Parents join search for the other half
Source: Agencies |
February 15, 2011, Tuesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
FINDING one's better half can be a tricky business in China, with hectic work schedules, nagging parents and a gender imbalance conspiring to make selecting a partner a nightmare for single men.
According to the recent "2010 China Marriage and Relationship Survey Report," 180 million single people are looking for love.
Eager singles swamped matchmaking events held in Beijing during the Chinese New Year holidays, with an estimated 50,000 people attending a week-long event in the capital's Ditan Park, according to organiser Jiayuan.com, a matchmaking website with more than 40 million registered members.
But it was revealed that more than 70 percent of those taking part were anxious parents hoping to fix up children too busy or too shy to meet the opposite sex.
"My son is very busy with work - not just busy, but extremely busy. He has to work overtime a lot and doesn't have opportunities to meet girls," said the mother of one 26-year-old.
"I don't know if he is worried, but I am quite worried. That's why when I saw the event, I rushed straight in."
The 30-year-old one-child policy has exacerbated China's gender imbalance, with latest figures showing that 119 boys are born for every 100 girls.
As a result, more than 24 million bachelors could find themselves without spouses by 2020, according to a report from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, which attributed the imbalance to abortions as a result of traditional preferences for male children.
According to the recent "2010 China Marriage and Relationship Survey Report," 180 million single people are looking for love.
Eager singles swamped matchmaking events held in Beijing during the Chinese New Year holidays, with an estimated 50,000 people attending a week-long event in the capital's Ditan Park, according to organiser Jiayuan.com, a matchmaking website with more than 40 million registered members.
But it was revealed that more than 70 percent of those taking part were anxious parents hoping to fix up children too busy or too shy to meet the opposite sex.
"My son is very busy with work - not just busy, but extremely busy. He has to work overtime a lot and doesn't have opportunities to meet girls," said the mother of one 26-year-old.
"I don't know if he is worried, but I am quite worried. That's why when I saw the event, I rushed straight in."
The 30-year-old one-child policy has exacerbated China's gender imbalance, with latest figures showing that 119 boys are born for every 100 girls.
As a result, more than 24 million bachelors could find themselves without spouses by 2020, according to a report from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, which attributed the imbalance to abortions as a result of traditional preferences for male children.
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