Home School Heartbeat Radio Program

Mike Smith:
This week, Mike Farris is joining us to discuss his recent trip to China. Mike, I understand you were able to visit the vice minister of population control services. Tell us about that meeting.

Michael Farris:
It was very interesting talking to this warm, personable lady about the one-child policy in China. She seemed the exact opposite of what we would expect, on a personal level. Yet she admitted that there still are coercive abortions in China, and when I asked her what the policy should be on abortions, she stated that there should be only economic sanctions, which are stiff. If a person has a child in excess of the amount allowed by the government, the fine imposed is two to three times the annual salary of the person involved, which is an incredibly extreme economic sanction.

China has relaxed a little bit its one-child policy. There are several exceptions—if you live in the country and you have a girl first, you can have a second child; if you are an only child and your spouse is an only child, you can have a second child. The average population birthrate in China right now is 1.8, and there’s every reason to believe that China, as a developing economy, would voluntarily choose a birthrate that would be about the replacement level of 2.0, if they would simply let people make their own choices.

Mike Smith:
Mike, this makes us thankful for our freedom we have here as Americans. Next time, we’ll discuss Mike’s visit to one of China's villages. Until then, I’m Mike Smith.