marriage afraid and childbearing

 China’s Center for Social Development in 2019 showed that one in three Chinese women aged 15–49 had not taken the oath of marital fidelity. This means that approximately half of all women are reluctant to be committed to their spouses. The same report also revealed that almost 80% of women said they would not “definitely” or “probably” get married if they could have children.

 

While many of these findings suggest that there is a growing acceptance that women will have more choices than ever about who they marry, some believe that this trend is leading to a decline in family values.

●      In September, over 1.5 million couples in China divorced in 2020, making it the world’s second most common single-family householder divorce rate, behind India. It’s estimated that between 2005 and 2015, around 10.7 million children were born to one parent—an increase of more than 300,000 since 2011. In 2018 alone, the number of families with both parents living together dropped from 11% to 9%. According to reports by China’s Ministry of Education, nearly 90% of pre-school schools have at least one gender-balanced classroom and 83 percent have classes that include at least one girl. If a study was conducted in 2006 for each year from 2003 to 2008, it would show an increase from 3.9 million to 4.9 million. These numbers are expected to rise again as families become more aware of the value of children—and therefore they want to give them an education, time, and attention. However, while many Chinese children attend public institutions or private schools for good reason, only 33% of their teachers are female. Only 37 percent of Chinese parents surveyed for World Bank’s Gender Gap Report in 2017 said their children were taught to read, write, and count. Moreover, a majority of Chinese parents haven’t given up on their kids. They still go on trips, play soccer with friends, take part in extracurricular activities and help with schoolwork.

 

●      ISSUE OF MARRIAGE

The issue of marriage and children has been a heated topic in Asian nations recently. South Korea has the highest rates of unwaged pregnancies among developed countries. The country is also suffering a serious economic crisis brought on by prolonged border disputes between the Democratic Republic of Korea and its neighbors. For these reasons, women have begun pushing back against these issues. A recent Panorama saw several women talk about “modern-day” love. One respondent explained: “You can imagine that we’ve come a long way from men dominating women for centuries.” Another said: “When I look at my daughters’ eyes, I see mothers everywhere, and it makes me very happy.” Some others agreed: “When I was a little girl, I had no thoughts that women can do anything—all they care about is raising the next generation. Now I know that I don’t need to raise any other man anymore. There are so many things I can teach my son…”

●      COVID_19 IMPACT

 During the lockdown when working mothers are struggling to keep jobs or homefront homes. However, despite the negative stereotypes surrounding women in South Korea and India, the research reveals that South Koreans and Indians tend to be healthier mothers and fathers. They also tend to be older fathers because, ironically, older dads tend to get passed over for custody rights more often among Indian men. Furthermore, women in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka were also seen as being less educated as opposed to men in all four nations listed. Nevertheless, regardless of those stereotypes, it seems that women or women in general—might be better mothers than.