The Present State and Tasks of Children in China after the Planned Birth Policy

With an Emphasis on the Heihaizi and the Status of Child Abuse

中国の一人っ子政策下の子どもの現状と課題 （闇っ子の存在と児童虐待）

中国ダエジン大学　崔金丹(チュイ・チンタン)博士

Cui, Jin Dan^*[1], Daejin University

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<Abstract>

Violations of child rights in China clearly existed even before the placement of Planned Birth policies, but those violations, a series of violations caused by the need for population control through those policies, are different from child rights violations in other countries in many ways, including abandonment of girls, abductions of boys, and the rise of the heihaizi (Translator’s Note: “black children”, or children born above the one-child limit imposed by the Chinese government).

The present paper seeks to discuss the subject of child rights in China, with an emphasis on the present status of children in China, and the related themes of population control, rise of the heihaizi, and the mistreatment of children in China.

Keywords: children, child abuse, Planned Birth policy, child protection, child rights protection, child rights violation

I. Introduction

II. The Rise of the Heihaizi as an Aftereffect of the Chinese Population Control Policy

1. The Stages of Chinese Population Control and their Execution

2. Social and Children-related issues resulting from the Population Control Policy

III. Laws for the Protection of Child Rights in China, and the Present State of Child Abuse

1. Laws for the Protection of Child Rights in China

2. Report on the Present State of Child Abuse in China

IV. Conclusion

I. Introduction

Heihaizi[2]is a new term coined during the execution of the Planned Birth Policy as a part of China’s population control policy, and it stands for “unregistered child”. In other words, a child not listed in the registered records, or, more accurately, prevented from being registered by the national policy, and not reflected in the population census. These “ghost children” take a part in China’s surplus population, and figure as the great social problem for present and future China.

These unregistered children, heihaizi, are children born during the execution of China’s Planned Birth Policy actively enforced since the 1970’s, and are constantly on the rise even in the present day in 2006. The Chinese Population Census of 2005 related to the child population shown in the following table[3].

	Population	Percentage of Total Population
Total Population	1,307,560,000	100.0
Urban Population	562,120,000	43.0
Rural Population	745,440,000	57.0
Male Population	673,750,000	51.5
Female Population	633,810,000	48.5
Aged 0-14	265,040,000	20.3
Aged 15-64	941,970,000	72.0
Aged 65 and over	100,550,000	7.7

Table 2 <Total Population of China in 2005>

According to the census above, from the total population of 1,307,560,000 in China, children aged 0-14 number 265,040,000, and make up 20.3% of the total population. These 265 million children included in the national census are part of a figure that entirely ignores the heihaizi, or unregistered children.

According to the research paper “The Execution and Outcomes of the Planned Birth Policy”[4], presented in 2003 by the State Family Planning Commission[5] (henceforth SFPC), as a result of the Planned Birth Policy in China, there has been a reduction of 250,000,000 children over the twenty-year period from 1983-2003, and in the 350 million homes, an average of 0.74 children per household was attained. However, it is difficult for the Chinese government to deny that among the 250 million children reported as being a low number of births, a large number should be added due to the numbers of children that have been effectively prevented from being registered and included in the population census. In the dissertation by Kyunghee Lee (2004:68), the Chinese government calculates that over 1 million unregistered persons exist nationwide; however, most people estimate that the actual number is much larger, at about 10 million. However, since the Planned Birth Policy is being implemented on a national level, statistics regarding the heihaizi and the status of children is totally lacking.

The present paper seeks to discuss the rise of the tasks of child rights protection in China with the basis on the heihaizi and the status of child abuse in China.

Data used in the present paper is based on data published on official Chinese government websites, but in cases in which data renewal has not been made, previous data is being used. Furthermore, all original Chinese characters in use will be notated in the Hanyu Pinyin notation.

II. The Rise of the Heihaizi as an Aftereffect of China’s Planned Birth Policy

1. The Process and Execution of China’s Planned Birth Policy

The process and execution of China’s Planned Birth Policy can be divided into four major stages. The division put forth in this paper may differ in statistics, year divisions, and relative content in each stage to the research by Lee, Kyunghee (2004:47-50), but is largely on the same trend. The present paper will follow the legal data provided by the Chinese government’s Planned Birth Policy. The four stages of implementation of population control in China are as follows.

1) (1953-1961) Formation and Advocacy of the Planned Birth Theory[6]:

In 1949, at the time of formation of the People’s Republic of China, the population was estimated at about 490 million people, but under the dominant belief that “manpower drives the society”, the population increased geometrically to 580 million in the first national census in 1953. According to data from Lee, Kyunghee (2004:47-50), in the first national census, a 16% to 23% of drastic population increase was recorded.

The farming population, residing mainly in rural farmlands, mostly had no access to formal education, and the illiterate population of almost 200 million[7] was an obstacle to the development of Chinese society. Part of the intelligentsia tried to find an escape route from the rise of illiteracy and the subsequent limitations on the development of society as a whole, and the decrease in quality of the available workforce. Representative scholars of that movement are the economist Ma Yinchu, pro-democracy dissident Shao Lizi, anthropologist and a mentor of mine, Fei Xiaotong. These people recommended a population control policy to be officially enforced for the proper control of the population and the qualitative improvement of the workforce.

2) (1962-1969) Pilot Project Stage for the Planned Birth Policy[8]

In the early 60s, China experienced a second baby boom. In the second national census in 1964, the population numbered nearly 700 million. It was an increase of almost 120 million from the 580 million that had been recorded in 1953. China came face to face with the social issues that arose out of the sudden expansion of the population, and in 1962 finally proclaimed the National Policy for the Improvement in the Planned Birth Policy.

The State Family Planning Commission, the highest authority on population control, was established in 1964, and regional family planning commissions at the provincial, city, city region, and rural community levels. This was the pilot stage of China’s Planned Birth Policy. However, due to the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976, the population control policies became unclear, and population continued increasing in a disorganized manner.

3) (1970-1980) Stage of Advocacy of Delayed Marriage and Childbirth, Extended Time Periods between Childbirths, and Decrease in Number of Children.[9]

In the 70s, more specifically, the late 70’s after the end of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, active efforts for population control were being made in both city and country through State intervention. The Chinese government, in their Fourth Five-Year Plan, a strong proposal was made to reduce national population growth in the city to 1%, and to 1.5% in the country, being these the first recorded population control objectives for China. In December 1973, the State Family Planning Commission organized the First Population Control Policy Status Report, and set the objectives to be “delayed marriage and childbirth, extended time periods between childbirths, and decrease in number of children.

The third stage of the population control policy was the period of time when China’s first only-child generation and the heihaizi appeared. With the close of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, the State began a sweeping and strict enforcement of population control regulation, and newly born children to families who already had a child became the first heihaizi, unable to be registered in the national records.

The government followed the one-child-per-couple policy, and issued single-child certificates to single-child families, and offered allowances, additional points in their workplace performance ratings, and other benefits. In 1979 alone, over 6.1 million children received the certificate of single-child.

On the other hand, families who violated the one-child policy were subject to fines, prevention from promotion, halting of nurturing welfare allowances, among other disadvantages. Due to the strict supervision and regulation by the government, few city workers attempted to have more children through the many disadvantages it posed in their community. From the beginnings of the Planned Birth Policy to this day, most of the families that gave birth to the heihaizi are focused in rural areas with low State intervention and high regard for male children, even with fines so high that they are impossible to pay.

4) (1980-Present Day) Settlement and Stabilization of the Present-Day Planned Birth Policy[10]

In the third conference of the National State Council’s Fifth National People’s Congress in September 1980, a push was made to “limit to one child per family in all areas except minority population regions”, and for all socialist members and youth follow this rule. In the Twelfth China Socialist Conference, it was proclaimed that “the Enforcement of the Planned Birth Policy is the Fundamental National Policy in China”. That same year in December, the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China, passed in the National People’s Congress, established legal grounds for the Planned Birth Policy, and opened the roads for legal enforcement of the policy. According to statistics by the State Family Planning Commission, over 28 million single-child certificates were issued by 1984. The Population and Family Planning Law of the People’s Republic of China was passed on September 1, 2002.

The fourth stage in Planned Birth Policy is characterized by the reinforcement of the progress of the population control policy, as well as the legalization and structuring of the policy.

At this time, China was still trying to enforce the Planned Birth Policy through the dual use of the whip and the carrot, and many families with male children did not have additional children. However, the difference between the fourth and third stages is that regardless of urban or rural location, families in which the first child was a girl would continue to have 2-3 more children until a boy was born if they were able to pay the government fines. This can be seen as a result of the opening reform of China, and the increase in families running their own businesses and having an increase in finances.

Rich or poor, the status of the heihaizi holds many negative points, and they are disadvantaged in the fields of education, medical care, success in society, and others. The decrease or deprivation of opportunities for the heihaizi is the greatest cause for concern of not only the heihaizi themselves, but also their family, and calls for a transition in the population control policy in China.

2. Social and Child-Related Issues Arising from the Planned Birth Policy

Examining China’s Planned Birth Policy’s expansion and effect, it can be said that it achieved great success in slowing the explosive growth of China’s population and the subsequent food and natural resources problems, prevented the eventual global warming effect due to population growth, and other significant achievements. However, the social and child related issues that arose from that policy must not go unnoticed.

China’s child-related problems, inspected by UNICEF China in its Child Rights and Community Service[11], is closely related to the child rights issues in the present stage, so they will be examined together. When China’s present-stage child problems and the social and child related problems resulting from the Planned Birth Policy, the following can be observed.

1) The Problem of Kidnapping and Trafficking of Women and Children

The most serious problem resulting from the Planned Birth Policy was the unbalance in the male-to-female ratio. According to the population census by the China Popin website, among the total population in China in 2005, 673,750,000 are male, and 633,810,000 female, or about 106.30 males per every 100 females[12]. Also, the National Bureau of Statistics, Population Census 2000 – Comparison of Population by Gender[13] shows that for every 100 women, there were 108.5 men in 1982, 110.9 in 1987, 111.3 in 1990, and 115.6 in 1995, reaching 116.9 in 2000.

Regarding the gender ratio, Lee, Kyunghee’s (2004:68) section on China Internet Information Center – Research Data[14] shows the severity of the problem. Due to the gender ratio unbalance, the most serious problem is the lack of partners for single men, and according to data by the China Information and Development Research Center, 30 million Chinese men were unable to find a partner in 2004. In the Sichuan Province, over 362,700 men over 50 have never been married, while only 26,800 women are single, leading to a ratio of 13.53 to one.

As a result of the Planned Birth Policy, the unbalance in the gender ratio has caused the rise of single men, and this in turn led to more frequent kidnapping and trafficking incidents of women. Among kidnapped women, many are from the western poor regions, and are sold to men in the relatively rich eastern regions of China, or even into prostitution.

In farming communities, the intentional refusal to register a first-born girl due to Confusian beliefs of preference for boys, in order to have an opportunity to give birth to a boy, are leading to the rise of the heihaizi and even kidnappings and trafficking incidents.

According to government standards, almost 10,000 women and children are kidnapped or trafficked in China, and children (male children under 5, mostly) make up 10% of that figure.

2) The Problem of Handicapped Children

It is true that China is striving to protect the rights of the almost 10 million handicapped children, but they are still being discriminated and scorned by society. Handicapped children still remain in the dead zone, and it is more severe in the case that the child is a girl. Some of the parents of handicapped children living in rural areas confine their child inside their house to not show them to their neighbors. Handicapped children are often denied the right to equal education, and while 99% of all children in China receive proper education, only 76% of handicapped children do so. In some schools, handicapped children are still denied entrance, and some accept them but do not provide the special education required due to their particular needs.

In some cases, the government makes provisions in its Planned Birth Policy to allow for an additional child in homes with a handicapped child, but the request procedure is complicated, and after the birth of the healthy child, the handicapped child receives physical and emotional suffering and discrimination. Furthermore, negative effects on the handicapped children’s emotional health is caused by the extreme care and protection provided in other healthy families in the so-called 4:2:1 ratio, where the grandparents on both sides (4), parents (2), and child (1) all focus on the well-being of the child exclusively. Children who grow up under protective environments often show that they cannot provide for the needs of others, and, in particular, the lack of interest and outright discrimination against handicapped children is another cause for emotional suffering.

3) The problem of Kidnapped and Orphaned Children

According to statistics, 100,000 children are abandoned each year in China, and most of them are handicapped or female children; and the numbers are on the rise. Among them, there are also included children from unwed mothers, but most of them are due to abandonment by families trying to give birth to a boy to register as their only child, and show an immoral condition. The Chinese government is attempting to reduce the obstacles in the process of adoption of abandoned or orphaned children, but due to the single-child policy, few families want to adopt.

In an article written in the August 8, 2004, edition of the Chinese newspaper the Public Interest Times, or Gong Yi Shi Bao, reports the difficulties faced by a Chinese couple, Ge De Ming and Hei Gui Zhen in Beijing who adopted a child abandoned in front of their house. This couple found the girl on January 30, 1995, and named her Xiao Xiao. Though they were not very wealthy, they raised the child by cutting on their own personal expenditures, and decided on adoption when the child came to school age.

However, the couple already had two children before the implementation of the Planned Birth Policy, and the adoption of Xiao Xiao would put them over the limitations of the Policy, leading to a 20,000 yuan fine ($2,500).

In 2005, the annual average net income was 10,493 yuan ($1,300) in the city and 3,255 yuan ($400) in the countryside. Compared to the annual income of 28,000 yuan ($2,500) of the average citizen in Beijing, the fine for exceeding the number of children is an equal amount to their annual income, making it very difficult to pay. Xiao Xiao’s adoption problem still remains unsolved in 2006.

Regarding orphaned children, a great uproar was caused by the child abuse occurring in different orphanages and other facilities all over China, and the government is making efforts to improve and reform the facilities and their environment. Foster care is newly being introduced as a part of the enhancement effort for the children’s growing environment, but most still grow up in orphanages. Due to limitations of the Planned Birth Policy, almost no one except infertile couples are considering adoption as an option, and most of those children are being put up for adoption abroad.

4) The Problem of Migrating Children

The law in China states that people should remain in their place of registration, but there exists a large number of migrant populations who move to a different region. Most of the migrating population moves from rural to urban areas, and some from smaller to larger cities.

In the rural community in China, there is a surplus of about 100 to 150 million workers, most of which leave the countryside to make their living by the lowest class of manual labor. With unclear statistics available, it is estimated that about 19 million children have followed their parents to the city, and these children, unregistered in their region of residence, are in a dead zone of medical care, education, and other welfare benefits.

The discrimination received by the newly migrated population in the cities, in particular the children, lowers their quality of life, and often prevents their opportunities for success. Migrating children receive education as unregistered persons in their place of residence, and their educational costs are much higher; also, the difference between their native tongue and the new region’s tongue causes low school performance.

In some areas, simple schools for migrating children have been established, but often the facilities or staff are lacking. A large portion of these schools are unregistered in the government, and even when migrating children graduate, they often have their education unrecognized.

Migrating children also face danger in their moving or post-moving process in the form of fraud or trafficking. The situation is so insecure and dangerous that of the boys trafficked due to male preference, 80% were children from migrating families.

5) The Problem of Wandering Children

Wandering children are children that, by their own will or through circumstance, live outside a family. Wandering children and youth are under the age of 18, and live outside the protection of a family or guardian, and do not receive protection of their minimum living standards.

According to statistics by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, wandering children in China in 1994 numbered 100,000. Wandering children in the cities are still on the rise, and the Ministry of Civil Affairs estimates that each year, about 150 thousand wandering children are produced in China. Among the children cared for by the government aid agency in the Sichuan province in 1999, 82.8% were from rural areas; and among the children cared in the city of Changsha in the province of Hunan, 99.9% were from rural areas.

These wandering children are children from migrating families, or children who have run away to escape their harsh living conditions. These children, outside family protection, are exposed to all sorts of danger and abuse, and many step into the roads of crime.

The normal measures taken by regional administrative organizations to protect these wandering children is to send them to the child care facility for temporary care, and to return them to their registered region. However, since many of the runaway children have done so to escape problematic homes, they often run away again to lead a wandering life.

II. China’s Child Rights Related Legislation and the Status of Child Abuse

1. China’s Child Rights Related Legislation

According to the Country Report on the Child Development in China (2003-2004), the legislation passed for the legal protection of child rights in China are the following: 1. Constitution, 2. the Criminal Law, 3. General Principles of the Civil Law, 4. Marriage law, 5. Education Law, 6. Compulsory Education Law, 7. Protection Act for the Disabled, 8. Law on the Protection of Minors, 9. Law on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency, 10. Law on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of Women, 11. Maternal and Infant Healthcare Law, 12. Law on Prevention and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, 13. Adoption Law, and 14. Population and Family Planning Law.

In 1992, China acceded to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Aside from formulating the abovementioned legislation, China has amended the Constitution, and the Law on Prevention and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, and is currently working on newly amending the Law on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of Women, the Compulsory Education Law, and the Protection Act for the Disabled. This paper deals mainly with the child abuse and child rights related issues, and the Law on the Protection of Minors will be discussed. The law is as follows.

Law on the Protection of Minors

(Adopted at the 21st Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Seventh National People's Congress on September 4, 1991)

Chapter I. General Provisions

Article 1. This Law is enacted in accordance with the Constitution for the purpose of protecting the physical and mental health of minors, safeguarding their lawful rights and interests, promoting their all-round development -- morally, intellectually and physically, and training them into successors to the socialist cause with lofty ideals, sound morality, better education and a good sense of discipline.

Article 2. Minors as used in this Law refer to citizens under the age of eighteen.

Article 3. The State, society, schools and families shall educate minors in ideals, morality, culture, discipline and legal system as well as in patriotism, collectivism, internationalism and communism, foster among them the social ethics of loving the motherland, the people, labour, science and socialism, and fight against the corrosive influences of bourgeois, feudal and other decadent ideologies.

Article 4. The protection of minors shall follow the following principles:

(1) safeguarding the lawful rights and interests of minors;

(2) respecting the personal dignity of minors;

(3) fitting in with the characteristics of minors' physical and mental development; and

(4) combining education with protection.

Article 5. The State shall protect the rights of the person and property as well as other lawful rights and interests of minors from violation.

To protect minors is the common responsibility of State organs, armed forces, political parties, social organizations, enterprises and institutions, self-governing organizations of mass character at grass-roots levels in urban and rural areas, guardians of minors and other adult citizens.

Any organization or individual shall have the right to dissuade or stop any act encroaching upon the lawful rights and interests of minors, or report to or complain before a department concerned there against.

The State, society, schools and families shall educate and help minors to safeguard their lawful rights and interests by legal means.

Article 6. State organs at the central and local levels shall, within the scope of their functions and responsibilities, ensure the protection of minors.

The State Council and the people's governments of the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government shall adopt organizational measures according to needs to coordinate the departments concerned in their efforts to ensure the protection of minors.

The Communist Youth League organs, women's federations, trade unions, youth federations, students' federations, young pioneers' organizations and other social organizations shall assist the people's governments at various levels in ensuring the protection of minors and safeguarding their lawful rights and interests.

Article 7. The people's governments at various levels and departments concerned shall give awards to organizations and individuals that have made outstanding achievements in the protection of minors.

Chapter II. Protection by the Family

Article 8. The parents or other guardians of minors shall fulfil their responsibility of guardianship and their obligations according to law to bring up the minors. They shall not maltreat or forsake the minors, nor shall they discriminate against female or handicapped minors. Infanticide and infant-abandoning shall be forbidden.

Article 9. The parents or other guardians of minors shall respect the minors' right to receive education, must ensure to the minors of school age the compulsory education as provided by relevant regulations, and shall not make those minors receiving compulsory education at school discontinue their schooling.

Article 10. The parents or other guardians of minors shall cultivate the minors in sound ideology and conduct by appropriate methods, guide them to undertake activities that are conducive to their physical and mental development, prevent and stop them from smoking, excessive drinking, leading a vagrant life, gambling, drug-taking or prostitution.

Article 11. The parents or other guardians of minors may not permit or force the minors to marry, nor may they undertake an engagement for the minors.

Article 12. The parents or other guardians of minors who refuse to perform their duties as guardians or encroach upon the lawful rights and interests of the minors under their guardianship shall bear the responsibility there for according to law.

Where the parents or other guardians of minors commit any act specified in the preceding paragraph and refuse to mend their ways after education, the people's court may, upon application by the person(s) or unit(s) concerned, disqualify them as guardians and designate guardians anew in accordance with the provisions in Article 16 of the General Principles of the Civil Law.

Chapter III. Protection by the School

Article 13. Schools shall comprehensively implement the State policy for education and conduct moral, intellectual, physical, aesthetic and labour education among the minor students, and give them guidance in social life as well as education in puberty knowledge.

Schools shall show concern for and take good care of the minor students; with respect to those who have shortcomings in conduct or difficulties in study, schools shall give patient education and help, and may not discriminate against them.

Article 14. Schools shall respect the minor students' right to receive education and may not arbitrarily expel any minor students from schools.

Article 15. Teaching and administrative staff in schools and kindergartens shall respect the personal dignity of the minors, and may not enforce corporal punishment or corporal punishment in disguised forms, or any other act that humiliates the personal dignity of the minors.

Article 16. Schools may not let the minor students engage in any activity in school buildings or in any other educational and teaching facilities that are dangerous to their personal safety and health.

No organization or individual may disrupt the order of teaching in schools, occupy or damage school ground, housing and installations.

Article 17. Collective activities organized by schools and kindergartens for minor students and children, such as taking part in rallies, recreational activities and social practices, shall be conducive to the sound growth of minors; accidents endangering personal safety shall be prevented.

Article 18. In respect of minors who are sent to work-and-study schools to receive compulsory education pursuant to relevant regulations of the State, the work-and-study schools shall conduct among such minors ideological, cultural, labour skill and vocational education.

Teaching and administrative staff in work-and-study schools shall show concern for, take good care of and respect the students and may not discriminate against or detest such students.

Article 19. Kindergartens shall do a good job in nursing care and education so as to promote the harmonious development of the children in physique, intellectual ability and moral values.

Chapter IV. Protection by the Society

Article 20. The State shall encourage social organizations, enterprises, institutions and other organizations and citizens to hold various forms of social activities that are conducive to the sound growth of minors.

Article 21. People's governments at various levels shall create conditions to establish and improve places and facilities suited to the needs of minors for cultural life.

Article 22. Museums, memorial halls, scientific and technological centres, cultural centres, cinemas and theatres, stadiums and gymnasiums, zoos, parks and other similar places shall be open to secondary school students and primary school pupils on preferential basis.

Article 23. In respect of places, such as commercial dancing halls that are not appropriate for minors to take part in the activities therein, the competent departments and business managers shall take measures to ensure that no admission shall be given to minors.

Article 24. The State shall encourage units of the press, publication, broadcasting, film and television, art and literature, as well as writers, scientists, artists and other citizens to create or provide works beneficial to the sound growth of minors. The State shall render support to the publication of books, newspapers, magazines and audio-visual products specially catering to minors.

Article 25. It shall be strictly prohibited for any organization or individual to sell, rent, or disseminate by any other means to minors, books, newspapers, magazines or audio-visual products of pornography, violence, wanton killing and terror that are pernicious to minors.

Article 26. Food, toys, utensils and amusement facilities for children may not be harmful to children's safety and health.

Article 27. No person may smoke in the classrooms, dormitories and recreational rooms of secondary and primary schools, kindergartens, as well as any other indoor places where minors gather for activities.

Article 28. No organization or individual may hire any minor under the age of sixteen, except as otherwise provided by the State.

Any organization or individual that recruits according to relevant regulations of the State minors over the age of sixteen but under eighteen shall, in respect of the types of jobs, duration of time and intensity of labour as well as protective measures, follow the relevant regulations of the State and may not assign them to any over strenuous, poisonous or harmful labour or any dangerous operation.

Article 29. In respect of minors who wander about and go begging or those who flee from their homes, the civil affairs departments or other departments concerned shall take the responsibility to send them back to their parents or other guardians; with regard to those whose parents or guardians cannot be ascertained for the time being, the welfare organizations for children established by the civil affairs departments shall accept and take care of them.

Article 30. No organization or individual may disclose the personal secrets of minors.

Article 31. No organization or individual may conceal, destroy or discard mail of any minor. Except when the inspection of mail in accordance with legal procedures by the public security organs or the people's procuratorates is necessary for the investigation of a criminal offence, or when the opening of mail of a minor without capacity is done on his or her behalf by the parents or other guardians, no organization or individual may open mail of any minor.

Article 32. Departments of public health and schools shall provide minors with necessary sanitary and health-care conditions and make efforts to prevent diseases.

Article 33. Local people's governments at various levels shall make efforts to develop child-care undertakings and strive to run nurseries and kindergartens well, encourage and support State organs, social organizations, enterprises and institutions as well as other sectors of society to establish nursing rooms, nurseries and kindergartens, advocate and support the establishment of household nurseries.

Article 34. Departments of public health shall, in relation to children, establish a preventive inoculation certificate system, make efforts to prevent common and frequently-occurring diseases among children, strengthen supervision and control over the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases and give more effective professional guidance to sanitation and health-care work in nurseries and kindergartens.

Article 35. People's governments at various levels and departments concerned shall, through various forms, foster and train child-care and teaching staff in nurseries and kindergartens, and strengthen political, ideological and professional education thereto.

Article 36. The State shall protect according to law the intellectual achievements and the right of honour of minors from encroachment.

For minors who have shown unusual talent or made outstanding achievements, the State, society, families and schools shall create conditions favourable to their sound development.

Article 37. In respect of minors who have completed the prescribed length of schooling in terms of compulsory education and will not receive education at a higher level, the relevant governmental departments, social organizations, enterprises and institutions shall, in line with the actual conditions, train them in vocational skills and create conditions for their engagement in labour or employment.

Chapter V. Judicial Protection

Article 38. In respect of delinquent minors, the policy of education, persuasion and redemption shall be implemented and the principle of taking education as the main method and punishment as the subsidiary shall be upheld.

Article 39. In respect of minors reaching the age of fourteen who have committed crimes but are not subject to criminal punishment because they have not yet reached the age of sixteen, their parents or other guardians shall be ordered to subject them to discipline; when necessary, such minors may also be taken in for rehabilitation by the government.

Article 40. Public security organs, people's procuratorates and people's courts shall, in dealing with cases involving crimes committed by minors, take their physical and mental characteristics into consideration, and may, in line with needs, set up special organs or designate special persons to handle such cases.

Public security organs, people's procuratorates, people's courts and reformatories for juvenile delinquents shall respect the personal dignity of the delinquent minors and safeguard their lawful rights and interests.

Article 41. Public security organs, people's procuratorates and people's courts shall guard minors under custody, pending trial, separately from adults under custody.

Minors who are sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment by the people's courts shall be housed and guarded separately from adults serving their sentences.

Article 42. All cases involving crimes committed by minors over fourteen years old but under sixteen shall not be tried publicly. Cases involving crimes committed by minors over sixteen years old but under eighteen shall, in general, not be tried publicly.

With regard to cases involving crimes committed by minors, the names, home addresses and photos of such minors as well as other information which can be used to deduce who they are, may not be disclosed, before the judgment, in news reports, films, TV programmes and in any other openly circulated publications.

Article 43. The families, schools and other units concerned shall coordinate, in educating and redeeming the delinquent minors, with the reformatories for juvenile delinquents and other similar units where the delinquent minors are held.

Article 44. Minors who are exempt from prosecution by the people's procuratorates, from criminal punishment by the people's courts, or the execution of whose sentence is announced suspended by the people's court, and minors who have been released from reformatory custody or have served their terms of imprisonment shall not be discriminated against in respect of resuming schooling, entering a higher school or employment.

Article 45. The people's courts shall, in handling cases concerning inheritance, protect the minors' right of inheritance according to law.

In handling cases of divorce, if disputes arise between the two parties concerned over the support of the minor child or children and no agreement can be reached, the people's courts shall make judgment in accordance with the principle of safeguarding the rights and interests of the child or children and in light of the specific conditions of the two parties concerned.

Chapter VI. Legal Responsibility

Article 46. Where the lawful rights and interests of a minor is infringed, the infringed or his or her guardians shall have the right to request the department concerned to deal with the matter or bring a suit in a people's court according to law.

Article 47. Whoever has encroached upon the lawful rights and interests of a minor and caused him or her losses in property or other losses or harms shall compensate for the losses or bear other civil liabilities according to law.

Article 48. Where teaching and administrative staff in schools, nurseries or kindergartens subject minor students or children to corporal punishment or corporal punishment in disguised forms, and if the circumstances are serious, disciplinary sanctions shall be given by their units or the authorities at higher levels.

Article 49. Where enterprises, institutions or individual industrialists and businessmen illegally hire minors who have not reached the age of sixteen, the relevant labour departments shall order such units or individuals to make corrections and shall impose fines on them; if the circumstances are serious, the relevant administrative departments for industry and commerce shall revoke their business licenses.

Article 50. Where commercial dancing halls or other similar places not appropriate for minors to participate in the activities therein give admission to minors, the competent departments shall order such units to make corrections, and may impose fines on them.

Article 51. Whoever sells, rents or disseminates by any other means to minors pornographic books, newspapers, magazines or audio-visual products shall be given heavier punishment according to law.

Article 52. Where an encroachment upon the right of the person or other lawful rights of a minor constitutes a crime, criminal responsibility shall be investigated according to law.

Whoever maltreats a minor family member in a vicious manner shall be investigated for criminal responsibility in accordance with the provisions in Article 182 of the Criminal Law.

Judicial personnel who, in violation of the rules or regulations on prison management, subject imprisoned minors to corporal punishment or maltreatment, shall be investigated for criminal responsibility in accordance with the provisions in Article 189 of the Criminal Law.

Where a person has the obligation to support a minor but refuses to do so, and if the circumstances are flagrant, criminal responsibility shall be investigated in accordance with the provisions in Article 183 of the Criminal Law.

Whoever commits infanticide shall be investigated for criminal responsibility in accordance with the provisions in Article 132 of the Criminal Law.

Whoever, while fully aware of the school buildings being in danger of collapse, does not take any measures, thus resulting in the collapse of the said buildings and causing injuries or death, shall be investigated for criminal responsibility in accordance with the provisions in Article 187 of the Criminal Law.

Article 53. Whoever instigates a minor to break law or commit criminal offences shall be given heavier punishment according to law.

Whoever lures, instigates or forces a minor to take or inject drugs or engage in prostitution shall be given heavier punishment according to law.

Article 54. A party concerned, if not satisfied with the decision on administrative sanctions made according to this Law, may first apply for reconsideration to an administrative organ at a higher level or to an administrative organ prescribed by relevant laws or regulations. If still not satisfied with the reconsideration decision, the party may bring a suit in a people's court. The party may also directly bring a suit in a people's court. Where the relevant laws or regulations prescribe that the party concerned shall first apply to the administrative organ for reconsideration, and, if not satisfied with the reconsideration decision, then bring a suit in a people's court, such laws or regulations shall be complied with.

If a party, within the prescribed period, neither applies for reconsideration of the decision on administrative sanctions, nor brings a suit in a people's court, nor complies with the decision, the organ which has made the punitive decision may either apply to a people's court for compulsory execution, or enforce the decision according to law.

Chapter VII . Supplementary Provisions

Article 55. Departments concerned under the State Council may formulate on the basis of this Law relevant regulations, which shall be submitted to the State Council for approval before implementation.

The standing committees of the people's congresses of the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government may, on the basis of this Law, formulate measures for implementation.

Article 56. This Law shall enter into force as of January 1, 1992.

(Appendix)

(Relevant Articles from the Criminal Law)

Article 26 A person who instigates others to commit a crime shall be punished according to the role he has played in the joint crime. Anyone who instigates a person under the age of 18 to commit a crime shall be given a heavier punishment.

If the instigated person has not committed the instigated crime,the instigator may be given a lighter or mitigated punishment.

Article 132 Whoever intentionally commits homicide shall be sentenced to death, life imprisonment or fixed-term imprisonment of not less than ten years; if the circumstances are relatively minor, the offender shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years and not more than ten years.

Article 182 Whoever maltreats a member of his family, if the circumstances are flagrant, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than two years, criminal detention or public surveillance.

If anyone committing the crime mentioned in the preceding paragraph causes serious injury or death to his victim, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than two years and not more than seven years.

The crime mentioned in the first paragraph of this Article shall be handled only upon complaint.

Article 183 Whoever refuses his proper duty to support an aged person, minor, sick person or any other person who cannot live independently, if the circumstances are flagrant, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years, criminal detention or public surveillance.

Article 187 Any state functionary who, because of neglect of duty, causes public property or the interests of the state and the people to suffer heavy losses shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention.

Article 189 Any judicial functionary who violates the laws and regulations on prison management and subjects prisoners or internees to corporal punishment, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or criminal detention; if the circumstances are especially serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years and not more than ten years.

2. The Status of Child Abuse in China

In modern nations, studies on child abuse is being carried on in a systematic basis; however, such research in China is still at an immature stage. The human rights violations occurring silently in China, has been the topic of interest of many Western nations for a long time, and a difficult task for the Chinese government as well. It is true that minorities, the handicapped, women and children, and other relatively weak social groups are being guaranteed equal rights through legal measures, such as the Law for the Protection of Minors as previously seen. However, aside from the legal and outside appearances, their actual and real status is often very different from the provisions of the laws established for them.

In the National Research Forum Against Child Abuse, professor Chen Jing Qi of Beijing University’s Institute of Child and Adolescent Health, Health Science Center, and professor Michael Dunne from the International Society for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect jointly presented a research supported by the National Women’s Federation and the UNICEF, showing the status of child abuse in China, and the lack of research in the field.

The Chen-Dunne (2005) research is based on adolescents attending technical secondary schools and colleges or universities, with analysis on the effects of their childhood abuse on their adolescent emotional health. Anonymous research was carried out in March and April of 2005, with 4,327 students from the six provinces of Guangdong, Zhejiang, Hubei, Shanxi, Helongjiang and Beijing. 3,577 completed questionnaires were evaluated, a 82.7% of the total, and 1,643 male and 1,934 female students participated, 45.9% and 54.1% of the total, respectively.

The research included demographics, childhood (before age 16 years) maltreatment experiences, youth health-related risk behaviors, General Well-Being Schedule (GWB) and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D).

Maltreatment during childhood (before age 16 years) was assessed with 17 questions, that asked about specific violent acts, including physical abuse (4 questions), psychological abuse (7 questions) and sexual abuse (6 questions). It is important to note that the questions covered a wide range of experiences. Some are relatively mild and likely to be common experiences for young people (such as humiliation), while others are very severe and would be regarded in every culture as illegal and very harmful (such as being intentionally burned or stabbed, or being forced to have sexual intercourse against the person’s will).

Results of the Chen-Dunne research are as follows.

1) Childhood (before 16) Abuse

- Results of Research on Childhood Abuse in Three Areas:

(1) Physical maltreatment: 54.6% of males and 32.6% of females had been hit, or kicked or pushed very hard on the head or body by someone with an open hand

(39.0% vs. 28.5%) beaten by someone with an object like a stick, broom or belt

(4.3% vs. 2.4%) locked up in a small place, or tied up by somebody with rope so that the child could not move

(3.8% vs. 1.9%) choked, or burned, or stabbed by somebody with sharp object

(2) Psychological maltreatment: 35.9% of males and 29.9% of females humiliated in front of other people

(24.6% vs. 6.2%) been forced to give away money or possessions the child owned to other people

(0.7% vs. 0.4%) been threatened that they would be hurt because of their ethnic background, or religion

(10.5% vs. 10.3%) been told by a family member that they wished they had never been born, or was dead

(13.6% vs. 10.5%) been threatened by somebody in the household that they would be abandoned or banished from the house

(32.4% vs. 33.7%) the child had witnessed very violent things like severe hitting or beating of people in their family or very close people

(7.5% vs. 2.4%) the child had been personally threatened that they would be badly hurt or killed

(3) Sexual abuse: to 12.2% of males and 13.8% of females, someone had spoken to the child in an obscene or sexual way

(6.5% vs. 11.9%) someone had exposed their genitals to the child when the child did not want them to

(9.7% vs.13.5%) someone had touched or fondled their private parts (breast, sexual organ) when they did not want them to

(1.9% vs. 2.7%) someone had forced the child to touch the perpetrator’s private parts (breast, sexual organ) when the child did not want to

(1.3% vs. 5.3%) someone had tried against child’s will to have sex with the child but had not completed the act

(1.7% vs. 2.1%) and someone had had sexual intercourse with the child against their will

As a result, 25.2% of the sample reported no abusive events at all, while a further 36.5% said that only one or two of these 17 possible events had happened to them. Thus, 61.7% of the sample had no or only a few experiences ever.

However, 22.6% reported 3 or 4 types, while 11.3% said they had 5 or 6 types of abusive acts. A further 4.4% reported they had experienced 7 or more types of abuse during their childhood years.

2) Relationship between Childhood Maltreatment and Mental Health

- Well-being scale is inversely proportional to abusive experiences

- Depression scale is directly proportional to abusive experiences

3) Relationship between Childhood Maltreatment and Youth Health-Related Risk Behavior

The study showed that students with 7 or more types of abuse during childhood years had a much higher risk of drinking, smoking, violence, self-violence, and suicidal wishes, compared to children who had not been abused or experienced one or two types of abuse.

4) Conclusion: The Chen-Dunne (2005) report concluded by stating that their survey was preliminary and only limited to 6 provinces, and did not include data on adolescents of the same age but not attending school. Subsequently, the Chen-Dunne (2005) research cannot be said to be a comprehensive study on child abuse in China. However, the childhood backgrounds of the adolescents surveyed are quite varied, encompassing rural areas, small cities, and major cities as well, and the educational backgrounds of the parents of the respondents also varied from elementary school to college education, and the survey can be said to hold a certain degree of representability. Chen-Dunne (2005) attained the following results from the survey.

(1) Child maltreatment is an existing problem in China. A small but important minority of young people (4.4%) reported seven or more types of abuse, often of the most damaging nature. This means that one or two children in average school classes may be victims of serious child abuse. About one in ten students have had 5 or 6 types of adverse events in their early years.

(2) Boys are more likely to suffer physical and psychological maltreatment than are girls, while girls are more likely to be sexually abused than boys. It is important to note, however, that mostly the differences between genders are not large; substantial numbers of boys reported unwanted sexual experiences, and some girls report being severely beaten.

(3) The impact on mental health that we observe here is entirely consistent with findings from research in many countries. The findings of very high rates of suicidal intention, alcohol use and alcohol-related injury, violent behavior and other harmful behaviors among adolescents with multiple types of abuse are important.

IV. Conclusion

The problem of child abuse and child rights infractions in China and the rest of the world is not a recent issue. The difference in child abuse cases in China is that child abuse existed before the Planned Birth Policy, but with the implementation of said Policy, a trend of child abuse different from other countries, namely abandonment of girls, kidnapping of boys, and the rise of the heihaizi has risen.

The problems and characteristics of the child rights violations in China after the Planned Birth Policy can be summarized as follows.

1. The Rise in the Educational Expenses of Children

Wealthy parents residing in rich regions, such as Beijing and Shanghai, spend an yearly 20 to 30 thousand yuan ($2,500-3,500) for their child’s education, an amount equal to 2-3 times the annual income of the average workers. As an example, in the city of Shenyang, an expensive kindergarten costs up to 30 to 40 thousand yuan ($4,500-5,500) per year, and other private education expenses make up a grand total of over 40 thousand yuan. With the belief that investing in the child’s education is the best way to guarantee a plentiful elderly life, the extreme spending on education has given rise to an expansion in the educational industry, and increased costs in all fields related to education. Textbooks, uniforms, books, and other educational centers are on the constant rise, and tuition, residences, and job training fees are rising as well.

The heihaizi are unregistered, and therefore not eligible for educational welfare benefits from the government, and have to pay much higher tuition, leading to many families to abandon efforts on educating the heihaizi.

2. The Rise in Abortion, Abandonment or Killing of Female Children, Kidnapping and Trafficking of Male Children

Abortion is an artificial interruption of pregnancy with many negative effects in the woman’s health. The Planned Birth Policy in China intends to repress natural births, so women who have failed at preventing conception must resort to abortion as the only alternative. Though the Chinese government is legally prohibiting gender disclosure during pregnancy, abortions are still frequent in order to give birth to a boy in cases where the first child is already a girl. The one-child-per-family policy is also failing, as reflected by the fact that boys younger than 5 account for more than 10% of all kidnapping cases.

3. Problem with the Child’s Personality Education due to Overprotection of Only Children in the 4:2:1 Ratio

Due to overprotection of the only children, called “Small Emperors”, by the grandparents (4), parents (2), and the child (1), most only children lack independence and social skills. They show a lack of consideration for others, and were reliant on their parents instead of themselves. As they were used to having everything taken care of by their parents, a tendency to escape obstacles instead of overcoming them was observed, as well as a weak will.

Additionally, the plentiful life that these children are accustomed to lead to a materialistic personality, and often they stop at nothing to get what they want, even crime.

4. Rise in Numbers of Single Men due to the Imbalance in the Gender Ratio, and the Rise in Crimes against Women

In the third, fourth, and fifth censuses of 1982, 1990, and 2000, the male-female ratio continued worsening at 108.5, 111.3, and 116.9.

According to data by Lee, Kyunghee (2004:60), in order of ratio unbalance, the provinces of Hainan (135.64), Guangdong (130.30), Hubei (128.18), Anhui (127.85), Hunan (126.16), Guangxi (125.55), and Shaangxi (122.10) have continual increases in single male population due to the lack of women.

As mentioned in section II previously, the imbalance in gender ratio has led to the increase in single men, and the kidnapping and trafficking of women has become more frequent. Among kidnapped women, many are from the poor western regions, and are sold as wives to eastern region men, or even into slavery.

Tim Dyson stated that population, urbanization, and income per capita to be the three main factors that decide food provisions in the future in his World Population Growth and Food Supplies. Due to the fact that food is still lacking in China, the Planned Birth Policy is currently being evaluated more on its positive than negative effects.

The Planned Birth Policy in China is positive in the sense that it has done much to control the world population and provide for China’s economic growth; however, the social problems arising in its execution, namely in the form of child abuse, is a factor that the Chinese government must focus upon, and is one of the most important tasks for a future generation that will take charge of China. With the active support of UNICEF and the Chinese government, slow reforms are being made for Chinese children, especially the heihaizi and female children, as well as the handicapped; however, the Chinese government must resolve the issues of population control and the registration problems of the heihaizi, or else they will never have their situation improved in a significant degree. Subsequently, more accurate survey and research must be effectuated by Chinese and world scholars, and with the support of the Chinese government, the basic rights of life, welfare, development, education, and participation will be met in a new and reasonable solution.

Works Cited

Dyson, Tim. 1994. World Population Growth and Food Supplies, International Social Science Journal (UNESCO) 141. p201

Chen Jing Qi, Michael Dunne, 2005. 「暴力侵害兒童狀況分析(아동기 피학대 경험자 상황 분석)」. 아동 학대 반대 국가급 연구토론회(反對兒童暴力國家級硏討會)

Lee, Kyunghee, 이경희. 2004. 「중국의 산아제한과 낙태」. 사회이론 제26호. p47-50

Data:

中國網(중국자료홈페이지)(http://www.china.com.cn)

http://www.china.org.cn/chinese/renkou/72605.htm

中國兒童信息中心(유엔 아동복지회 주중국사무소)(http://www.cinfo.org.cn)

http://www.cinfo.org.cn/subject/shownews.jsp?news_id=61355&belong=×??????÷&alias=yxxd_fvtd

聯合國兒童基金會(주중 유엔 아동복지회) - (http://www.unicef.org/china/zh)

聯合國兒童基金會(주중 유엔 아동복지회) - ‘아동보호와 지역봉사’자료

- (http://www.unicef.org/china/zh/protection_community.html)

中國人口信息網(중국정부인구공식홈페이지) - (http://www.cpirc.org.cn)

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*[1] Cui, Jin Dan, Professor, Department of Liberal Arts, Daejin University / cuijd@dreamwiz.com / 011-9710-2802

[2] In the word heihaizi, hei means “black, dark, bad”, as well as “covert, invisible, secret, hidden”. Haizi in Chinese means “child”. Heihaizi means “secret or hidden child”.

[3] Source: China Population Information and Research Center, http://www.cpirc.org.cn, refer to listed statistics.

[4] This is a research paper presented at the 20th Anniversary Commemorative News Briefing of the 20^th Anniversary of the Public Address to All Socialist Members and Socialist Youth by the Chinese Government Regarding the Problem of Population Control.

[5] China uses the term “jihuashengyu” for “birth control”. (Translator’s Note: The term is more widely known in English as the “Planned Birth Policy” or “One-Child Policy” due to its enforced limit of one child per family in urban areas.) The State Family Planning Commission, or literally, “National Population and Family Planning Commission”, is directly subordinated to the National State Council, the Chinese government’s highest administrative body. The SFPC, the highest authority in population control in China, was founded in 1964, and operates with administrative level commissions at the provincial, city, city region, and rural districts.

[6] In Lee, Kyunghee’s research (2004:47-50), the first stage of the Planned Birth Policy is called the “Planned Birth Proposition Stage”, and covers 1953-1961.

[7] A policy carried on jointly with the Planned Birth Policy was the Written and Spoken Language Standardization Policy, or language reforms. Seven language groups are spoken in China, and in the beginnings of the country, many were unable to speak the official language, Putonghua. The importance of a lingua franca in the central government’s administrative communications and executions was so crucial that China set as the objective of the language standardization to (1) organize and simplify the written language, (2) the Hanyu Pinyin Fangan (Chinese Phonetic Alphabet System), (3) widespread use of the Putonghua, the standard language.

[8] In Lee, Kyunghee’s research (2004:47-50), the second stage of the Planned Birth Policy is called the “Planned Birth Implementation Stage”, and covers 1962-1970.

[9] In Lee, Kyunghee’s research (2004:47-50), the third stage of the Planned Birth Policy is called the “Planned Birth Comprehensive Enforcement Stage”, and covers 1971-1978.

[10] In Lee, Kyunghee’s research (2004:47-50), the fourth stage of the Planned Birth Policy is called the “New Stage of Planned Birth Policy”, and covers 1979-Present Day.

[11] Source: UNICEF China’s Child Rights and Community Service (http://www.unicef.org/china/zh/protection_community.html)

[12] Source: China Population Information and Research Center – http://www.cpirc.org.cn

[13] Source: http://www.china.com.cn , 人口 - 中國國家統計局 – Census from 1982, 1990, 2000, and the 1% Sampling Research from 1987, 1995.

[14] Source: China Internet Information Center (http://www.china.org.cn), July 13, 2004.