Shenzhen vetoes second-child proposal

The Shenzhen People's Congress Standing Committee vetoed a proposal to loosen the second-child policy, the Shenzhen Economic Daily reported on Wednesday.

According to the report, the draft of Shenzhen's regulation on family planning was submitted to the committee for a second review on Tuesday. The draft didn't include a proposal by some committee members to loosen restrictions on a second child. In addition, the draft states that Shenzhen residents who give birth to a second baby outside the mainland will be punished for violating the country's family planning rules.

The draft also says that the abuse of fertility drugs in an attempt to have twin babies will be banned.

The report cited Zhou Rongsheng, deputy head of the committee for legislative affairs of the Shenzhen People's Congress Standing Committee, as saying that the number of mainland women who gave birth in Hong Kong increased from 709 in 2000 to 29,766 in 2009. Many residents believe those who deliver a second baby overseas break the family planning policy and are not adhering to society's fairness rules.

Current family planning policies have specific requirements for couples wishing to have a second child. Both members of a Han couple should be a single child themselves or meet special conditions. Couples of most other ethnic groups can usually have two or, in some cases, more children.