EDITORIAL : THE CHINA DAILY, CHINA

 

 

Population growth concerns

 

An annual population growth rate of 0.57 percent in the last decade, or a net increase of 73.90 million people, points to the necessity of further maintaining the family-planning policy and keeping the country's population growth rate at a reasonable level.

The net increase in the population was 130 million from 1990 to 2000, 56 million more than in the 2001-2010 period. So it is clear that family planning has achieved a great deal.

Given its great population, China needs to continue the family-planning policy as its population will continue to grow over the next two decades before it peaks at a predicted1.5 billion.  

The publication of detailed figures from the sixth national census on Thursday shows that the proportion of residents under 14 dropped by 6.29 percentage points in the last 10 years and those aged between 15 and 59 decreased by 1.91 percentage points. During the same period, the number of people over the age 60 increased by 2.93 percentage points.
The increasingly heavier burden of an aging population is a product of the successful implementation of the family-planning policy.
At the same time, the rapid dwindling in the population under the age of 14 suggests that a lack of laborers will pose a threat to the country's economic growth in the near future.
It is definitely right for China to maintain a relatively low birth rate. Yet, the country cannot afford to see its population growth rate drop as sharply as it has in the past two decades.
If that becomes a reality, it will certainly negatively affect the government's financial capability to subsidize the care of its aged population, which will continue to grow in the coming decades. It would also exert a heavy pressure on the younger generation.
What the government cannot afford to ignore is the younger generation's attitude toward childbirth, which must also have contributed to the rapid decline in population growth in the past two decades.
It can take several decades for a population policy to show its effect. Therefore, fluctuations in the population size must be closely monitored in the coming years. In addition, studies and surveys are also needed to discover young people's attitudes toward having children.
Then the adjustments to be made in the family-planning policy will be soundly based on solid data as well as sensible analysis and prediction of the population development trend.
This demonstrates what President Hu Jintao was talking about when he said on Wednesday, that the population issue is complicated and deserves long-term concern. 

Complicity in food crimes

 

We had no solid evidence when we said that the pork supplies from the Shuanghui subsidiary containing the banned substances ractopamine and clenbuterol were probably just the tip of an iceberg.

Nor when we made repeated predictions that melamine would continue to surface in milk powder despite all the promises, assurances and crackdowns.

Now we have all the evidence we need. Earlier this week, in Chongqing, more than 26 tons of milk powder containing melamine were confiscated.

While in Hunan province, police uncovered the production and transaction of ractopamine and clenbuterol as fodder additives, which involved more than a dozen provinces.

It is possible to take an optimistic view and say that the authorities succeeded in uncovering these food crimes. Yet, at the same time, such achievements prompt even more suspicions about food safety. One can easily, as some readily and regularly do, portray these as "isolated cases" that don't represent the "bigger picture", and assign blame to specific perpetrators.

The latest initiative for the authorities of the industry and commerce administration to assess the conduct of all players in the food industry and practice differentiated oversight accordingly is a step in the right direction. Preserving a complete record of a business' conduct and subjecting those found with stains on their character to special scrutiny sounds like a good way to enhance corporate consciousness, which we believe will be conducive to self-discipline in the industry.

Publishing and maintaining a "blacklist" of wrongdoers, as has been proposed, will not only satisfy consumers' right to know, but will make true the market's potential in eliminating dishonest players. With due information, consumer choices can effectively eliminate wrongdoers from the marketplace. But for that to happen, more needs to be done to share information.

We also agree with Vice-Premier Li Keqiang, who heads the State Council Committee for Food Safety, that it is necessary to substantially raise the price of violations. Heavy fines and severe criminal penalties are also essential.

The authorities' latest move to revise the national list of food additives is a welcome step. But their previous inability to detect dozens of chemicals on their list of prohibited additives does not inspire confidence and leaves a gaping hole that illicit businesses can take advantage of.

The authorities have an obligation to develop the capability to detect in a timely manner, if not pre-empt, potential new public health hazards.

So the real task is to ensure that government functionaries are independent and effective in checking the food chain and that those caught wrongdoing are also brought to account.

Officials must be convinced that local development will no longer be tolerated as an excuse for shielding illegal activities. And the potential consequences of extending an umbrella of protection must suffice to make them think twice. 

                                                                                          Dated on 29/04/2011