POPULATION PART VIPopulation Control Policies from Around the World

HOW DO GOVERNMENTS AFFECT POPULATION CHANGE?

• Many governments institute policies designed to influence the overall growth rate or ethnic ratios within the population.

These policies fall into three groups:

1. Expansive

2. Eugenic

3. Restrictive

EXPANSIVE POPULATION POLICIES• Encourage families to have more children

• Communist Societies

• Soviet Union

• China – Mao Zedong

Current Examples

• European Examples-

• Sweden-Cash payments, tax incentives, job leave, work hour flexibility lasting up to 8 years after birth

• Russia-National Day of Conception (Sept. 12)

• Romania-anyone, married or single, who was childless after the age of 25 was subject to a tax of 10-20% of income. For people who did have children, there were family allowances paid by the government and cash awards to women having their third child . 1980s: all women of childbearing age — even pubescent girls — were subject to monthly pelvic exams to detect pregnancies and ensure all of them were carried to term. 

• Asian Examples-

• South Korea-Family Day-third Thursday of every month

• Singapore-National Night to get “Patriotic”

EUGENIC POPULATION POLICIES

• Favoring one racial or cultural sector of the population over the others• Tax discrimination, allocation of resources, favoritism

• Examples• Nazi Germany• Japan• USA-human race could be improved by breeding people with desirable traits,

immigration policies on “undesirables” (Asian and Southern European); sterilizing undesirable Americans (mental defectives)-1970s; new view of eugenics-planned parenthood

RESTRICTIVE POPULATION POLICIES• Reducing the rate of natural increase through a range of means

Examples

1) China’s “One-child” policy:

For those who follow-Income bonuses, Better health care benefits, Better retirement pensions, Priority in housing

For those who don’t-get abortions for unauthorized pregnancies, forced sterilization

2) India-some areas of high CBR/fertility are paying couples 5000 rupees ($106)

3) Uzbekistan-forced sterilizations after 2nd child, doctors were forced to do it and did so without woman’s knowledge

4) Pakistan-child spacing (3 years, Koran calls for 24 months of breast feeding

5) U.S.-Title X-US health centers fund contraceptives

SOLUTIONS TO POPULATION GROWTH

• Empowerment of Women

• $ for contraception & education

• Changing cultural norms to value girls

• Diffusion of Birth Control Policies

• Educating men

w/ responsibility

for birth control

• Sterilization

SOLUTIONS TO POPULATION GROWTH• Redistribution of wealth - improve standard of living for poor so

that children aren’t as necessary

• Improving farming techniques in poor areas to deal with starvation,

malnourishment

SOLUTIONS TO POPULATION GROWTH

• Medical technology – costs of maintaining

vulnerable populations (old & young)

• Addressing government policies to deal with their growing populations

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT…• Is population control funded by MDCs

ethical in LDCs?• Population control v. culture• Birth control? • Sterilization?• Abortion?• Sex determination?• Incentives: Money, food, clothing?

• Is population control funded by MDCs needed to keep mass amounts of people in the LDCs out of poverty?