| Abstract [eng] |
Gender Imbalance in Rural China: the Problem of Bare Branches Surplus and its Management The aim of Master thesis is to analyse, how does the state, community, and bare branches manage the intrasocial tensions created by the male surplus in rural China, and does it achieve the desired results? The main goals are: to reveal the problem of gender imbalance from a historical comparative point. Discuss the political and cultural factors that have influenced gender imbalances. To review the problem of infanticide and sex selective abortion, which caused the male surplus. To compare China with other neighboring patrilocal societies. To reveal China's solutions and results in addressing gender imbalances. To give a brief overview of the shadow solutions to the male surplus and the consequences of human trafficking. During the research the latest academic articles were used to reveal the biggest and most pressing problems and solutions for bare branches. The paper also discusses the problem of gender imbalance in a comparative historical method. These methods were applied: an analysis of anthropological research, official Chinese court cases, statistics, laws, political initiatives, stories of abducted women and children. One of the main sources is the controversial Chinese author Jia Pingwa novel Jihua (2016). This paper, using the netnographic method, analyzes the readers reactions to this novel in Chinese online forums. A huge army of guanggun army is dominating countryside in China. Tucker, Hudson and Boer argue that by taking advantage of this bachelors army, the conflict with Taiwan may seem an attractive solution for China. From the Ming Dynasty to the founding of the PRC, the gender ratio varied, but generally exceeded the normal ratio. The infanticide of female infants existed in most parts of ancient China, and due to limited resources, the killing of girls was a means of ensuring the survival of the boys. The patriarchal system of society, the devaluation of women, the huge cost of bride, also contributed to the gender imbalance. Our research also confirmed that, in patrilocal kinship relationships, it is important to continue the lineage, through the male sex for generations, by all possible means. The government has taken some initiatives and campaigns, but the aid is targeted almost exclusively at women as victims, and the problems of many single men are ignored and their needs are not taken into account. There are some similarities in the ways in which China and India address gender imbalances. Campaigns initiated in China and India to improve the gender ratio have yielded only marginal positive results. In India, efforts have been effective in areas with aggressive policies, but there are no official assessments until these days. History shows that for many centuries, child trafficking has been legalized in China. Despite modern China’s criminal law banning the abduction of women or children, human trafficking thrives, the country is identified as a source of human trafficking, and Chinese gangs are potentially the main controllers of the human trafficking business in the world. One of the aggravating circumstances in the case of bride abductions is rural communities, which express sympathy for families who cannot continue family lineage. Due to the lack of information, it is difficult to quantify the scale of the problem of human trafficking, but most researchers agree that actual figures might be different. More detailed and extensive research is needed. Guanggun will seek opportunities to marry in a variety of ways, threatening social stability, the stability of its families and communities, and threatening social order and stability. This has become an extremely serious issue that will need to be addressed by the Chinese government and society. |
