A Xinjiang story involving a pregnant Uyghur woman has made its rounds through the international news community recently. The reason it garnered such attention was because Arzigul Tursun, 6 months pregnant with her third child, had been detained by police and was being forced against her will to undergo a late-term abortion. Due to all the international pressure she has now been released along with the face-saving statement by local police, “She wasn’t in good enough health to have an abortion”.  Nice try guys, but I don’t buy it.

The One-Child Policy for Minorities

Although this effort has saved the life of this one child, it has been more successful in reopening the discussion about the one-child policy in China, a policy that is much more complicated than it may first appear, especially here in Xinjiang. The many rules and exceptions that accompany this policy are enough to make your head spin. For example:

• Han Chinese may have two children if both parents are single children themselves.
• Han Chinese may have a second child if their first child has severe mental or physical disorders (decided on by the doctor).
• Ethnic minorities, including Uyghurs (which make up almost half of Xinjiang’s population), may have two children.
• Ethnic minorities and even some Han Chinese residing in extremely rural areas (again, a large part of Xinjiang) may even be allowed 3 children.
• People who are willing to pay exorbitant fines can do pretty much whatever they please at the cost of possible public scorn – which is practically nobody here in Xinjiang.  This woman would have had to pay a 45,000 RMB fine ($6,590 US), which is probably a few years’ wages for her entire family.
• Some areas in Xinjiang which are populated mostly by Uyghurs offer financial incentives to minorities who stick with only one child.  Uyghur women in Kashgar over the age of 49 with only 1 child will receive a one-time payment of 3,000 yuan ($440) and 600 yuan yearly afterward.  China Xinjiang Web (in Chinese) reports that this year the government projects that it will spend 25.6 million yuan ($3.7 million) in population-control financial incentives!

This particular Uyghur woman was interesting because her case fell through the cracks.  She was a city-born Uyghur who is by law allowed two children whereas her husband was from rural country where three children is permitted.  Regardless of this grey-area, though, it seems ridiculous that someone would be forced to go through such a late-term abortion.  Thankfully (at least this time), this disaster was avoided through international intervention, but it makes you wonder how often this happens.

The Debate

Sadly, abortions are a daily occurrence here in China – we’ve known quite a few just in the last year here in Karamay.  Since this one-child policy has been in effect for quite some time, though, it usually never becomes a “forced” abortion.  Everybody knows the rules and for the most part follows them, but sometimes you just can’t help accidentally getting pregnant.

So here’s the debate, and I would love some comments to see what you think.  The one-child policy, whether you like it or not, has been very successful here in China.  To do away with the law would be detrimental to China’s future economy.  But if you – like me – hate to see a woman have to go through an abortion because she already has one child, what’s a proper solution?  How can this solution be applied to minorities who want their heritage not just to “survive” the generations, but also to grow?

And here’s the kicker question that always seems to divide the Chinese and the West:  since it’s not our law, is it even our right to intervene with solutions?