KEY POINTS:
China is planning to tighten punishments for sex-selective abortions amid concerns that its widening gender imbalance will lead to wife trafficking, sexual crimes and social frustration.
New figures released by the state media show that the worst affected city, Lianyungang in Jiangsu province, has a ratio of 165 boys to 100 girls among children aged 1 to 4.
Nationwide, six males are born for every five females, far above the international average. With the gap growing every year as a result of increased access to ultrasound sex-checking technology, one senior official warned that China faces the "most serious gender imbalance in the world".
State demographers forecast that 37 million men will be unable to find wives by 2020. Already there are 18 million more men than women of marriageable age. In a recent survey by the China Youth Daily, 85 per cent of respondents were worried about the implications of the gender gap.
The main reason for the imbalance is a traditional preference for boys. Males are considered better at carrying on the family line, caring for elderly parents and earning money. Many farmers believe that raising a girl baby is a waste because she will marry into another family.
China's problem is compounded by a strict family planning policy that limits many couples to one child. The Government credits these restrictions for preventing 400 million births since the rules were introduced in 1979.
In the past, unwanted girls were abandoned. Now they are more likely to be aborted. Although there are laws banning doctors from telling pregnant women the sex of the fetus, the practice is common. Local media report that one common way around the regulations is for doctors silently to give a thumbs-up if the fetus is a boy. If it is a girl, a thumbs-down serves as an execution order.
In Guizhou province, the media report the existence of "bachelor villages" where most men of eligible age are unable to find a bride. In cities there has been a rise in matchmaking parties aimed at bachelors, also known as "guangun", or single sticks.
In 2003, the Government introduced a "Care for girls" policy, which provided incentives, such as tax breaks, for families raising girls. This year, the Government said it would punish for the first time any medical institution that tells couples the sex of unborn babies.
GENDER GAP
* State demographers in China forecast that 37 million men will be unable to find wives by 2020.
* Already there are 18 million more men than women of marriageable age.
* The main reason for the imbalance is a traditional preference for boys, particularly in the countryside.
* Males are considered better at carrying on the family line, caring for elderly parents and earning money.
* Many farmers believe that raising a girl baby is a waste because she will marry into another family.
* In the past, unwanted girls were abandoned. Now they are more likely to be aborted.
- Observer
