Chinese women resort to drastic measures to delay delivering babies to evade hefty fines under one-child rule

Several Chinese women have reportedly resorted to extreme steps to avoid a US$7,600 (AUS$10,932) fine under the country’s old one-child policy. China’s new two-child policy came into effect on Jan. 1, 2016.

A Chinese woman reportedly lay motionless for five days to delay giving birth to avoid the extra child fine under China’s one-child rule. The woman was scheduled to deliver her baby on Dec. 26, 2015 but wanted to postpone the birth until the new policy came into force, reports the Straits Times.

The woman, known by her surname Xu, resorted to drastic measures to defer the delivery. She stayed almost motionless for five days. She managed to hold back the delivery until Jan 2. 2016 – a day after the old law was repealed.

In another case, Ms. Yang went through continuous monitoring to ensure that she didn’t deliver her baby “ahead of time” even though she started having cramps on Dec 27, 2015. She finally had a baby girl on Jan 1. 2016. The girl child has been named Little Bawan (Bawan is Chinese for 80,000 – the fine amount in local currency).

There have been, in fact, several such cases of women resorting to extreme measures to delay the birth of their second child until the new policy came into force in China.

The new policy has been welcomed in China but has also triggered controversy. A company in Jilin province has asked its female staff to apply in advance if they plan to have children, reports the BBC. The move is aimed at preventing a rush by the female employees to have a second child, leaving the company short-staffed.

Meanwhile, in another incident, a pregnant Chinese woman hid in an airport for a week so that she could deliver her baby in Hong Kong. Chinese women delivering babies in Hong Kong are at an advantage, as their children are given the right of abode and also the benefits of Hong Kong’s education system.

The woman has been imprisoned for six months as she hid in a restricted area of Hong Kong International Airport, reports The Standard.