Some Background on China

China is a country whose culture dates back to some of the earliest records known to man. At first glance, some of China's beliefs may seem quite different than those we hold in the western world. One example of this is the cultural preference for a male child. There are several reasons why Chinese families might prefer a boy over a girl. In rural provinces, a family's livelihood depends directly on the output of its family members. Because of this, a family with sons would be at a considerable advantage compared to one with daughters. In addition, inheritance laws pass property on to sons. Historically, it is also the son's honored responsibility to take care of his parents in their old age. A daughter, however, would be expected to care for her husband's parents rather than her own. In this regard, the Chinese believe that having a son is crucial to their livelihood, as well as a form of social security for the parents when they grow older.

This situation was further complicated by an edict given in the 1950's by Mao Tse Tung who urged Chinese people to have lots of children to strengthen the country. The population growth from this edict led the government in the 1970's to be worried that China would be unable to feed her citizens. So, the Chinese government implemented the One-Child Policy in 1979, which prohibited families from having more than one child. The goal of this policy was to keep China's population below 1.3 billion by the year 2000. Today, China is home to those 1.3 billion people. Couples who violate the One Child Policy are subject to fines (equal to three years' salary), community ostracism, and even jail time. Thus there are hundreds of thousands of abandoned baby girls throughout China. The babies are abandoned in public places (such as busy streets or markets, railway stations, and in front of public buildings) so they will be found quickly. The babies are abandoned as infants - usually when they are only a few days old. In addition to little girls, handicapped babies and sick babies (both boys and girls) are also abandoned because most parents in China don't have the money to provide for their special needs. Once found, the abandoned babies are given a medical exam and then taken to orphanages. While the numbers of such adopted orphans has been growing, it still represents only a small percentage of the number of children abandoned annually.