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Capitalism: China’s population started to drop
  • China’s population shrank last year for the first time in 70 years, experts said, warning of a “demographic crisis” that puts pressure on the country’s slowing economy.

    The world’s most populous nation of some 1.4 billion for decades limited most families to one child in an attempt to keep population growth sustainable.

    But since 2016 it has allowed couples to have two children in response to concerns about an ageing society and shrinking workforce.

    The number of live births nationwide in 2018 fell by 2.5 million year-on-year, contrary to a predicted increase of 790,000 births, according to analysis by US-based academic Yi Fuxian.

    Yi, a researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is a long-term critic of the one-child policy and his work has previously gained traction among the country’s leadership.

    Enforced through fines but notorious for cases of forced abortions and sterilisation, the one-child policy caused birth rates to plummet after it was introduced in 1979.

    However childbirths have not increased as much as forecast since the two-child policy came into force and there has been rising speculation the government will further ease restrictions.

    Last year marked a “historic turning point for the Chinese population”, said Yi, who studied publicly available data on births in towns and villages across China.

    This downward trend may be irreversible, he cautioned, due to factors such as a decrease in the number of women of childbearing age and the reluctance of couples to have children due to rising education, health and housing costs.

    Yi’s calculations show that the number of deaths in 2018 was about 11.58 million and the total population shrank by 1.27 million.

    Say big thanks to huge home prices and stagnating wages for most workers.

    Most tis researchers are also quite stupid, as it is one child policy that is partially responsible for cheaper and easy to move labor and smaller flats in China.

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  • I lived and worked in China for 13 years and, according to many educated locals I spoke to, the one child policy saved many lives as traditionally family used to get many children and not enough food to feed them. Even now, despite its huge agricultural space and its long term 1 child policy, China is the biggest importer of rice ($ 1.8 Billion in 2017) to feed its population.

    Forced abortion and sterilization were things of the past as population adjusted quickly to the rules, and the biggest problem was the abandoned baby girls as many families preferred to get a boy to preserve the family name.

    Nowadays, it is not often the case as women made their ways in the society and are able to challenge men and families decision.

    However, prior to birth, the gynecologist is forbidden to tell to a pregnant woman and her husband if their kid will be a boy or a girl to prevent abortion.

    My wife is Chinese and I am a foreigner, and they never told us and during childbirth, just after cutting the umbilical cord, the nurse immediately showed us that my wife gave birth to a female and attached a tag on the baby's foot to be sure there will be no unfortunate exchanges in the maternity (in case of bribes).

    One thing that is never mention in those "expert" studies is that members of minorities were allowed, since a long time, to get as many child as they want to preserve their minorities existence and culture.

    Also, I do not understand why government are still following this outdated system that links economical growth to a growing population of consumers, while there is so many environmental issues (pollution, energy and food production shortage) due to this endlessly growing population on the planet.

  • while there is so many environmental issues (pollution, energy and food production shortage) due to this endlessly growing population on the planet

    Most issues are not only due to population, but due to capitalism that only look for today profits.