by China’s ruling Communist Party is facing a national emergency. To solve this, the party wants more women to have more babies.
He has offered them sweeteners, such as cheaper housing, tax benefits and cash. She has also invoked patriotism, calling on them to be “good wives and mothers.”
The efforts are not working. Chinese women have been avoiding marriage and babies at such a rapid pace that China’s population in 2023 shrank for the second year in a row, accelerating the government’s sense of crisis over the country’s rapidly aging population and its economic future. .
China said Wednesday that 9.02 million babies were born in 2023, down from 9.56 million in 2022 and the seventh consecutive year the number has declined. Adding up the number of people who died during the year (11.1 million), China has more elderly people than anywhere else in the world, a number that is increasing rapidly. China’s total population was 1,409,670,000 at the end of 2023, a decrease of two million people, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
The declining and aging population worries Beijing because it is draining China of the working-age people it needs to boost the economy. The demographic crisis, which came sooner than almost anyone expected, is already putting pressure on weak and underfunded health and pension systems.
China accelerated the problem with its one-child policy, which helped reduce the birth rate for several decades. The rule also created generations of only-child girls who were provided with education and employment opportunities, a cohort who became empowered women who now see Beijing’s efforts as a push to return home.
Xi Jinping, China’s top leader, has long spoken about the need for women to return to more traditional roles in the home. He recently urged government officials to promote a “culture of marriage and motherhood” and influence what young people think about “love and marriage, fertility and family.”
But experts said the efforts lacked any attempt to address a reality that shaped women’s views on parenthood: deeply entrenched gender inequality. Laws intended to protect women and their property, and ensure that they receive equal treatment, have failed them.
“Women still don’t feel safe enough to have children in our country,” said Rashelle Chen, a social media professional in the southern province of Guangdong. Ms. Chen, 33, has been married for five years and said she had no intention of having a baby.
“It seems that the government’s birth policy only aims to have babies but does not protect the person who gives birth,” he said. “It does not protect the rights and interests of women.”
State-sponsored propaganda campaigns and dating events encourage young people to marry and have children. In China, it is rare for unmarried couples or a single person to have children. State media is full of calls for young Chinese to play a role in the “rejuvenation of the nation.”
The message has been received by parents, many of whom already share traditional views on marriage. Ms. Chen’s parents sometimes become so upset by her decision not to have children that they cry on the phone. “We are no longer your parents,” they tell him.
Today, women in China have greater awareness of their rights due to increased advocacy against sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace. The authorities have tried to silence the Chinese feminist movement, but its ideas about equality remain widespread.
“Over the last 10 years, a huge community of feminists has been created through the Internet,” said Zheng Churan, a Chinese women’s rights activist, who was detained along with four other activists on the eve of International Women’s Day. Women in 2015. “Today, women have more power,” Ms. Zheng said.
Censorship has silenced much of the debate on women’s issues, sometimes hindering public discussion about sexual discrimination, harassment or gender-based violence. However, women have been able to share their experiences online and provide support to victims, Ms. Zheng said.
On paper, China has laws to promote gender equality. Employment discrimination based on gender, race or ethnicity is illegal, for example. In practice, companies advertise male candidates and discriminate against female employees, said Guo Jing, an activist who has helped provide legal support to women facing discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace.
“In some ways, women are more aware of gender inequality in all areas of life,” Ms. Guo said. “It is still difficult for women to get justice, even in court.” In 2014, she sued a state-owned company, Dongfang Cooking Training School, after they told her not to apply for a job because she was a woman. She prevailed, but only received about $300 in compensation.
A recent surge in shocking social media posts and news articles about violence against women has caught the nation’s attention, including the savage beating of several women in Tangshan in a restaurant and the story of a mother of eight. who was found chained to the wall of a hut.
Women often cite these types of violent acts when discussing why they don’t want to get married. Changes in policies and regulations, such as a new rule requiring a 30-day cooling-off period before civil divorces can be final, are another. Marriage rates have been falling for nine years. That trend, which was once limited primarily to cities, has also spread to rural areas, according to government statistics.
Another reason women say they don’t want to get married is that it has become more difficult to get a divorce through court if it is contested.
An analysis of nearly 150,000 court rulings on divorce cases by Ethan Michelson, a professor at Indiana University, found that about 80 percent of petitions filed by women were denied by a judge on the first try, often when there were evidence of domestic violence. (The rejection rate for a second attempt is about 70 percent.)
“There have been many strong signals from the top, from Xi himself, that the family is the foundation of Chinese society and family stability is the foundation of social stability and national development,” said Mr. Michelson. “There is no doubt that these signals have reinforced the biases of the judges,” he said.
Popular online sayings, such as “a marriage license has become a license to expire,” or worse, are reinforced by the news. In just one of many similar cases last summer, a woman in the northwestern province of Gansu was denied a petition for divorce despite evidence of domestic abuse; a judge said the couple needed to stay together for their children. Another woman in the southern city of Guangzhou was murdered by her husband during a 30-day divorce reflection period.
In 2011, a Supreme People’s Court ruled that family homes would no longer be divided in the event of a divorce, but would instead be given to the person whose name was on the deed, a decision that favored men.
“That decision really scared a lot of women in China,” said Leta Hong Fincher, author of “Leftover Women: The Resurgence of Gender Inequality in China.”
That feeling of panic hasn’t gone away.
“Instead of having more care and protection, mothers become more vulnerable to abuse and isolation,” said Elgar Yang, 24, a journalist in Shanghai.
Government policies aimed at luring women into marriage, she added, “even make me feel like it’s a trap.”
Audio produced by Tally Abecassis.
