China's Baby Boomer Act

Today is the first day of China's Senior Rights Protection Act (SRPA) becoming effective. While China has steadfastly stepped into a silver society, seniors are busy making laws to accommodate their retirement life, conveniently with their largest population body.

China's Baby Boomer time starts in the 1950s with the ending of almost 100 years of continuous wars, and peaked in the 1960s during the Great Cultural Revolution while the government encouraged birth for more labors. Family planning started in early '70s to address the job pressure and came into full throttle in the '80s. Today most Chinese parents in cities raise only one child despite loosening regulation on family planning.

The SRPA Act mandates family members to provide material as well as mental and spiritual needs of seniors. Those who do not reside with seniors must visit 'frequently'. While financial obligation to elder family members had been regulated in Marriage Act and the Constitution, this is the first time non-monetary caring being elevated to a legal duty.

It's not a co-incident that China's economy is sailing into stagnant water. In the past 20 years or so, young Chinese worked with literally no saving plans except their housing investment. In general, housing in China is much more pricier than comparable dwellings in the US because of a distorted market which is used as an ATM by local governments. If the housing market collapses, a whole generation of Chinese will find themselves shirtless after working like a dog for two decades. Promoting traditional family value and community ties is a subtle way to build another layer of safety net.

The Implementation could be a problem, though, no only because of the vague wordings used in the SRPA such as 'frequently'. Would once a year be considered 'frequent'?

Another distinct stigma of the current Chinese society is the 'empty nest' phenomena, where hundreds of millions of rural youth find jobs in remote cities hundreds miles away, leaving their aging parents behind. Almost everyone of them have been trying their best to get home on the annual Spring Festival's eve, thus the infamous 'Spring Crazy' for public transportation in February. However, it's hard to say how long will they keep observing this tradition, when they are getting older and more rooted in cities.

For city residents, many have their kids living overseas. Would Chinese civil code apply to US citizens? What about permanent residents?

The Last Class for Migrant Workers' Children in Beijing

Students were comforting each other with hugs after they learned their school would be shut down by the Beijing Municipal authority to drive them out of the capital city.

The principle of East-Dam Experimental School in Chaoyang District was the only person who knew the school was shutting down on Oct 21, 2001. The school has resisted the pressure from government to close for months. Students, teachers and volunteering parents blocked the entrance with human shield to stop the government bulldozer and police.

The Beijing municipal government had long seen millions migrant workers a burden to the capital city. Their cheap labor is welcomed and well received, but they are not allowed to stay or bring their children. Migrant workers were told to leave their children and elders at their original residence place, not an option for many that both parents were in Beijing. Migrant workers' children were not allowed to attend public schools in Beijing. Migrant workers and individual charities set up dozens of affordable schools to provide education for these kids. Now the government wants to shut down these school to drive the kids out of the city.

After a public outcry, even from local residents for this obvious social injustice, the Beijing government promised to absorb all migrant kids into local public schools. However, it set up a bar with paperwork so high that few could qualify. For the few who actually qualify, they were plainly denied with no reason given.

Seven Days Later, 14 Thousands Kids in Beijing Lost School

Only days before the Fall semester started, Beijing authority abruptly shut down 24 private schools for migrant workers who do not hold local residency cards. The action was believed an attempt to drive these kids out of Beijing. However, because their parents are working, usually on bottom level labor jobs, in Beijing, the consequence is 14 thousands school age kids are out of school.

Initially the Beijing Municipal Education Department said the shut down was carried by lower level authorities. After the incident was reported on news media, coincidentally while the Communist Party's Central Propaganda Department announced China would spent CND 2B ($300 million) to build schools in Africa using money raised up for rural education in China, the Beijing Education Department claimed all involved school age kids would be absorbed by public schools at free tuition. The Beijing Education Department published a step by step guide for migrant workers on how to enroll their kids to public schools. Seven Days Later, only a few dozens of parents were able to obtain all five certificates detailed by the Education Department. The other 14 thousands kids were unable to collect required certificates, because some certificates were impossible to apply. When the few dozens of parents who managed to jump through the hoops went to the Education Department, they were faced with locked doors. The Department said they were not ready to handle their applications.

The huge economic discrepancy between major coastal cities and inland areas is by and large contributed by the steady free labor force flowing east. Coastal cities used the labor at low cost, while the youth and elders live in inland areas. Coastal cities force older workers to go back to their hometown by not providing retirement and medical benefit, even though they must pay fees and taxes. Now, coastal cities are forcing their youth back by having their schools shut down.

Eyeing for a better image, China has been increased its spending on international aids. Do you believe a government who treated its own citizens this way would treat foreigners nice? They can pretend, but they can't disguise.