Top searches on China's social media: U.S. balloons; Declining fertility rates
China says U.S. balloons breaches China's airspace at least 10 times last year
The balloon incident has attracted long-lasting attention these days. After the heated discussion on the Chinese balloon reported in the US, China made its first accusation of U.S. illegal balloon flights over Chinese airspace more than 10 times since last year, in response to a question about the U.S. shooting down the Chinese unmanned airship at the regular press conference of China's foreign ministry on Monday.
Another trending topic turns our eyes toward Chinese women's hurdles for staying unmarried and childless. The report released by the Forum of China Population and Development on Saturday showed that almost 10 percent of Chinese women have stayed childless for life. The alarming prevalence of childlessness and delays in marriage double-hit the decreasing fertility rates.
Advance notice: The "Two Sessions", namely the annual meeting of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the country's top advisory body, and the National People’s Congress (NPC), the country's highest legislative branch, will begin on March 4 and 5, respectively. To get more prepared with information for this upcoming critical moment of China's leadership reshuffle, please stay tuned to the forthcoming articles on GRR in the following days.
Monday's top 10 trending searches on Douyin (the Chinese equivalent of TikTok) as of 5:30 p.m. (0930 GMT):
#1 FM: U.S. flew high-altitude balloons illegally more than 10 times over Chinese airspace
美气球十余次非法飞越中国
"Since last year, U.S. high-altitude balloons have flown over Chinese airspace over 10 times without authorization from China. The US needs to reflect on its own behavior and change course rather than attacking others and stoking confrontation," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a regular briefing in Beijing on Monday in response to a question about the US shooting down the Chinese unmanned airship. More details will be introduced in the next section.
#2 Almost one in ten women in China remain childless for life
我国女性终身无孩率接近10%
The news follows the 3rd Forum of China Population and Development where government officials disclosed that almost 10 percent of Chinese women have stayed childless for life. It is another blow to the dwindling birth rates and growing problems of an aging society. Chinese netizens, however, were not worried in the least, acknowledging how children compromise their own quality of life.
#3 Government says no-no to high bridal money
多地倡议抵制高价彩礼
Many cities and prefectures in east China's Jiangxi province, famous for bridal money, have started campaigns to make young women refuse the local custom. Videos that have gone viral show dozens of women, possibly in their 20s and 30s, making vows that they do not ask for cars, houses, or plenty of cash when they get married. The move is aimed at eliminating obstacles to marriages for higher birth rates.
#4 Magician Mahomes shows steely side as Chiefs QB named Super Bowl MVP -- Reuters
酋长队超级碗夺冠
#5 Jimmy Lin's first appearance in public after the car accident
林志颖车祸后首次公开活动
On Sunday (Feb. 12), Jimmy Lin, a Taiwan movie star and singer, participated in public activities for the first time after the car accident, singing his most popular song The Rainy Season at the Age of Seventeen. He seemed to have recovered well with almost no scar on his face and he posted a message later to thank his fans for "being so enthusiastic". On July 22, 2022, Jimmy Lin and his son suffered a serious car accident in Taiwan, for the white Tesla they were in suddenly lost control, crashed on the pier, and caught fire. Asked about whether he has changed his perspective on Tesla, Jimmy Lin responded that he is "still driving a black Tesla without any psychological shadows."
#6 OMG, drama at live streaming channel
张大大直播像在渡劫
Ridiculous and hilarious events have taken place when Zhang Dada, comedian and celebrity, interacted with the audience while live streaming. A man and a woman decided to start a barking competition; a man entreated sobbingly for abusive language; a woman was next to exposing a big celebrity scandal, but then decided not to name the star. Netizens watch the recorded video clips, roaring with laughter and sympathizing with Zhang for what he has to put up with.
#7 Can't stop the catfight at Zhang Dada's channel
张大大直播无效劝架粉丝
A sequel to the previous popular search. Two women had a fierce argument over the two lead actors in The Knockout, a popular show about the Chinese criminal underworld. [See the previous GRR article about how much discussion the show has raised in China] Zhang Dada, supposedly a master of the house, was apparently at a loss after trying in vain to stop the quarrel.
#8 Unveiling the sperm bank advertisements
揭秘多地精子库倡议背后
Several sperm banks in China are offering reimbursements of thousands of yuan for new donors, especially targeting male college students. Netizens are curious as to how one qualifies as a donor, how the sperm will be used, and under what circumstances the sperm will be neutralized. There is also concern about unintended consanguine marriage.
#9 Xu Minghao, a member of a South Korean boy group, suffered a fracture
徐明浩锁骨骨折
Xu Minghao, under the stage name "the Eight", is a Chinese singer and dancer based in South Korea as a member of the boy group Seventeen. The group's company announced on Monday that Xu had a fracture of the left clavicle and had to wear protective devices after the diagnosis. It is quite common for Chinese boys and girls to practice their dancing and singing skills in South Korea and then started out there as a member of a K-pop (Korean popular music) group.
#10 US fighter jet shoots down airborne object over Lake Huron on Sunday -- CNN
五角大楼称又击落一空中物体
#1 FM: U.S. flew high-altitude balloons illegally more than 10 times over Chinese airspace
China says U.S. high-altitude balloons had flown over its airspace without permission more than 10 times since the beginning of 2022, according to Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin on Monday at a regular briefing in Beijing.
Wang also pointed out that the U.S. military vessels and aircraft conduct frequent close-in reconnaissance on China, including 657 sorties last year and 64 sorties in January this year in the South China Sea alone, which seriously undermines China's national security and regional peace and stability.
The US needs to reflect on its own behavior and change course rather than attacking others and stoking confrontation," Wang added, "We reserve the right to take necessary means to deal with relevant incidents."
The balloon incident has provoked widespread discussion these days. China's comments on Monday mark for the first time its accusation of the U.S. sending balloons over its territory since the American military earlier this month shot down what it says was a Chinese spy balloon off the coast of South Carolina when China had previously said its balloon was designed to research the weather and had inadvertently flown off course.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin’s Regular Press Conference on February 13, 2023
Wang Wenbin: We have made it clear time and again that the entry of the Chinese civilian unmanned airship into US airspace was a purely unintended, unexpected and isolated event caused by force majeure. As to the “unidentified objects” you asked about, I do not have anything on that. We do need to point out, however, that the US’s downing of the unmanned airship with advanced missiles is a trigger-happy overreaction. Many in the US have been asking: what good can such costly action possibly bring to the US and its taxpayers?
As a matter of fact, it is the US who is the No.1 surveillance country and has the largest spy network in the world.
#2 & #3 Marriage, Fertility, and China's Second Sex
According to the Forum of China Population and Development held on Feb. 11, nearly one in ten women in China is childless her whole life. The figure is even more worrying considering the pace at which it has grown, because the childlessness rate was only 6.1 percent in 2015. The report released by the forum attributes the appalling prevalence of childlessness to general delays in marriage and birth and the rising popularity of life without marriage and children.
The average age for the first marriage among women, as well as the fertility rate among women born in the 1990s and 2000s, have both reached new lows, posing a significant challenge to the government's efforts to increase birth rates.
The childlessness rate, on the other hand, has been accepted calmly by Chinese netizens, who see it as a natural result of rising living costs, inadequate health policies, and working and family pressures on women. "I'll have eight children if only the house money fell, the working hours were strictly 9-to-5 and we had the weekends for ourselves," said one netizen on Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter.
Others are convinced that marriage and children are not necessary, corresponding with a 2021 study showing that no more than 70 percent of women under 35 agree "life is only complete with children." Several comments on Douyin reflect this change in life philosophy. "One should live for oneself." has garnered 17,000 likes, while "What can children bring for me? That is a question." gets thousands.
Men in China are faced with different hurdles to marriage. One Douyin user, presumably a man, comments under a video about childlessness, " 1. The bridal money is as high as hell. 2. I can't afford to buy a house. 3. (Girls) despise cheap cars. With all of that, I may as well stay single." He is talking about the financial qualifications a man is required of before getting married, which is seen by many as a social menace.
The government in Jiangxi province obviously agrees with the view, in that it carried out a campaign to encourage young women to refuse high bridal money. Women in their 20s and 30s are seen taking vows on an open stage, " I want no cars. I want no houses. I make my own money." They then signed up on a commitment contract that says the same thing.
Bridal money is highly controversial and leads very easily to disputes about gender equality. While some men abhor the custom saying they are oppressed by the financial burden, many women regard bridal money as the price a man has to pay for the bride's service and sacrifice. " If a man does not want to pay the bridal money, he should live with and look after his wife's parents, and let his children have the wife's surname," said one Douyin user. Furthermore, bridal money is seen as an assurance of respect for the bride's married life in some regions. "I didn't ask for bridal money. Then I was divorced, penniless, and deprived of my children."
The Chinese government has committed to improving healthcare and childcare, implementing maternity leave, and eliminating workplace discrimination against women. Goals such as "improving the population development strategy" and "establishing a policy system to boost birth rates" were set by the 20th CPC National Congress last October. It remains to be seen whether these policies are as effective as expected.