As China's declining birth rate issue continues, it has been revealed that the Chinese government is excessively interfering in the privacy of women of childbearing age by directly investigating their pregnancy and childbirth plans.
On the 9th, major foreign media reported that in China, government officials visit households to ask whether women are pregnant or have plans to give birth, openly pressuring citizens to increase the birth rate.
Yang Wimi (28), a Chinese woman, initially did not pay much attention when a government official encouraged her to have a child. When she went to register her marriage, she even felt grateful to the government for providing free prenatal vitamins. Afterwards, the official continued to check on her condition by phone, asking if she had taken the vitamins. After giving birth, when officials came to her home and even requested to take photos with her baby, she felt deeply uncomfortable and refused.
Foreign media introduced this case and analyzed that the Chinese government, facing population decline threatening economic growth, is intervening even in the most private decisions regarding childbirth. Among 10 Chinese women interviewed by foreign media, 7 reported being questioned by officials about their pregnancy plans, and on social media, women posted about receiving calls from officials asking about their menstrual cycles and the date of their last period.
Women must register with local health centers if they become pregnant, and in some areas, permission from the local family planning department is required to undergo abortion procedures.
The Chinese authorities have even developed programs in cooperation with universities to encourage marriage and childbirth. High-ranking officials also deliver pro-birth messages whenever possible.
Gao Je, representing the All-China Women's Federation, the largest women's organization, attended this year's National People's Congress and said, "As a woman, I always feel it is truly regrettable to end one's life without giving birth to another life."
In the past, the Chinese Communist Party, which actively intervened in family planning, introduced the "One Family, One Child Policy" in 1978 when the population surged. China imposed fines on government official couples who had more than two children and even forced abortions on some women. Conversely, as the birth rate sharply declined, the "Two-Child Policy" was fully implemented in 2016, and in May 2021, the introduction of the "Three-Child Policy" was announced. China's total fertility rate is estimated at 1.0 as of last year, which is even lower than that of the United States (1.62).
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