A local law is to take effect soon in east China's Anhui Province,
allowing some families to have second children.
These include families where both husband and wife come from single
child families, ethnic minorities, families whose first child is
handicapped and has no hope of ever entering the work force, and
rural families whose first child is a girl.
According to local legislators, the law was approved recently by
the Standing Committee of the Anhui Provincial People's Congress in
line with China's Population and Family Planning Law and is to come
into force on September 1.
The country's law encourages Chinese to marry and bear children
late, as well to have one child only. However it also empowers
local legislators at provincial level to frame laws permitting
specific families to have second children.
China has been bent on slowing down its population growth as it has
nearly 1.3 billion people and a 1.07 percent annual population
growth. Statistics show China's population will peak at 1.6 billion
people in the near future.
(Xinhua News
Agency August 15, 2002)