The policy had some exceptions allowing second children for ethnic minorities and for rural couples whose first child was a girl or disabled. But for unmarried women and others who became pregnant out of compliance with family planning regulations, the options were to voluntarily abort, be forced to abort, or pay huge fines. Abortion carries no stigma in China, and even late-term abortions are not unheard of. Abortion in China has largely been associated with married women, but the trend of young, single women having abortions, even multiple abortions, is on the rise. Limited sexual education in China means that many young people have little understanding of birth control methods.
Family planning councils could be meticulous with pregnancy checks, charting menstruation and births, coercing abortion and sterilization, and exacting fines. Enforcement of regulations varied widely across the country, but fines for having a baby in violation of regulations could range anywhere from three to ten times a household’s annual income. Fines had to be paid for a baby to receive the essential hukou, household registration, which provides access to the most basic social services such as education, healthcare, and legal employment.
In a society with a long-held preference for sons, female babies have often been victims of infanticide or abandonment. After the One-Child Policy went into effect, orphanages became filled with infant girls and disabled children.
The One-Child Policy has created a gender imbalance, about 118 men to 100 women, leaving a surplus of men without enough women for marriage, especially in the countryside. One result is increased human trafficking for brides and prostitution, including the abduction of women from neighboring Vietnam and other South East Asian countries. Children, both boys and girls, are also trafficked for adoption or as future brides.
In 2015, faced with an aging population in a society that relies on the family to support the elder generation, as well as an economy dependent on a massive workforce of cheap labor, the government enacted a Two-Child Policy. Despite the new policy, the newborn birth rate has remained low with many couples citing the rising cost of living and their own positive experiences as singletons as deterrents to having larger families.
In 2018, China’s policy-makers have commissioned research studies to consider making more changes, namely eliminating limits and allowing “independent fertility” so a family could decide how many children they will have.