Initially, after 1949, the founding of People’s Republic of China, Chairman Mao was ideologically disposed to view a large population as an asset (U.S. Library of Congress). The married women in china were encouraged to be mother hero. Mother Hero was an honor in the Soviet Union and China to all mothers bearing and raising 10 or more children (Wiki). In addition, the Chinese traditionally prefer early marriage, early child-bearing, and large families. Moreover, after the long period of war, the death rate was reduced markedly due to the stability of the society, the development of production and the improvement of medical and health care conditions (China.org.cn 2002). Therefore, rapidly growing population soon became in later years. The population increased dramatically during the 1950s and 60s, from 540 million in 1950 to 850 million in 1970(Zhu 2003). During the years from 1958 to 1961, the government aimed to use China’s vast population to rapidly transform China from a primarily agrarian economy by peasant farmers into a modern communist society through the process of agriculturalization and industrialization (Wiki). However, after the interval of the Great Leap Forward, Chinese leaders realized that this rapid population growth was a disadvantage or to development (U.S. Library of Congress). China faced serious social and economic problems associated with overpopulation. Overly populated regions led to degradation of land and resources, pollution, and detrimental living conditions and poor public health as well. In addition, during the three-year difficult time (1959-1961) fertility rates remained high, which put considerable strain on the government’s efforts to meet the needs of its people. It was difficult to provide enough food, clean water, and health care and so on for those starving people. Therefore the Chinese government tried to find a solution to the problem of increasing population with moderate success (Cook 1999). On the other hand, the challenge posed by the population question not only has a bearing on the survival and development of the Chinese nation but also affects the stability and prosperity of all human society. China with the biggest population has responsibility for the world where human beings live together. According to statistics, in 1960 China had the largest population in the world, more than 666million, which was nearly 22% of the world population (3039 million) (The world mapper n.d.). Consequently, Chinese leader started practicing the birth control. In 1964 Birth control offices were set up in the central government and some provinciallevel governments (U.S. Library of Congress). Population policies and campaigns have been ongoing in China since the 1970s. The so called “late, long, few” policy was introduced in that time. This policy consisted of the encouragement of later child bearing, longer spacing, and fewer children (Zhu 2003). This policy led to a fall in the total fertility rate from 5.9 in 1970 to 2.7 in 1979(Zhu 2003).
Meanwhile the economic reform, which has produced tremendous changes in China, occurred in China in the end of 1970s. Deng Xiaoping, the chief architect of China's reform and opening to the outside world, made an in-depth analysis of China's basic national conditions on the basis of the experience and lessons of socialist construction since the founding of the People's Republic (Information office of the state council of China 1995). He pointed out the goal of the four modernizations in China. It was imperative to take into consideration the basic features of the Chinese environment, that is, the vast scale of the country, its weak foundation, its massive population and the low ratio of cultivated land, and this demonstrated the objective need for the development of population to be coordinated with the development of the economy, society, resources and environment (Information office of the state council of China 1995). Deng Xiaoping clearly also pointed out that China's population policy was an important policy of strategic significance (Information office of the state council of China 1995). In addition, although there was a fall of fertility rate, it was not enough for the economic reform programme (Zhu 2003). Projections showed that the population would continue to increase sharply, because around two thirds of the citizens were under 30, and because the baby boomers of the 1950s and 60s were entering their reproductive time (Zhu 2003). Therefore family planning policy or so-called one child policy was introduced in 1979.
