsizing their family structures[8]. However, no specific guidelines were given and the enforcement of the policy was left to the hands of provincial officials[8] and the National Population and Family Planning Commission (since 1981). Due to the demanding nature in implementation of such policy, many provincial governments adopted an "administrative approach" to monitor and regulate reproductive behaviours[1]. Lack of guidelines have resulted in the widespread practice of obtaining information from paid informants and subsequent village and house raids. Those who were caught with illegal pregnancies had the choice to pay hefty "social child-raising fee" of 200,000yuan(USD$26,570)[9] or subject to forced abortion/sterilization. Family Planning officials were given a quota to adhere to and failing to meet requirements may result in demotion or loss of positions[1]. The OCP was officially abolished and substituted by a Two-Child Policy in 2015. However, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) had tried to loosen the grip on several occasions prior: In 1988, most provinces permitted rural families to have a second child if their first-born was a girl[1]. In 2013, couples were allowed two children if one of the spouses was a single child[1].

Demographics

High Sex Ratio at Birth can be resulted from Sex-Selective Abortion, female infanticide and underreport of female births due to complications brought up by One-Child-Policy[2]. Although imbalanced SRB is a nation-wide phenomenon, there are significant differences across the country. These variations can be categorized into: 1. Regional; 2. Birth Order; and 3. Socioeconomic Status.

Fig.2. Regional Differences of Sex Ratio in China. (1-5 years old) Source: Hesketh, T., Lu, L., & Xing, Z. W. (2011)

1. SRB by Regional Differences

As seen in Figure 2, provincial Sex ratio differs dramatically with some outlying provinces reporting a normal SRB (i.e: XinJiang, Tibet and Inner Mongolia; possibly due to attempts at cultural assimilation through population dilution[10]). Historical data showed rural areas typically had higher SRB than urban areas due to heavier son preference, but Goodkind (2011) documented an opposite shift (urban SRB > rural SRB) since 2000[11].

2. SRB by Parity

Across China, the SRB for first-order births remained close to normal (~107) since 1982[12]. However, the SRB for second-order birth is 143[2][12] while SRB for third-order birth is 156[12]-157[2] in 2005. This additional statistic further shines light on the prevalence of sex-selection pursuit for those who already have one child. Similar urban and rural differences also apply in this context, with urban SRB for 2nd and 3rd order births going as high as 151 and 176 respectively.

3. SRB by Socioeconomic Background

According to Eklund and Purewal, "SRB was 170 for government employees; 222 for professionals and 250 for heads and senior officials of government bodies, state-owned enterprises and government organizations"[1], further marking the traditional son-preference for affluent families in order to inherit and preserve family name/prestige.

Causes for Son-Preference

Multiple reasons have contributed to the son-preference that ultimately lead to prenatal sex-selection practices. The gender inequality we see in China has to be dissected through careful examination of women's statuses (political, economic, social, familial) in the traditional Chinese society. If a woman has a son at the first birth, her position in the family rises as she is seen as being "capable"[13].

  1. Family Lineage — Sons alone can maintain patriline[12]; while daughters will get married off into the husband's family[14], where her responsibilities now lie.
  2. Economic Value —  Traditionally, daughters were responsible for household chores and caring for family members, which did not provide monetary income for the family; while sons worked outside from home, generating income and thus provided upward mobility for the family[15].
  3. Confucianism —  Yin and Yang balance In Chinese philosophies, the yin and yang forces are said to symbolizes toughness(masculinity) and gentleness(femininity) respectively. However, it depicts a complimentary relationship rather than an equaled balance, for Yang is said to have "moral power over yin, the female element"[12].

Sex-Selective Abortion: Methods, Accessibility and Popularization

Before 1970s

Figure 3. Burying Babies in China (p.40, March 1865, XXII)[16]

As stated in the introduction, sex-selection for children had been recorded throughout history. In fact, a missionary journal documented instances of female infanticides upon arrival in China[16]. Common methods for infanticides include drowning in the rivers[2][16]; hanging a basket containing the infant on a tree; and burying babies as seen in Figure 3.

1950s — Amniocentesis

Amniocentesis, a procedure in which "amniotic fluid is taken from the uterus, sent to a diagnostic laboratory and embryonic cells isolated from the amniotic fluid"[17] is popularized. However, since the OCP had not been imposed, there were less incentive to sex-selective abortions. Thus, although there are ways to diagnose the sex of the fetus and thus would make SSA feasible, the SRB was at the lowest point in history.

1980s onwards — Ultrasound B Scan

Percent of women who had a fetus aborted after Ultrasound B-scan Source: Chu, J.H., (2001). Prenatal sex determination and sex-selective abortion in rural central China[18].

Since the introduction of ultrasonography in the late 1970s, people all over the world have employed the tool for vast medical purposes. The first Ultrasound B-Machine(B-chao) was first brought into China in 1979[13], which gave rise to a widespread distorted application of the technology as a mean to neonatal sex determination. In 1987, over 13,000 machines were being used in public and private hospitals[13]. Although the practice was outlawed in 1989, people could bribe their way into such sex-selection method through guanxi or at private clinics(at a higher price). Chu reported that 39% of women had ultrasound B-scans during the first pregnancy, 55% in the second pregnancy, and 67 percent in the third. Furthermore, if the first pregnancy was a girl, ~70% have a B-chao scan during their second pregnancy[13]. Of the 820 married women being interviewed, 29% admitted to having at least one abortion[13]. Moreover, if the first child was a girl and the second fetus is also a girl, there is a 92% chance that the second pregnancy will be artificially terminated.

Consequences of SSA

"Marriage Squeeze"

Due to the massively unbalanced sex ratios, there's an oversupply of men who have (and will) reach marriageable age but will not be able to find wives[3]. The effect size is so apparent that a term is coined for these men: guanggun(bare branches), meaning these men will be unable to bear fruits of their own. In fact, studies found that a sizeable portion of the population, up to 20% males, will be left spouseless. While women move into cities in search for jobs, it is also common that they practice hypergyny (marrying up)[2]. According to Heskech, Lu & Xing, 94% unmarried people aged 28-49 are men; while 97% of them never finished high school[2].

Expansion of the Sex Industry

It is thought that the excessive number of unwanted males will further contribute to the expansion of the sex industries. However, recent increase in the number of sex workers are mainly attributed to reasons such as higher socioeconomic power and relaxation of sexual attitudes[2].

Aggression and Violence

Men who fail to seek a partner may expose themselves to psychological vulnerabilities given the emphasis of building a family of your own in the Chinese culture[19]. Moreover, sexual frustration may lead to hostile attitudes[2] towards men who succeeded in mate selection[19] and women who reject their courtship[3]. Such aggressions may lead to violence and marginal behaviours within the society. Crow stated that the term guanggun is used interchangeably with "bandit"[19]. Hudson & den Boer point out that “The sheer number of bare branches, coupled with the distinctive outcast subculture that binds them together and their lack of ‘stake’ in the existing social order, predispose them to organized social banditry.”[20] Excess of males have been linked to some rebellions in late Imperial China such as the White Lotus Uprisings, Eight Trigrams and Nian Rebellions[19]. Combination of factors such as low self-esteem, withdrawal from society, it is not unimaginable to think that this group of men may result to violence when opportunity presents itself (e.g: Environmental protest gone wrong as suggested by Crow[19]).

Organized Child Bribe Kidnapping

Some have commented on the possible rise of status in women given the unbalances ecological conditions. However, data indicates that this is not true. In fact, there are even greater danger as adolescent or girl child are often subjected to organized crimes. Young girls and infants[21] are being kidnapped and sold into marriage to men[18]. According to Chu, there were more than 19,000 arrests of perpetrators that involved in woman and child trafficking in 2000 alone[18].

Other Consequences

  1. Aging Population
  2. Labour shortage
  3. Economic Slowdown/Stagnation

Bio-Politics Regarding SSA, SRB and OCP

Foucault defines biopolitics as the "political management of the conditions of life- both the state power to set the conditions of controlling, administering, and apprehending life—and how these modes of power enter into the very definitions of what we consider “life" itself” (Week 6 lecture). Since the enforcement of the One-Child Policy, many researchers have voiced their opinions on the government's abrupt implementation strategies. OCP is the epitome of biopolitics as it turns "procreation" into "manufacturing" and thus disturbs the natural relationship between parent and child[3]. Moreover, it further complicates the intricate dynamics between individual/familial groups and the government. Feng, Cai and Gu illustrated three features in the policymaking process that gave rise to the unprecedented level of government control of births:

[1] A statist tradition and bureaucratic institutions that treat individual citizens as subjects of the state; [2] a post-revolutionary regime that places birth control at the heart of its political legitimacy; and [3] a policymaking process that is carried out among political elites shrouded with secrecy and lacking public scrutiny[22].

Reproductive choice is often seen as a fundamental right of women in Western cultures after the Third Wave Feminist Movements in the 1990s[23]. However, the topic is much more complicated in the Chinese context. These choices of SSA are not made purely based on the stance of the women. Rather, the practice is often forced upon the mothers under "extreme social and economic pressures to both restrict family resource consumptions and produce sons[18][19]. Moreover, many of the abortions take place during the second or third trimesters, neglecting one of the fundamental principles of reproductive right—ensuring the mother's physical and mental health through safe abortion procedures[18][1].

Eklund and Purewal incorporated Faugeron's functions of prisons into the context os SSA, drawing parallels in both cases[1]. "Criminalization of Safety" (CoS) seeks to control nation-wide reproductive choice for the sake of the CCP; "Criminalization of Differentiation"(C0D) refers the labelling of violation against social norms as deviant acts(e.g.: high-fertility rates); while "Criminalization of Authority"(CoA) reaffirms the power of the state through criminalizing sex-selection behaviours, further establishing the CCP's power since it now controls the reproduction of it's citizens. They further elucidated that CoS generates guilty conscience; while CoD generates shame[1].

Altogether, we should pay extra attention while examining the reproductive biopolitics in China since it involves a great deal of intersectionality. Historical, legal, personal, familial, societal, cultural, political, economical, psychological and geographical factors all play a part in the shaping of such practice. Women are more often the victims than the perpetrator of son-preference and SSA. Chinese women have the highest rate of attempted and actual suicide[21], although no scientific evidence can confidently link this phenomenon with the Sex-selection practices, it would not be a surprise if SSA is a major contributor.

Actions Taken

Although the CCP claimed OCP effectively prevented 400 million births, the legitimacy of such claim has been hotly debated throughout the years[8]. The government finally acknowledged the detrimental effects of OCP and SSA credited to the popularization of ultrasonographic technology and multiple laws had been stipulated to

1986 — State Commission for Family Planning and Ministry of Health — prohibition of prenatal diagnosis unless it is used to determine hereditary diseases[3]. (Reaffirmed in 1989, 1990 and 1993)

1994 — Law on Material and Infant Health Care — legislated criminality for sex identification of the fetus and Sex-Selective Abortion[3].

2002 — Law of Population and Family Planning stipulates the illegality of neonatal sex-selection and SSA[8].

2003 — Care for Girls Campaign — aimed at promoting gender equality through popular media such as posters and campaigns, vowed to normalize the imbalanced SRB by 2020[1].

2005 — Parents in rural areas who only gave birth to daughters are entitled to RMB600/month as pension[14].

Actions Needed

Some success has been claimed by the enactment of policies and campaigns listen above. For instance, the SRB for counties participated in the Care for Girls campaign saw a marked decrease from 135 in 2003 to 118 in 2007[14]. However, in order to eliminate Sex-selective abortion in China, it is crucial to recognize the complexities that gave rise to the SSA in the first place. Promoting gender equality using a wide range of educational, social, economical and political measures that aim at tackling the systematic and deeply rooted female discrimination should be put into effect in order to raise the social status of women.

SEE ALSO | Additional Documentaries/Educative Videos concerning the Issue

It's a Girl: The Three Deadliest Words in the World (2012). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azdUcyCkpYI

China | Unnatural Selection | 101 East. (2012). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8MVc2yCJUM

China: All the single men | 101 East. (2018). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzkave_NKdk

23 Millions Abortion in China - ENN. (2018). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FewBqlbIw28

Bibliography

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Eklund, L., Purewal, N., (2017). The bio-politics of population control and sex-selective abortion in China and India. Feminism & Psychology, 27(1), 34-55. doi:10.1177/095935351668226
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 Hesketh, T., Lu, L., & Xing, Z. W. (2011). The consequences of son preference and sex-selective abortion in china and other asian countries. CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal = Journal De l'Association Medicale Canadienne, 183(12), 1374-1377. doi:10.1503/cmaj.101368
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Nie, J. (2011). Non-medical sex-selective abortion in china: Ethical and public policy issues in the context of 40 million missing females. British Medical Bulletin, 98(1), 7-20. doi:10.1093/bmb/ldr015
  4. ↑ "OECD: Sex Ratio at Birth".
  5. ↑ "WHO: Sex Ratio".
  6. ↑ "The World Bank: Sex Ratio at Birth".
  7. ↑ Zhu, W. X., Lu, L., & Hesketh, T. (2009). China’s excess males, sex selective abortion, and one child policy: Analysis of data from 2005 national intercensus survey. Bmj, 338. doi:10.1136/bmj.b1211
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Feng, W., Cai, Y., & Gu, B. (2013). Population, policy, and politics: How will history judge china's one-child policy? Population and Development Review, 38, 115-129. doi:10.1111/j.1728-4457.2013.00555.x
  9. ↑ "Heavy Fine for Violators of One-Child Policy".
  10. ↑ Heberer, T., & Taylor & Francis eBooks A-Z. (2017). China and its national minorities: Autonomy or assimilation. New York;Florence;: Routledge.
  11. ↑ Goodkind, D. (2011). Child underreporting, fertility, and sex ratio imbalance in china.Demography, 48(1), 291-316. doi:10.1007/s13524-010-0007-y
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 Eklund, L. (2011). Rethinking son preference – Gender, Population Dynamics and Social Change in the People’s Republic of China.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 Chu, J.H., (2001). Prenatal sex determination and sex-selective abortion in rural central china. Population and Development Review, 27(2), 259-281. doi:10.1111/j.1728-4457.2001.00259.x
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Zhou, C., Wang, X. L., Zhou, X. D., & Hesketh, T. (2012). Son preference and sex-selective abortion in china: Informing policy options. International Journal of Public Health, 57(3), 459-465. doi:10.1007/s00038-011-0267-3
  15. ↑ Croll, E. J. (2000;2002;). Endangered daughters: Discrimination and development in asia. London;New York;: Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780203132289
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society. (1865). Wesleyan Juvenile Offering. London: Wesleyan Mission House. XXII: 40. 
  17. ↑ "Amniocentesis".
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 Chu, J.H., (2001). Prenatal sex determination and sex-selective abortion in rural central china. Population and Development Review, 27(2), 259-281. doi:10.1111/j.1728-4457.2001.00259.x
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 19.4 19.5 Crow, B. L. (2010). Bare-sticks and rebellion: The drivers and implications of China’s reemerging sex imbalance. Technology in Society, 32(2), 72-80. doi:10.1016/j.techsoc.2010.04.001
  20. ↑ Hudson, V. M., & Boer, A. D. (2002). A surplus of men, a deficit of peace: Security and sex ratios in asia's largest states. International Security, 26(4), 5-38. doi:10.1162/016228802753696753
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 "It's a Girl: The Three Deadliest Words in the World".
  22. ↑ Feng, W., Cai, Y., & Gu, B. (2013). Population, policy, and politics: How will history judge china's one-child policy? Population and Development Review, 38, 115-129. doi:10.1111/j.1728-4457.2013.00555.x
  23. ↑ Heywood, L. (2006). The women's movement today: An encyclopedia of third-wave feminism. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press.
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