Category: International Facts/Quotes

LifeSiteNews published this picture of an aborted baby from China.  The child was nine months along when he or she was aborted.  The baby was a victim of China’s forced abortion regime, the One Child Policy (which now allows couples to sometimes have two children, but definitely not more) .

From the LifeSiteNews article:

According to English reports regarding the original post, the pregnant mother was forcibly held down as she was given an injection to induce labor, after which the baby “even gave a cry when it came out,” but was left in a bucket to drown.

Kathleen Gilbert “Photo of baby aborted in China at 9 months in forced abortion circulates on Internet, sparks outrage” LifeSiteNews Apr 3, 2012

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Author Gita Aravamudan writes about one reason why women in India are resorting to infanticide of girl babies:

“A woman who gave birth to girls had no value in her own home. If she produced too many she could be thrown out of her marital home. Her birth family too would reject her. Killing her own daughters, therefore, was an act of self-preservation. If she defied society and kept them alive, she would probably end up alone with the additional burden of bringing up her daughters all by herself.”

Gita Aravamudan Disappearing Daughters: the Tragedy of Female Foeticide (New Delhi, India: Penguin Books India, 2007) 35

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Most people are familiar with the Chinese One Child policy, which prohibits families from having more than one baby. Now occasionally extended to allow for 2 children, the program has a history of allowing, and, indeed, promoting, kidnapping and forced abortion.. The official policy calls for a fine, which is often many times the couples combined yearly income. They are usually fired from their jobs and their “extra” child cannot go to school.

In this case cited in “China’s One Child Policy: the Government’s Massive Crime against Women and Unborn Babies” Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Human Rights, Committee of Foreign Affairs House Of Representatives 112th Congress, September 22, 2001, Family-Planning Officials go to collect that fine.

“At about 8 o’clock in the evening of March 7, 2008, Changzheng Luo [Vice Sec. of the local Subdistrict Office] headed about 30 [Family-Planning] Officials (most of them were local rogues) to Xin Liu’s home and urged him to open the door. Xiandong Luo, Xin’s elder sister’s husband who lived next door heard the sound and hurried out. When asked what they were coming for, the officials answered: “We are here to collect the social compensation fee for your extra child. Open the door, or else we will break in!”

On hearing that, Xing Liu (Xin’s younger brother) also got up from bed. He walked up to the door and asked the further identification. They refused to reveal their identities and just kept threatening. Later Xing recognized that one tall man was from Zaoshi Subdistrict Office and asked, “are you working in Zaoshi Subdistrict Office?” He answered, yes.” So Xing opened the door.

Changzheng Luo rushed in with those officials. He dragged out Xin’s wife, Binglan Yang, and asked her to pay the fine for her extra child. Xin asked them to show their credentials and enforce the law in a civilized manner, but he was immediately met with a brutal mass brawl. At this sight, Xiandong Luo said, “no hitting!” But he was beaten as well. His face was smashed and broken by their weapon. Blood streamed down his face.

Afterwards, the man beating Xiandong Luo turned around and hit Xin’s temple with a glass bottle. Xin was stunned immediately and fell down on the ground. Blood streamed across his body. Xin’s mother (over 70 years old) lay down and held him with her arms, but they kicked her abdomen Xin’s younger brother’s wife locked the door and intended to report to the police.

They asked her to open the door and let them leave. She refused and was slapped. Then they forced her to hand over the key.”

The police were called and eventually arrived, but did nothing. They did not interfere with the Family Planning officials or condemn their actions. Several victims of the beatings had to be hospitalized.

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In a hearing on forced abortion in China, a woman told this story:

Statement of Ms. Ji Yequig:

“In June 2003, I discovered that I was pregnant again after a checkup at the only gynecologist clinic nearby, the Jiading District Women and Children’s Clinic. Both my husband and I were very happy. However, the clinic was in close cooperation with the Family Planning Commission of Xiaomiao Village, Jiading District of Shanghai, and reported my pregnancy. The day after my checkup at the clinic Li Chunping of the Family Planning Commission and 3 other agents came to our home and told me that, according to China’s one child policy, we could not have a 2^nd child. I was pregnant again. I had no choice but to undergo an abortion; otherwise, we would be sabotaging the family planning policy and breaking the law. Not only would we be fined 200,000 yuan, equivalent to $31,300, which was more than 3 times our combined annual income, but also, we would be fired from our jobs. We were very afraid at the time of losing our jobs. We could never acquire enough money to pay the exorbitant fines.

Li then brought me to the same clinic to force an abortion. After that operation, they made me promise that I would have the IUD put in. I told him I would do it after my body recovered. Only then did they release me.

But I never did get the IUD implemented because I was still very hesitant about the IUD procedure. I had heard it was very painful, and it could produce serious physical complications. So I continued taking contraceptive pills. My in-laws insisted that we try for another pregnancy. They also promised to give us money to pay for the fines. They wanted a grandson [her first child was a girl], even if it would cost 200,000 yuan.

My husband persuaded me to stop taking the pills in February 2006. I was pregnant again in September of the same year. We were determined to have another child and prepared for the fines. After my checkup at the hospital, like the previous time, the Family Planning Commission learned of it the very next day. We had known of the close cooperation between the clinic and the local birth planning agencies, so we expected this. But there was only one licensed hospital in the area, so we had no choice but to go there for checkups. Two days after my visit to the hospital, Li Chunping and five other agents came to our home to ask why I had not had the IUD inserted and why I had decided to get pregnant again. I told them that I wanted another child and we were prepared to pay the fines. Li stated that Chinese law decreed that the second child was forbidden. Even if it was born, the child could not be registered and would not be able to attend school. More than the fine, we would be fired from our jobs with a child that would never be registered by the census. We were willing to take the punishment of fines of losing our jobs. It wasn’t as important to us as our child.

Li then ordered the other agents to bring me to the hospital for an abortion. They surrounded us. Li and two others grabbed me by the arm and dragged me outside. Two others stopped my husband Liu Bin from rescuing me and beat him. I begged them to spare us. We only wanted another baby and never wanted to do anything evil. Why did they keep such close watch over us? I also said we were willing and prepared to pay the fines. I kept begging them in tears, but it was no use. Then I threatened to take legal action, but Li replied that my pregnancy with a second child was illegal, so reporting the case to court would be useless. I couldn’t free myself, although I struggled all the way. They dragged me down from the fourth floor into a waiting car, drove into the Jiading Women and Children’s Clinic, and pulled me directly into the operating room. They held me down and abetted sedated me. The abortion was performed while I was unconscious. When I came to, I was already in the recovery room outside the operating room. Doctors told me they had installed the IUD immediately after the abortion, and that I was responsible for the cost of the IUD procedure. So the intrauterine device was installed in me against my will while I was lying unconscious, completely unaware. After the abortion, I felt empty, as if something was scooped out of me. My husband and I had been so excited for a new baby. Now, suddenly, all that hope and joy and excitement had disappeared, all in an instant. I was very depressed and despondent for a long time. Whenever I thought about my lost child, I would cry.”

The abortion, and Ji Yeqing’s physical and emotional difficulties afterwards, lead to the breakup of her marriage in 2008. She now is remarried and lives in the United States, but doctors told her she would never have children because of the damage caused by her forced abortion.

Hearing before the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Human Rights of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of Representatives, 112^th Congress, First Session. September 22, 2011

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A report presented to a Congressional Committee told the following story about forced abortion in China. The babies in this case were  nine months along, twins, who were aborted against the  mother’s wishes:

“On December 13, 2007 Mrs. Dong (34 years old) from  Wutong Town, Yongtai County, Fuchou City was pregnant with unplanned twin babies for almost 9 months. She was working in Ganzhe Town, Minhou County, Fuchou Province together with her husband. Unfortunately, her pregnancy was discovered by the local Family-Planning Office. At about 2 o’clock in the afternoon she was taken to the local health center forcibly. Without the agreement or signature of Mrs. Dong or her family, she was held by more than 10 people and injected Ethacridine Lactate at about 5 o’clock. The family-planning officials declared that they would be responsible for any death. The twin babies struggled for a long time in their mother’s uterus and died in the end. Until 9:30 in the evening of December 14, she was still waiting to induce the dead babies. The local government blocked the event tightly and forbid anyone interviewing the victim. Until now her health condition is still unknown…”

“China’s One Child Policy: the Government’s Massive Crime against Women and Unborn Babies” Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Human Rights, Committee of Foreign Affairs House Of Representatives 112^th Congress, September 22, 2001

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Author Gita Aravamudan interviewed an Indian midwife discussing female infanticide.

“They stifle them with a pillow or with a cloth. Oh! It is a horrible sight. The little one will struggle under the sari like this, like this… And then it will be still. Oh! how many I have seen.… I am only paid to do a job. It is my livelihood. It is their child and their wish. I have kept all my daughters. But if they want to send theirs away…”

“send them away” = euphemism for killing their baby.

Gita Aravamudan Disappearing Daughters: the Tragedy of Female Foeticide (New Delhi, India: Penguin Books India, 2007) 12

Aravamudan mentions that she believes this  midwife may have committed infanticide herself.

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Chinese author Sheng Keyi,  who wrote “Northern Girls” wrote about the lives of Chinese migrant women seeking jobs in cities like Shenzhen in the south:

“About 70 or 80 percent of migrant worker girls in Shenzhen have probably had abortions. I remember hearing that working in a gynecological hospital in Shenzhen was one of the best ways to make an income, because there was such a regular supply of abortions to be done. Millions and millions. It is very common.”

 DIDI KIRSTEN TATLOW “Behind China’s High Abortion Rate: New Sexual Freedoms” The New York Times OCTOBER 19, 2012 

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Chinese citizen and husband Xiangan Zhao describes how Chinese officials enforcing the one child policy beat him and his wife for missing an appointment:

“My wife, Xiaoyan Li, and I were living in Gongjadao Residents’ Committee, Zhichu Street, Zhiefu District, Yantari City, Shandong Province. We had all the legal certificates required by the “Regulations of Family-Planning for Floating Population.” At noon of August 6, 2009, we received a phone call from Airong Liu (head of the women’s Federation of Caoliu Village, Nanchan Town, Wenshang County, Shandong Province, which is the location of our registered residence). She informed us that we needed to report for pregnancy checkup.…

[They were a day late going to get the pregnancy check because they were travelling]

“She said “everyone is waiting for you. We’ll pull down your house if you don’t come.” Because we were late for one day and were not clear about what she meant, we hurried to the Family-Planning Office to report for the checkup. While my wife was receiving the checkup, I explained the reason for being late to Airong  Liu politely. But she shouted at me: “What? Are you hoping that I will pay your travel expenses as well?”

At that time, an official with long hair and long face… came downstairs from the 2^nd floor and said, “Beat him. He has so many excuses for being late.” Then he took the lead in beating me. Many people followed him and struck me down. They beat and kicked like storms. When I tried to stand up and run away by instinct, he commanded again, “Beat him with rubber sticks.” I was stricken down again and could not move this time. They dragged my arms and threw me in a dark room (the 2^nd room on the east side of the door of the Family-Planning Office.)

Then he gave another command. “Go and beat his wife.” My wife had just finished the checkup at that time. He dragged her off the bed to hit her. He said, “This is for your coming late!” My wife said, “director Hu told me there was no need to come back for another checkup.” We never thought this statement would irritate him. He shouted: “You have a good reason for being late, don’t you? Take her in the room!” So the family-planning official dragged my wife into a dark room and beat her brutally. She gripped their legs and knelt down to beg. “I know I’m wrong. Please forgive me. Please forgive me…” They finally stopped hitting after she begged for a while. Her whole body was already covered with wounds then.

They checked the items we carried (they worried that we were taking cameras or other devices to record their brutal behavior) and detained us in the same room. They sealed the door and the window closely. One person guarded outside the door. Then I found there were already 8 or 9 people in the room. I felt sharp pain through my whole body. My wounds got more serious at about 2 o’clock in the afternoon and I difficulty breathing, so my wife asked the guard to allow me out for treatment. He reported to his superior and in the end they approved. They gave my cell phone back to me (it fell out of my pocket when I was beaten). I couldn’t walk and my wife was unable to bear me on her back, so she requested the Family-Planning Office to drive to the hospital, but they did not respond. My wife had to phone the police for help. She described our situation and location, but something surprising happened… After the Family-Planning Officials knew that we phoned the police, they grabbed my cell phone and detained us again. The police station was only about 100 m from the Family-Planning Office, but the policeman never came to help us.

Our family came to the Family-Planning Office 6 hours after we left home. They reported to the police again at the sight of our wounds. This time 2 policemen (they did not wear the police uniform) came and said: “it’s legal for the Family-Planning Officials to do this. It’s not our responsibility to deal with it!” Then the 2 policemen mediated with the Family-Planning Officials. In the end, the Family-Planning Officials sent us to the town People’s Hospital but left without paying a single cent of the medical fee.…

Since that time I have been left with sequelae [pathology resulting from trauma]. I have a partial loss of work ability and I cannot do heavy labor to this day.”

Woman’s rights Without Frontiers “China’s One Child Policy: New Evidence of Coercion, Forced Abortion, Sterilization, Contraception, and the Practice of “Implication September 22, 2001. Presented in  “China’s One Child Policy: the Government’s Massive Crime against Women and Unborn Babies” Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Human Rights, Committee of Foreign Affairs House Of Representatives 112^th Congress, September 22, 2001

Try to imagine the way that these violent officials would have treated a woman who became pregnant and wanted to keep her baby. This kind of brutality occurs in China to this very day.

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