Overpopulation in China

Since mankind has started, many changes in the way of living, the environment and the people have occurred. The human population has been increasing swiftly resulting to a big difference between the rate of birth and the rate of death causing having a huge effect on the economy and environment. However, the birth rate is increasing compared to the death rate. In the study conducted by Carolyn Kinder entitled The Population Explosion: Causes and Consequences, she states that, “There are about 3 births for each death with 1.6 births for each death in more developed countries ( MDCs) and 3.3 births for each death in less developed countries( LDCs), and that, the growth rate is 1 billion people every twelve years.”

Overpopulation as defined by Biology Cabinet Research and Advisory on Biology (2004) is:

“It is where the population of a certain place is not well provided by its environment and economy anymore.” (p.1)

This means that, if there are many people in certain region compared to another, it is not said to be overpopulated as long as its resources can provide for the needs of the population. In year 1949 in China, people were paid to have babies, but the problem was it did not stopped, so in year 1953 the population reached 583 million. The demographic facts about China, from Biology Cabinet Research and Advisory on Biology is shown below:

CHINA

Population in 2006 (X 1000) ………………………………………… 1,313,973.7

Population X 1000 (2000) …………………………………. 1,276,301

Sex ratio (/100 females) …………………………………………………….. 106.3

Per cent urban ………………………………………………………………….. 31.0

Birth and death rate (/1000) …………………………… 7.1

Ages 0-14 …………………………………………………………………………. 26.3

Youth (15-24) …………………………………………………………………….. 18.1

Ages 60 + ………………………………………………………………………….  9.3

Women aged 15-49, % ………………………………………………………. 56.6

Median age (years) ……………………………………………………………. 27.6

Population density (/sq. km) ……………………………………………… 127

Annual Population growth rate, %……………………………………….. 0.90

Urban ………………………………………………………………………………. 3.45

Rural ……………………………………………………………………………… – 0.32

Crude birth rate (/1000) ……………………………………………………… 16.2

Net migration rate (/1000) ………………………………………………….. – 0.1

Fertility rate………………………………………………………………….. 1.80

Life expectancy in years

Males ……………………………………………………………………………… 68.2

Females ………………………………………………………………………….. 71.7

Both sexes ………………………………………………………………………. 69.9

GNP (U.S. dollars, 1994) ………………………………………………….. 530

When the Chinese government realized that they have a big problem in their hands, they came up with a very extreme plan – the 1980 One Child Policy or the Juali Li 563 stating that, “people of China must get a birth certificate if the wife is pregnant already, and that rewards be given for those who only have a child, and for those who do not, they will be taxed. However, babies can be terminated if it is unintended.” (Cook, J., 1999, p. 1). The United Nations Population Fund also helped China in 1994 by giving them 40 million to aid for their ailing resources, but when they found it that it was used to fund abortions, violation of women and unborn girls, they stopped. (Overpopulation in China-Solutions, p.1).

Looking at the time where China was increasing their population, it was also the time wherein the conquests of diseases thru improvements in public health and medical technology, and the improving distribution of food was at its peak. These contributed to the rapid increase of the population too. The cultural factor that impede change in China was that they were hard workers and they needed a strong and large workforce. Other cultural factors, though not in China, was more in morality. The reason why the United Nations Population Fund stopped its funding was because the Republic of China was using it to fund inhumane and immoral strategies to speedily solve their problem.

Carolyn Kinder in her study entitled The Population Explosion: Causes and Consequences had written a solution to solve overpopulation:

“Programs can be formulated to improve the awareness of the citizens regarding the disadvantages of overpopulation. These includes free communication, empowering the sexes and advancing researches about health, family planning and solutions in order to meet the economic and basic needs of each family member.”(p. 5)

Personally, I consider the statement as the best solution since it is long term and not immoral. However, with China, these maybe not the best solution for them since they needed to balance the population and the resources they can offer.

References

 http://www.angelfire.com/pop2/china/solutions.html

Kinder, Carolyn. The Population Explosion: Causes and Consequences. November 19, 2007 retrieved from http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1998/7/98.07.02.x.html

Biology Cabinet Research and Advisory on Biology. November 19, 2007 retrieved from http://www.biocab.org/Overpopulation.html

Cook, Jamie. Population Control and Consequences in China. November 19, 2007 retrieved from http://maps.unomaha.edu/Peterson/funda/Sidebar/ChinaPop.html