14 January 2011
China: One Child Policy Challenged By Professor, Sacked For Being a Father Of Two
December, 21st 2009 should have been one of the happiest days of Assistant Professor Yang Zhizhu life as his second child, Yang Ruonan,
was born. Instead it set off a chain of events where he would be sacked from his job, fined an exorbitant amount and then head a court challenge in which he may overturn China's Family Law policies.
Since 1979 China has strictly enforced the policy in which families are only entitled to have one child as a means of controlling an expected population explosion.
In recent years there have been a number of challenges to the legislation.
Over the past months its emerged that the latest challenge will come from Law Professor Yang Zhizhu who will stand and argue that the legislation does not specifically state that having a second child is illegal and there are only references to families being encouraged to limit their children to one.
Yet it's been a rocky road since 2009. Four months after his little girl was born authorities discovered her birth and he was immediately suspected from his teaching position at the China Youth University For Political Sciences.
While there are implications for parents who break the one child policy it is potentially more damaging for the child. Born in China a second child risks not being able to receive a hukou or household registration. Without these papers the child can not be enrolled in school, married or employed.
In 2010 now unemployed, the 44 year old father was to then receive a letter fining his family over $36,000, a figure calculated as 9 times the average urban income.
Several months ago his former employer informed him that he was to be sacked from his position for contravening the One Child Policy.
Mortified by his position Professor Yang decided to begin his legal challenge. He announced he would sue the Haidian District Population and Family Planning Commission.
Court documents filed not only challenge the legitimacy of the policy but way in which the fine has been calculated.
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China: One Child Policy Challenged By Professor, Sacked For Being A Father Of Two
