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Woman Marries Uncle to Avoid China’s Family Planning Policies

Although Chinese authorities implemented the ‘two child policy’ since October 2015, news stories about the one-child policy still dominate the headlines. Chinese media reports how one woman faked a divorce to escape China’s one-child policy to have a second baby. She even married her uncle to make her wish come true.
Manya Koetse

Published

8 years ago

on

Although Chinese authorities implemented the ‘two child policy‘ since October 2015, news stories linked to the one-child policy still regularly make the headlines in China. Chinese media report multiple stories of people avoiding China’s family planning policies – one woman even married her uncle to have a second baby.

When China announced a relaxation of its one-child policy in October 2015, it became big news all over the world. As of January 1st of 2016, Chinese couples are allowed to have two children. But before the implementation of the so-called ‘two-child policy’, many Chinese couples were already allowed to have a second child. Those who were not, would sometimes find creative ways to avoid punishment. The story of a woman getting divorced and then marrying her uncle to have a second baby made the headlines in China today.

Although China’s one-child policy was a nationwide law (as is the so-called ‘two child policy’), every province has the right to decide the circumstances under which couples may have more children, in accordance with local social, economic, political and cultural conditions (Refworld 2000).

Before January 2016, some exceptions allowed couples to have more than one child. Some examples, as listed by Foreign Law Specialist Goitom (2011), were the following:

“If their first born is disabled;
If both spouses are members of ethnic minority groups;
If both spouses are only children (so it seems that all individuals born after 1980 whose parents were forced to have only one child would be eligible to have more than one child if they marry another only child);
If a couple divorces and a person thereafter marries an individual who has no child of his or her own; or
If the couple are Chinese who have returned from an overseas country where they have legal residency.”

In July 2015, a couple from Weinan, Shaanxi province, wanted to have another child so much that they filed for a ‘staged’ divorce so that the woman could have a second baby without paying a fine for it. In order to get the birth permit for the baby, she remarried her own uncle. This legally permitted her to have another child, as she was now considered a divorced woman married to an individual who had no child of his own.

When Chinese authorities announced the relaxation of China’s one-child policy, the woman, who is named ‘Xiao Hong’ by Chinanews.com, decided she no longer needed to be married to her uncle to have a second child, and filed for divorce.

Trouble started when Xiao Hong’s uncle refused to get a legal divorce before getting financially compensated first. Xiao Hong, unable or unwilling to give him money, then turned to court to make their divorce official.

Earlier this week, a court in Shaanxi ruled that a divorce was not possible, as the wedding was not lawful in the first place. In China, marriage between family members is officially not allowed, Chinanews.com reports.

Another story of a couple filing for divorce to have a second baby has also made the headlines. One couple in Chengyang, Guangxi, staged their divorce in 2013 to avoid the government fine for their second pregnancy (二胎罚款). They later got found out by the local family planning office, and still had to pay a so-called ‘social compensation fee’. After they had remarried again, the family planning office discovered that the man had made another woman pregnant during his ‘fake divorce’. After he was confronted with the fact, he ran away. He has not been back since, according to news reports, leaving his ‘two wives’ and three children behind.

Both news stories are currently being shared amongst netizens on Sina Weibo. “Peculiar policies ask for peculiar counter-measures,” one netizen responds. About the news story of the woman getting married to her uncle, one Weibo user responds: “This story line – I would give it a 9.8!”

These stories remind of another news story that came out some time ago, about a man from Anhui who had two different ID cards. He used the fake one to get married, have a baby and then file for divorce with his wife. He then used the real one to remarry her. As this Sohu news video explains, this was another creative way for this couple to have a second baby.

– By Manya Koetse

References/Sources:
* Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. 2000. “China: One-child policies’ with respect to persons who remarry.” Refworld, 4 February. http://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ad5218.html [3.3.16].
* Goitom, Hanibal. 2011. “China’s One Child Policy.” Library of Congress, June 27. http://blogs.loc.gov/law/2011/06/chinas-one-child-policy/ [3.3.16]

©2016 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

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Manya Koetse

Manya Koetse is the founder and editor-in-chief of whatsonweibo.com. She is a writer, public speaker, and researcher (Sinologist, MPhil) on social trends, digital developments, and new media in an ever-changing China, with a focus on Chinese society, pop culture, and gender issues. She shares her love for hotpot on hotpotambassador.com. Contact at manya@whatsonweibo.com, or follow on Twitter.

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1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. Avatar

    helsic

    March 4, 2016 at 11:48 am

    I would never understand why people is so desperate to have a second baby… I don’t even want to have one in the first place!

    Reply

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China Brands, Marketing & Consumers

Tsingtao Brewery ‘Pee-Gate’: Factory Worker Caught Urinating in Raw Material Warehouse

The pee incident, that occurred at a subsidiary Tsingtao Beer factory, has caused concerns among consumers.
Manya Koetse

Published

1 month ago

on

October 21, 2023

By

A video that has circulated on Chinese social media since October 19 shows how an alleged worker at a Tsingtao Beer factory climbs over a wall at the raw material production site and starts to urinate.

The incident reportedly occurred at the Tsingtao Beer Factory No. 3, a subsidiary of the Tsingtao Brewing Company, located in Qingdao, Shandong.

After the video went viral, the Tsingtao Brewery Company issued a statement that they took the incident very seriously and immediately report it to the authorities, who have started an investigation into the case. Meanwhile, the specific batch in production has been halted and shut off.

The incident has caused concern among consumers, and some commenters on social media wonder if this was the first time something like this has happened. “How do we know this hasn’t happened many times before?”

Others speculate about what might have motivated the man to urinate at the production site. There are those who believe that the man is part of an undercover operation orchestrated by a rivaling company, aimed at discrediting Tsingtao. It’s even suggested that there were two ‘moles’ leaking in this incident: one doing the urinating, and the other doing the video ‘leak.’

Meanwhile, there are voices who are critical of Tsingtao, suggesting that the renowned beer brand has not effectively addressed the ‘pee gate’ scandal. It remains uncertain how this incident will impact the brand, but some netizens are already expressing reservations about ordering a Tsingtao beer as a result.

But there are also those who joke about the “pissing incident,” wondering if Tsingtao Beer might soon launch a special “urine flavored beer.”

By Manya Koetse

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Featured photo by Jay Ang (link).

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©2023 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

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China Local News

Streamed Without Realizing: Chinese Village Cadres Suspended after Sex Scene Video Leaks Online

“Village cadres are so hard-working. Besides conducting conferences, they also do live-streaming!”
Manya Koetse

Published

2 months ago

on

October 6, 2023

By

Two cadres working in Weicheng District in Shandong Province were suspended this week after an “inappropriate video” that showed them engaging in sexual acts started circulating on Chinese social media.

The two got a bit too cozy together in a meeting room, and the moment allegedly was unknowingly caught on camera after a secretary did not turn the camera off after a video conference.

On October 6, Phoenix News (@凤凰网) reported that the subdistrict office in question denied that such an incident took place in their jurisdiction.

The local Discipline Inspection Commission, however, confirmed that the incident did take place and that the case was under investigation, although they would not confirm which positions the two cadres held. Online, it was claimed that they are a thirty-something male secretary in and a fifty-something female director.

Some Chinese media sources noted that the video in question seems to have been recorded from a security camera system screen, raising questions about whether the two had forgotten about the security cameras, or if they actually forgot to turn off a conference call camera, or if the incident was captured by both the security cameras and the webcam.

On Weibo and other Chinese social media, the incident has caused some banter among netizens.

“At least our Party comrades are now addressing their needs internally without causing harm to society – that could be considered a form of progress,” one popular comment said.

“It’s not bad, it’s just bad that they forgot to turn the webcam off,” others replied.

“Ah, so this is officially what officials do?” others wondered.

“Village cadres are so hard-working. Besides conducting conferences, they also do livestreaming!”

By now, it’s been confirmed by a staff member at the Wangliu St. Office in Weifang that the two individuals involved, both village cadres, have been suspended. They are currently under investigation by the Disciplinary Inspection Committee. By early Saturday, a related hashtag had garnered over 200 million views on Weibo (#两干部流出不雅视频被停职#).

By Manya Koetse

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©2023 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

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