Chapter 10: China

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 1.What is the Population of China?

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 1.What is the Population of China? Over 1.3 billion people - 1/5 th of the world’s population

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 2. Population Growth Rate = 1.1% 582 million in million in billion today Rapidly growing population

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 3. Where do most of the Chinese people live?

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 3. Where do most of the Chinese people live? On the eastern side of China 62% in rural areas and 38% urban But a serious urbanization movement – migration (China Blue)

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 3. Where do most of the Chinese people live? Why move to cities?

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 4. Population is a serious issue for Chinese Policy makers – Mao said that an ever expanding population is a “good thing”.

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 4. Population is a serious issue for Chinese Policy makers.1974 – Mao denounced Pop. Control as more “Imperialistic Tools” to weaken developing countries

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 4. Mao’s successors realized the danger – pop. growth was consuming ½ of annual increase in GDP

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 4. In late 1970’s, new pop policy called “Two-Child Family” with gov’t services like birth control, education and abortions reduced birth rate

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES , Deng Xiaoping sets out “One Child Policy” with incentives and penalties to limit families to 1 child.

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 4. “One Child Policy” incentives = encourage later marriages, free contraceptives, abortions and sterilization – more accepted in urban areas

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 4. “One Child Policy” Penalties = steep fines for more than 1 child and loss of privileges for violators

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 4. 1 Couple 1 Child Explain How did that work out for China?

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 5. 1 Couple 1 Child Pros: more stable pop. Growth reduced fertility rate – 1971 women had 5.4 kids on average and now in 2004 it was down to 1.7 kids 21 st century projection for decrease in population

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 4. 1 Couple 1 Child = Cons: Rise in female infanticide Disproportionate # of males to females Harder for males to find wives Fewer sons to care for aging parents in traditional role

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 4. 1 Couple 1 Child Status Today: Relaxed in rural areas but back in 2002 Officially banned BUT NOT really as many local political leaders are still held accountable for the population in their area

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 5. What else has China done about its pop problems? 2004 – banned selective abortions of female fetuses BUT folks still want their boys!

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 5. What else has China done about its pop problems? Gov’t encouraged and sponsored contraception 74% of women use it which is highest in Asia

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 5. Success? Maybe but still one baby is born every 2 seconds in China

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 6. Migration and China’s “Floating Population” What is this? See China Blue video

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 6. Migration and China’s “Floating Population” Large # of people moving from the rural areas / countryside to the big cities From central and west to the east

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 6. Migration and China’s “Floating Population” Why? Rapid reform era of economic development opens up jobs in factories AND modern agricultural practices reduce need for farm workers

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 6. Migration and China’s “Floating Population” Gov’t Policy? Discourage migration – rule is that the floating people are NOT officially permitted to reside permanently in these towns and cities

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 6. Migration and China’s “Floating Population” Gov’t Policy? Thousands of Tibetans cross into Nepal so the gov’t pressures Nepal to return these people and force them to stay in China

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 7. Question – Does China have a homogeneous population?

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 7. Ethnic Groups China has a homogeneous pop with 92% Han Chinese

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 7. Ethnic Groups But 8% of population / over 100 million people are from 55 other ethnic groups like the Zhuang, Manchu, Hui, Mongols, Tibetans, among others

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 7. Ethnic Groups Policy: All nationalities are equal according to the law The Constitution grants them the right of self-government but autonomy is very limited!

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 7. Ethnic Groups Most minorities live in the “Autonomous” regions along the borders of China covering about 60% of China’s land area

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 7. Ethnic Groups Mongols = near Mongolia Tibetans = in TAR Kazaks = along Kazakh Republic Uyghurs = in Xinjiang out west

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 7. Ethnic Groups These groups have a long history of dissatisfaction with Chinese rule and want independence

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 7. Ethnic Groups The Chinese government fears and opposes independence movements and uses the PLA to suppress expression of dissent

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 8. Languages – Official Lingo?

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 8. Languages – Official Lingo? Mandarin or standard Chinese Many other dialects flow from Mandarin Many other languages spoken by other ethnic groups

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 8. Languages – What is Pinyin?

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 8. Languages – What is Pinyin? Common written form of Chinese language accepted by groups System of phonetic spelling as a way to increase literacy It is required under law

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 8. Languages – In 2006, the govt forced 100 million people in Shanghai to use Mandarin as opposed to Shanghainese (Cantonese) language

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 8. Languages – In 2008, Hong Kong Minister of Education banned teaching in Cantonese because English speaking students did better in universities.

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – 1 st – It is an issue as China was a communist regime which means atheism so religion was not tolerated

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – 2 nd – Chinese Constitution protects freedom of religious belief But no one may use religious activities to disrupt public order

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – Confucianism is a philosophy still in existence in China It is a system of ethical conduct

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – Confucianism Promotes peace and harmony and good morals with reverence for one’s ancestors, family and superiors

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – Daoism and Buddhism are also common place in China

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – It is difficult to find accurate numbers of people and their religious beliefs due to nature of communist regime

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – Some underground communities of Protestants and Catholics

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – What is the Falun Gong? The Wheel of Law – established in 1992 with close to 100 million followers

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – What is the Falun Gong? It is a quasi-religious movement based on traditional deep breathing exercises and Daoist and Buddhist practices

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – What is the Falun Gong? So why do the Communist leaders want these people out of the picture?

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 9. Religions – What is the Falun Gong? Perceived antigovernment activities and positions so it was outlawed in 1999 Many arrested and “reeducated” through labor camps or placed in mental hospitals

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 10. Urban – Rural Cleavages Most econ growth takes place in urban eastern areas so increase in income gap between urban and rural peoples = called “Two Chinas”!!!

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 10. Urban – Rural Cleavages This led to a divide in social and cultural lifestyles from urban to rural areas and a migration of people from farms to industrial centers

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 10. Urban – Rural Cleavages This led to protests and dissent in rural areas over tax policies and corruption in government

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 10. Urban – Rural Cleavages In 2006, PM Wen Jiabao set out policy of “New Socialist Countryside” to improve the rural economy and slow down migration of people (TVE’s)

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 11. Education What is the Literacy Rate in China?

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 11. Education What is the Literacy Rate in China? 90.9 % Is this a good number?

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 11. Education is controlled by the Ministry of Education Average 6.2 years of ed. But goal was upped to 9 years by 2000

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 11. EDUCATION – free primary ed for five years at age 7 Then 5 years of secondary ed from 12 to 17 Attendance rates drop from 99% for primary to 80% for higher levels

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 11. EDUCATION – Free higher ed was abolished in 1985 so now candidates compete with each other for scholarships and admissions

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 12. Health care in China Gov’t sponsored health care But not enough doctors and hospitals Most medical care is concentrated in cities and on the eastern side

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 12. Health care in China Policy? Gov’t set up a 5 year plan (again!) to invest $2.4 billion into rebuilding rural medical services, clinics and hospitals

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 12. Health Issues Hepatitis B outbreaks SARS – vaccine in 2004 Bird Flu HIV / AIDS on the rise

PEOPLE / SOCIAL ISSUES 12. Health Issues – But the big deal is environmental 2002 – only 92% urban and 68% rural had access to improved water supply Only 69% urban and 29% rural had access to improved sanitation facilities