Lower fines for extra child during census
By Wang Qingchu |
November 6, 2010, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
MANY families have rushed to register children who were born in violation of China's family planning policy as the country started a once-a-decade census, leading to a boom in paternity tests in south China.
China has a family-planning policy limiting many to one child per family. Parents who exceed the quota are required to pay a hefty fine. To encourage people to submit to the census, penalties will be reduced for those who register their extra children during the census.
Paternity test requests jumped more than fourfold in October in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, as people hurried to register their extra children in the sixth national census, hoping for a lower penalty, Guangzhou Daily reported yesterday.
Paternity results issued by authorized institutions are required to apply for resident certificates, or hukou, for unregistered children.
Nearly 330 requests were received last month, four times the average number, said a person in charge of the Forensic Examination Center at the Southern Medical University.
Among the 330 cases, nearly 260 were meant for registration, compared to only three to five out of 70 on average in a usual month. The requests started to pick up from September, the report said.
People born after the 1980s made up the largest share of applicants, accounting for as high as 50 percent, data from the center showed.
Another trend is that since 2009, more women have asked for paternity tests to confirm the biological fathers of their children, compared to the past when fathers applied for the test in most cases, the report said.
The thriving business has also caused an upsurge in unauthorized examination institutions that want to exploit the increased demand.
Only institutions with forensic licenses can issue authorized paternity test results, which are needed when children are registered. However, the technology of paternity testing is not complicated. Many biology companies can conduct the tests, but if they are not authorized ones, their results are invalid, said the person in charge of the examination center at Southern Medical University.
Some unauthorized institutions claim to be certified on the Internet and usually charge more money for the test, the report said.
So far, Guangzhou's health authorities have recommended five institutions to its residents.
Pregnant women are not advised to conduct the paternity test too early, as it may harm the fetus.
China has a family-planning policy limiting many to one child per family. Parents who exceed the quota are required to pay a hefty fine. To encourage people to submit to the census, penalties will be reduced for those who register their extra children during the census.
Paternity test requests jumped more than fourfold in October in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, as people hurried to register their extra children in the sixth national census, hoping for a lower penalty, Guangzhou Daily reported yesterday.
Paternity results issued by authorized institutions are required to apply for resident certificates, or hukou, for unregistered children.
Nearly 330 requests were received last month, four times the average number, said a person in charge of the Forensic Examination Center at the Southern Medical University.
Among the 330 cases, nearly 260 were meant for registration, compared to only three to five out of 70 on average in a usual month. The requests started to pick up from September, the report said.
People born after the 1980s made up the largest share of applicants, accounting for as high as 50 percent, data from the center showed.
Another trend is that since 2009, more women have asked for paternity tests to confirm the biological fathers of their children, compared to the past when fathers applied for the test in most cases, the report said.
The thriving business has also caused an upsurge in unauthorized examination institutions that want to exploit the increased demand.
Only institutions with forensic licenses can issue authorized paternity test results, which are needed when children are registered. However, the technology of paternity testing is not complicated. Many biology companies can conduct the tests, but if they are not authorized ones, their results are invalid, said the person in charge of the examination center at Southern Medical University.
Some unauthorized institutions claim to be certified on the Internet and usually charge more money for the test, the report said.
So far, Guangzhou's health authorities have recommended five institutions to its residents.
Pregnant women are not advised to conduct the paternity test too early, as it may harm the fetus.
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