Progress of Women in China - Essay Example

? Progress of Women in China Table of Contents I. Introduction 3 II. China Overview 4 III. China and Women- Focus on Laws, Norms of Society and Impact on Women 5 IV. Issues, Challenges Facing Chinese Women in the Technical and Scientific Professions 8 V. Prospects 10 VI. Strategy Recommendations 11 Works Cited 12 I. Introduction China has been in the consciousness of a wide swath of the world's population for many reasons, chief among them being its ongoing economic ascent, its prominent place in world politics, its various contributions to different aspects of world civilization, its burgeoning population and large race footprint in many parts of the world, its growing military and political might, its Communist government, its colorful human rights record, its many confrontations with other world powers and neighbors, and its general insistence on the popular psyche for Chinese things, large and small, in popular world culture (Central Intelligence Agency). Recently it has been in the news for its confrontations with its neighbors over territory, including the Philippines and Vietnam, as well as with another rising power in India, casting light on the growing power of China, and its growing intention to assert itself and its interests all over the world. It is interesting to find out just how women have fared historically and at present in this fascinating country, given the unusual set of historical, economic and cultural circumstances that women there find themselves in, and given the generally fascinating, strange, and multifaceted Chinese society and government (Parthasarathy; Manthorpe; Magistad; Wong; Pei). This paper explores the progress that women have made in various aspects of Chinese society, with emphasis on their progress in their professional careers, and in particular the progress, challenges, key issues and fresh opportunities for advancement by Chinese women in technical, scientific, mathematical and related career fields. How have women fared in these respects historically? How much progress have they made in the recent past, vis-a vis the general progress that has been achieved in the Chinese national economy over the past few decades? How have the laws and the norms of Chinese society impacted women and their prospects at work and elsewhere? What are the issues that they face moving forward? What are their prospects moving forward, and what are the blocks to those? What tactics and strategies can they put to use in order to create a better future for themselves? (Parthasarathy; Manthorpe; Magistad; Wong; Pei; Amnesty International; Jacobs). II. China Overview China, with a labor pool of about 1.0024 billion workers as of late 2011, has the biggest workforce in the world. This, coupled by a booming economy backstopped by several decades of rapid growth, has propelled China into the ranks of the largest economies in the world, second only to the US by some metrics, and in some metrics already the largest world economy, poised to become even larger and more prosperous moving forward. A tangible result of this is raising prosperity for more and more of China's 1.34 billion population, as evidenced by rising per capita or per person GDP figures, estimated at $8,400 as of 2011. The scale of the country's progress economically is reflected likewise in gargantuan financial figures: GDP of $11.29 trillion dollars as of 2011, ranked third in the world by purchasing power parity metrics; a rate of growth of the economy of 9.2 percent in 2011; an official workforce of about 816.2 million people, greater than the total population of many large countries in the world; a current account balance of $280.6 billion, ranked first in the world; exports of $1.898 trillion in 2011, ranked first in the world; imports of $1.743 trillion in 2011, ranked first in the world; a rate of investment of about 54 percent of total country GDP, ranked second in the world. The range of its industries is summarized below (Central Intelligence Agency): world leader in gross value of industrial output; mining and ore processing, iron, steel, aluminum, and other metals, coal; machine building; armaments; textiles and apparel; petroleum; cement; chemicals; fertilizers; consumer products, including footwear, toys, and electronics; food processing; transportation equipment, including automobiles, rail cars and locomotives, ships, and aircraft; telecommunications equipment, commercial space launch vehicles, satellites (Central Intelligence Agency). III. China and Women- Focus on Laws, Norms of Society and Impact on Women The outward laws seem to reflect that Chinese society values women and holds them in high regard. Officially, the laws on women center on the protection of their fundamental human rights, and of the high value that they offer in the workplace and in all aspects of Chinese life and society. There has also been a recognition under Chinese law of the equality of the two genders in Chinese society, in terms of political equality, and equality in terms of economic opportunities, extending to equality in terms of access to land, in areas where the main source of livelihood remain to be in agriculture, and in tilling the land. Laws relating to the latter, for instance, have been in force since 2002, containing strong, unambiguous stipulations about the basic rights of women to work the land in rural areas, in the same fashion and degree as men. The laws protecting the rights of women also seem crafted in noble language, if generalist, ensuring that the rights of women in China are protected, and that their economic and social well-being is guaranteed, in the same vein as men, and in the spirit of equality (Burnett 289-291; Xiaoling). Indeed, the literature states that on paper at least, women have been as free as men, as free to pursue economic and social opportunities, as stipulated in laws that date back more than six decades that guarantee those freedoms for women, in all facets of Chinese life- society, culture, politics, the economy, and the household. Such laws have been reinforced, also on paper, in the Constitution of 1982, further reinforced by legislation in large numbers, introduced before and after that time, that sought to further strengthen and elaborate on the fundamental laws protecting and advancing the interests of Chinese women (Burnett). There seems to be some basis for the claim that the law in China, as it affects women, have progressively become more friendly towards women, and have increasingly laid out in more detail the fundamental assertions in the law laid out in the Constitution guaranteeing the equality of treatment of Chinese women in all spheres of human life, including with regard to the right to vote, and with regard to access to economic and social opportunities. As stated in the literature, over six decades ago there seemed to have been a realization on the part of the national government that it is into the country's best economic and social long term interest to make sure that women are treated equally as men, including in the economic and educational realms, so that the vision of equality was paved later with fresh legislation aimed at threshing out and further strengthening that fundamental intention of the framers of the law, to advance women's interests. The literature cites, for instance, that the primary law that was passed when modern China was founded was the so-called Marriage Law, which supplanted earlier laws on marriage that were tilted in favor of men, and espoused the notions of joint ownership of property, divorce rights, and other stipulations that guaranteed that women became on par with men in terms of human and civil rights under the law (Xiaoling). Likewise, other legislation in the spheres of criminal and civil law were designed to forward women's interests and protect their guaranteed rights. Moreover, the law in China paved the way for the formation of what amount to today for women's interest groups and support groups, that catered to the needs of women, were sanctioned officially by government and given funding, and which were in principle safe havens for Chinese women eager to make their mark in the world, at home, at work, and in society in general (Burnett; Bloom). As well, by some measures women seem to have done well in the six decades since the enactment of laws to protect and advance the rights of women in China. Since that time, for instance, life expectancy for women have topped 77 years, as of 2011, exceeding even the life expectancy of Chinese men, at just about 72 years. Moreover, due to some health measures, there has been significant progress, such as that in the areas of provision of health insurance during the time of maternity; and other such similar government-initiated forms of health care. Arranged marriages, too, once comprising up to 95 percent of all marriages in China in older times, had dropped to about 20 percent by the late 1990's, reflecting the greater independence and freedom that women have come to enjoy in China as a result of legal reforms and social acceptance of the increased independence of women. Female literacy rates have reached about 89 percent by 2008, from 10 percent in 1949, and 75 percent in 1995 (Central Intelligence Agency; Xiaoling). By the turn of the past century, moreover, the statistics on women and education have gone from bad to very good, with enrollment rates for all women of school age reaching close to 99 percent; women in science and technology making up a third of all students in those areas, at 10.2 million Chinese women students; a third of all graduate and undergraduate students being Chinese women; and about half of all adult education students being likewise women. It is noteworthy, moreover, that as of 2009, women were expected, on average, to stay longer in school and to receive a longer education than Chinese men, with women averaging 12 years of education, as compared to men, averaging just 11 years (Burnett; Central Intelligence Agency) IV. Issues, Challenges Facing Chinese Women in the Technical and Scientific Professions While the plight of women by some measures, and on legal paper, seems to be very good, there are dark sides to the picture, that prevent us from saying that all is well for women in China in general, and even in the professions, and including in the sciences and in technological and engineering fields . There are disparities, for instance, in the way men and women are paid, with men being paid much higher for the same work as compared to women. By some estimates, for instance, though women make up as much as half of the total workforce in China as of 2010, Chinese men received 74 percent more pay as compared to Chinese women doing the same work. While it is true that the disparity in wages between men and women in China reflect the larger worldwide disparity in wages between the genders, to the detriment of women who receive less than the men, the disparities in wages between Chinese men and women are much higher in comparison to the observed global disparity averages, which ranged at between 15 and 50 percent (Burnett; Halsall; Tatlow; Law for Life) . By the turn of the past century, moreover, other statistics further emphasized the disparities in work opportunities and outcomes between Chinese men and Chinese women. For instance, in 2000 Chinese men occupied top seats in government and business by a ratio of 4 to 1 in comparison to Chinese women. This means that 80 percent of the leadership posts in the important government and business enterprises were filled up by Chinese men, to the detriment of the interests of Chinese women, who may be just as capable, but who are discriminated against by virtue of their gender. Moreover, Chinese women were overrepresented in work that paid less than 500 Yuan a month by a factor of two, and under-represented in jobs that paid more than 2,000 Yuan a month, by a factor of 1.5. College graduates who are Chinese women face more hurdles to land work, are constrained in the kinds of work that they are able to undertake, and are discriminated against for their gender in comparison to Chinese men, who in contrast are favored for a variety of jobs that pay more, and are for positions of leadership (Burnett; Halsall; Tatlow). Issues extend beyond pay and jobs discrimination, to the violation of fundamental human rights of Chinese women in the workplace, that are not reflected in the statistics and in the official literature. For instance, laws that compel employers to provide health care to women translate to employers unwilling to employ more Chinese women and for longer, resulting in women in the professions retiring earlier, while working for lower pay while employed. Where Chinese women resort to suing employers, the legal system may not be inclined to rule in their favor, where for instance the employer is the Chinese government. Meanwhile, laws that prohibit more than one child per couple, coupled by the social preference of the Chinese for male sons, has given rise to the reality of a greater disparity between male and female Chinese populations, with the skew going in favor of males, sometimes by a factor of 13 to 10. The implications of this development, in light of the traditional discrimination of women in the workplace and in other aspects of Chinese social and economic life, translate to the continued and increased marginalization of women in the professions. The reasoning is that with more men than women entering the workforce, and with more men competing with women for prized positions and for economic benefit, the already heavily tilted economic and social scales in favor of Chinese men would further tilt against Chinese women moving forward. This is a new dimension to the traditional challenges already facing Chinese women in the professions, and will weigh heavily on Chinese women's prospects moving forward (Burnett 289-291). Likewise, other challenges and issues come in the form of legislation that seems to undermine progress made in the social and legal spheres with regard to advancing women's rights. For instance, where in the past divorce and marriage laws have been reformed to favor greater independence for women, new legislation on divorce that places home ownership back to the person who bought the property before marriage, means that women who divorce their husbands end up losing their conjugal homes as well, a blow to their economic and social independence. This law is just an example of just how vulnerable women in China can still be, notwithstanding the solid gains that were made to advance their rights and interests in the past. The message is that such gains can be erased, and women have to fight for every inch of concession they can get from a male-dominated society and workplace. The discrimination in the workplace, further, extends to the sciences and related technical and engineering professions, and the battles are to be fought there as well (Halsall; Tatlow; Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights). V. Prospects Prospects and opportunities for women in the technical and scientific disciplines, in the professions, and in the Chinese workplace in general are influenced by the considerations in law and society discussed earlier, and shapes the way Chinese women advance and capture opportunities in the different disciplines moving forward. As can be gleaned from the above discussion, it is not a simple matter of for instance, educating more Chinese women, nor is it just a matter of enacting laws to protect Chinese women's interests. There are complex factors at work that act to weigh down on Chinese women and their prospects of career advancement, versus men. Chief among them are deeply ingrained biases against women in Chinese society and culture that further threaten to undermine the prospects of Chinese women moving forward. That said, there has been positive progress made historically in terms of upping the general participation of women in the technical and scientific professions, and the progress over the past six decades has been phenomenal. Moving forward, programs that have been announced to further increase the presence of Chinese women in the scientific disciplines, to about a third of the entire count of such science professionals, augur well for advancing the interests of women in the technical disciplines and in society in general (Burnett 289-291). VI. Strategy Recommendations The literature tells us that one way Chinese women can advance their interests, given the external reality in politics, society, law and culture in China, is for Chinese women to arm themselves with knowledge about their rights under the law. This means an increased awareness of legal developments, and how such legal developments can be leveraged to advance themselves. The laws that exist do protect Chinese women and guarantee them some measure of real freedom. The thing is to get to know those laws, in order that Chinese women may press for their rights effectively in the workplace. This is an important strategy moving forward (Burnett 289-291; Halsall; Xiaoling; Tatlow; Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights; Law for Life; Bloom; Jiao). Works Cited Amnesty International. “China: Chen Pledge 'Empty'” Amnesty International. 4 May 2012. Web. 11 May 2012. Bloom, Marcy. “Behind the Spectacle: Women's Human Rights in China”. RH Reality Check. 19 Aug. 2008. Web. 11 May 2012. Bloomberg News. “China Confidence Unshaken by Bo Crisis in Global Poll” Bloomberg. 11 May 2012. Web. 11 May 2012. Burnett, Jamie. “Women's Employment Rights in China: Creating Harmony for Women in the Workplace”. Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies 17 (2). 1 July 2010. Web. 10 May 2012. Central Intelligence Agency. “China”. World Fact Book. 2012. Web. 10 May 2012. Halsall, Paul. “Chinese Cultural Studies: Women and China: Past and Present”. Brooklyn College. 1999. Web. 10 May 2012. Jacobs, Andrew. “Dispute over Bare islands Underscores Philippines' Rocky Relations with China”. The New York Times. 15 Nov. 2011. Web. 10 May 2012. Jiao, Li. “China Aims to Boost Number of Women Scientists”. SciDev.Net. 23 Aug. 2011. Web. 10 May 2012. Law for Life. “Women's Rights and Public Legal Education in China”. Law for Life. 2010. Web. 10 May 2012. Longbottom, Wil. “Dispute over Oil Rich Islands in South China Sea Could Escalate into 'State-on-state Conflict', US Admiral Warns”. Mail Online. 18 Jan. 2012. Web. 11 May 2012. Magistad, Mary Kay. “Philippines Seeks US Muscle on South China Sea”. BBC World News. 9 Feb. 2012. Web. 10 May 2012. Manthorpe, Jonathan. “Manthorpe: China's State Media Threaten War with Philippines over Disputed Islands”. The Vancouver Sun. 10 May 2012. Web. 10 May 2012. Parthasarathy, G. “Dealing with an Overbearing China”. The Hindu Business Line. 9 May 2012. Web. 10 May 2012. Pei, Minxin. “Tiananmen II”. The Financial Express. 10 May 2012. Web. 10 May 2012. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights. “China Human Rights Fact Sheet”. March, 1995. Web. 10 May 2012. Tatlow, Didi Kristen. “Chinese Law Could Make Divorced Women Homeless”. The New York Times. 7 Sep. 2011. Web. 10 May 2012. Wong, Edward. “China's Growth Slows, and Its Political Model Shows Limits”. The New York Times. 10 May 2012. Web. 10 May 2012. Xiaoling, Zhang. “The Basic Characteristics of the Protection of Women's Human Rights in China”. China's Human Rights. 1998. Web. 10 May 2012. Yee, Andy. “India and Japan's Involvement in the South China Sea Disputes”. East Asia Forum. 10 Nov. 2011. Web. 10 May 2012. Read More