China’s population-control disasterBy Yi Fuxian 易富賢More than four decades after China began opening up to the world, the Chinese government’s decisionmaking process remains shrouded in secrecy. In reality, even without any official restrictions, China’s population would have peaked at about 1.6 billion and then gradually declined. In 2007, I published a book in Hong Kong, Big Country With an Empty Nest, challenging the assumptions underlying China’s population-control measures and advocating their immediate end. I further angered the authorities by pointing out that China’s population had been vastly overestimated, and had started declining in 2018. In reflecting on my experiences of challenging China’s population-control policies over the past quarter-century, I find some solace in that my estimates have been vindicated.

Source: Taipei Times August 26, 2023 17:08 UTC