Are women treated equally in China?

China has progressed considerably since its foundation in 1949, particularly in recent years. The inflow of foreign products and services and the introduction of the open-minded Western culture have played an important role in this progress. As a result, Chinese people have paid increasing attention to issues surrounding human equality and gender discrimination, thereby driving China’s path toward a modern and open society. However, has gender discrimination been completely eradicated in China? That is, are women really treated equally in China?

A better understanding of the reality in China requires a review of the country’s history. In the past, China was a solidly patriarchal society, a community in which men made all decisions. This has laid the foundation for the theory positing women as inferior to men. That is, women were relegated to low status in Chinese society.

Male rulers governed China’s many dynasties. During this time, men were allowedto have as many wives as they wanted and own everything their wives possessed once they were married. A woman was not allowed to visit her family except when allowed by her husband. As a result, there was a general belief that girls were raised for other families. Families would often be less exited to have baby girls than boys. Some poor families even abandoned their newborns, simply because they were girls.In addition, girls were more likely to be treated unfairly in their later life. For example, they were not allowed to leave their homes until they reached adulthood. In addition, they were not allowed to attend school and had to wrap their feet to keep them small just to satisfy the taste of men.

However, the 1900s witnessed some changes. With the influence of Western countries as well as several revolutions led by Chinese intellectuals, the old traditions and views slowly began their transformation. In particular, schools were built for girls, and people started thinking about women’s rights. It was not a prosperous time for China, but it was certainly a key turning point for Chinese women.

Today, most people are aware of gender equality, and Chinese women, particularly those in cities, generally report equal treatment. Chinese women generally consider themselves to enjoy the same rights as men by law and perceive few problems. However, there exists something in daily life that actually limits gender equality in Chinese society.

This raises the question of what the missing piece is.

This piece is actually people’s mind. It may be too trivial to be noticed in one’s fast-paced daily life, but it does exist. To what extent does this affect gender equality? Here is an example: If a young generation is a stone and the older generation bearing old views is the wind, then the former is likely to have the same view as the latter instead of having an independent view, just like a stone changes its shape over time through erosion by wind. That is, progress comes about very slowly.

Many people think that boys do better than girls in math and science, particularly in high school. This type of perception can be observed in other segments of society. Many think that men are more capable in terms of important work and better at social communication, perceiving them to make decisions more objectively and without emotions. A popular belief is that men should make money while women stay home to take of the family.

Such perceptions do not reside only in the mind of people. That is, they can reach out and affect people’s lives. Today, about 97.8% of all government officials and more than 70% of all surgeons are males. In addition, most senior executives of large companies are male, while most homemakers are female. These figures indicate the continuing existence of gender inequality in China, and this may be due to remnant views from China’s old traditions.

These views no doubt limit China’s efforts to realize gender equality. However, this cannot be attributed to people because they have not done anything wrong. Chinese society has endured gender discrimination for so long that some of the ideas have seeped deeply into Chinese culture, making such attitudes toward gender inequality natural to many people. In comparison to China, Western societies have a distinct history that has allowed them a very different view. That is, the issue of gender discrimination originates from China’s traditions and history.

Of course, there are many other reasons behind gender discrimination in China. There are some differences between men and women (e.g., physical strength). However, such factors in conjunction with traditional views can limit China’s progress in terms of achieving balanced human development through gender equality. It has taken a long time to arrive at this point, and even more time is needed to achieve a satisfactory level of gender equality.

Despite this difficulty, China’s younger generations have been doing remarkably well. They represent a group emphasizing personal independence, and their ideology and desire for human equality are clear. In particular, they have the courage to pursue their ideas and express their views. In this regard, China is expected to make sustained progress toward true gender equality.

Success is not that far away!

Y. Zhang