Out-of-wedlock births on the rise
6/3/2003 18:02
Forty-three children born out-of-wedlock were reported to the Shanghai
Women's Association Legal Aid Center last year, an increase of 130 percent from
a year before, with the age of the mothers increasingly young, eastday.com
reported today.
Most women do not report such cases to the association
unless their rights or those of their child are being seriously violated,
because they don't want to reveal their situation, said Cai Lanzhen, spokesman
with the rights and interests department of the Shanghai Women's
Association.
Therefore, the actual number of children born out-of-wedlock
in Shanghai is much higher, Cai said.
Among last year's cases, the
youngest mother was only 15 years old. A Shanghainese, she quit school and moved
in with a young man, who abandoned them after she gave birth to their child. She
had no option but to seek help from the association.
Local authorities
need to address the situation, which leads to many social problems, Cai said.
The mothers are the main victims, because they cannot protect their rights if
unmarried, she said.
The local government should strengthen family
planning education and administration, Cai added.
Wendy Zhang/ Shanghai Daily news
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