Official’s error leaves pregnant woman in a fix
Print Edition
A WOMAN in southern China who received a permit to have a second child was then told, after she became pregnant, that she was not eligible.
Her husband told China National Radio yesterday the couple were facing the possibility of aborting the baby, or having to pay a fine.
The local family planning authority said it would punish the official who made a mistake in issuing the certificate.
The couple from Nayang Village of Wuming County in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region said they applied to have a second child in June and received the permit after government verification.
Under local rules, couples eligible for a second child must wait until they receive a permit.
However, the husband, surnamed Luo, was later told that the document had the wrong date on it and it had to be returned to be corrected.
Then, officials called to say the couple failed to meet the conditions for a second child and the permit was withdrawn.
Zhang Yuying, a village family planning official, told reporters there had been confusion over the conditions, which were amended in 2012. Previously, a couple could have a second child if the husband was living with his wife’s family that had daughters only but no sons.
The amended rule says the wife’s family should have only two daughters and no sons.
But Luo’s wife has more than two sisters, so the couple were not eligible under the amended rule.
“We found the mistake, so we informed the couple,” Zhang said.
Luo said his wife’s health may suffer if she has an abortion and the authority had made no mention of compensation.
“I am extremely unhappy they lied to us at first,” he said. “It is cheating that they said it was the wrong date.”
Zhang said it was the county authority who told them to use the wrong date as an excuse.
Luo said the couple is still negotiating with officials. If both sides can’t reach an agreement, the couple may lodge a lawsuit.
“Because it was their fault, not ours,” Luo said. “The family planning authority should pay all fees and make compensation.”
China said recently that it will ease the decades-old family planning policy that has restricted most urban families to having only one child.
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