FAMILY PLANNING IN SICHUAN'S ABA TIBETAN AND QIANG

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 CHENGDU 000139 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/CM, DRL AND G/STC E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM PGOV CH SUBJECT: FAMILY PLANNING IN SICHUAN'S ABA TIBETAN AND QIANG AUTONOMOUS PREFECTURE REF: CHENGDU 137 CHENGDU 00000139 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: According to the head of the local Population and Family Planning Bureau, both Han Chinese and ethnic minority families in Western Sichuan Province's Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture are permitted to have at least two, and in some cases, three children. The prefecture provides economic incentives, however, to families who chose to have only one child. Although providing "excellent quality of care" is a good motto, Aba struggles to meet this goal due to a population widely dispersed over a large land area, and outdated infrastructure and technology. Social Compensation Fees for "out-of-plan" births are fifty percent lower than the level set out in Sichuan Province regulations and the prefecture has done away with the birth spacing requirement. As in other Tibetan areas of our district, family planning regulations appear to be somewhat loosely enforced in Aba Prefecture. End Summary ¶2. (U) During an official Consulate visit to western Sichuan Province's Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Aba Population and Family Planning Bureau Director Pan Lin briefed CG and Congenoff on the birth planning regulations in the ethnic minority area. The total population of the prefecture is approximately 850,000, 678,000 of whom are rural residents; 55 percent are Tibetan, 24 percent are Han Chinese, 18 percent are Qiang, and 3 percent are Hui. Two or Three Children Permitted in Aba -------------- ¶3. (U) Pan explained that all rural people in Aba Prefecture are permitted to have two children, regardless of whether they are ethnic minorities or Han Chinese. Urban ethnic minorities may also have two offspring. Residents of nomadic and high altitude areas are permitted to have three children. "Fewer Births, Become Richer Quicker" -------------- ¶4. (U) Even though most residents are permitted to have multiple births, family planning officials in Aba emphasize to residents that by having fewer births, they can become richer more quickly (shaosheng kuaifu). Families who chose to have only one child are eligible to receive a RMB 3000 (USD 360) one-time payment as a reward. Similar to programs in other parts of the country, Aba Prefecture provides yearly RMB 600 �00A;(USD 72) social security payments to single child households when the parents reach sixty years old. All family planning services in the prefecture are free to residents, and officials all strive to provide "excellent quality of care" (youzhi fuwu). Pan added that money for the prefecture incentive programs comes from the local government. Challenges to "Excellent" Family Planning Service -------------- -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Pan stated that while "excellent quality of care" is a good motto, the greatest challenges are infrastructure deficiencies and poor quality of service. The areas of the prefecture covered by population and family planning services are large and the population is very spread out, so it is very difficult to provide services. Investment in technology is also behind, Pan added. Social Compensation Fee Lower Than In Rest of Province -------------- -------------- ¶6. (SBU) When queried about the exact amount of the Social Compensation Fee (SCF) for out-of-plan births (beyond the two or three already permitted),Pan responded that it was 50 percent lower than what was set out in Sichuan Provinces' regulations. Provincial regulations require that families who have out of plan births pay a fee of six to eight times their annual disposable income. Pan emphasized that that SCFs are a "non-issue" in Aba because people who have out of plan births are the poorest of the poor and "there is no way to collect fines from them." Pan also stressed that there would absolutely be no pressure placed on women expecting out-of-plan births to have abortions. ¶7. (SBU) Pan asserted he has not seen any "well-off" families having out-of-plan births, adding that people who already have two children frequently go to the hospital for "surgery." (Note: Pan implied that these surgeries were abortions and/or sterilizations. End Note). In response to another question, Pan also stated that Aba Prefecture no longer has a birth spacing policy requiring couples to wait four years before their first and second, or second and third children. In closing, however, Pan appeared to contradict his earlier comments regarding the prefecture's dispersed population by claiming that people are increasingly choosing not to have more births because land is limited and the population is increasing. CHENGDU 00000139 002.2 OF 002 Comment -------------- ¶8. (SBU) During our travels to several rural counties of the prefecture, we sensed that family planning policy might be somewhat loosely enforced in this largely ethnic minority area. Many families appeared to have two or more children. This is a common situation we have observed in most Tibetan areas in our consular district, including Yunnan, Sichuan and the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR). BOUGHNER