A recent family planning and reproductive health symposium in
Beijing focused on what many participants viewed as the necessity
for men to become more involved in taking responsibility with women
in contraceptive issues and in the fight against sexually
transmitted diseases.
Men's role in family planning and reproduction health has become a
global-concern thanks to the spread of AIDS, and their
participation goes far beyond their taking on responsibilities in
relation to ordinary contraception and birth control. But in China,
policy makers have always targeted women as the mainstay of family
planning policy, ignoring men. This has weakened men's awareness of
their responsibilities.
Experts at the symposium emphasized the importance of setting up a
new reproductive health culture that includes more involvement from
men as well as including different perspectives from sociology,
ethics, medicine, physiology and psychology. Family experts are
convinced that reproductive health is a matter for both men and
women: For both bio-medical and social reasons, men play a key role
in reproductive activities, and their increased awareness should
help improve the gender equality, promote health, ease women's
burdens, and maintain the stability of the family.
The concept of "men's involvement in reproductive health" was first
put forward at the United Nations International
Conference on Population and Development held in Cairo in 1994
and in following years became a global focus. The Final Program of
Action adopted at the 1994 meeting presented the following
statement on "male responsibilities and participation:"
"Special efforts should be made to emphasize men's shared
responsibility and promote their active involvement in responsible
parenthood, sexual and reproductive behavior, including family
planning; prenatal, maternal and child health; prevention of
sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV; prevention of
unwanted and high-risk pregnancies; shared control and contribution
to family income, children's education, health and nutrition; and
recognition and promotion of the equal value of children of both
sexes. Male responsibilities in family life must be included in the
education of children from the earliest ages. Special emphasis
should be placed on the prevention of violence against women and
children."
This statement of action was reinforced at the Fourth World
Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995: "The sharing of
responsibilities related to reproductive and sexual behaviors by
both men and women is essential to improve women's health."
Hu
Hongdao, director of the International Cooperation Department of
State Family Planning Commission of China said that men's
participation not only involved methods of contraception but also
many other social dimensions. It contains three aspects: family
planning, reproductive health and family development.
Contraception and birth control are the main content of the family
planning program, and for many complicated reasons, the
responsibility for contraception and birth control for years mainly
has been undertaken by women.
In
2000, a survey by the State Family Planning Commission showed that
over 85 percent of men and women prefer female contraceptive and
birth control means. In fact, 87 percent comprehensive of birth
control measures are undertaken by women while 13 percent are
undertaken by men through condoms or other means.
Liu Xiaozhang, a professor in the Sichuan Institute of Reproductive
Health, said that Chinese experts and researchers have made great
progress in male birth control measures and that China has been a
leader in this field. Male birth control has these advantages: It
is simple, safe, cheap and with fewer potential harmful
side-effects.
However, Professor Liu said, male measures have not been publicized
widely. As a nation, only 6.5 percent of Chinese people on average
use male contraception means for birth control. The percentage is
higher in Sichuan Province and lowest -- at 0.01 percent -- in
Jilin Province.
"If male contraceptive measures are better, then it is unfair to
let women bear the burden of birth control," Professor Liu said.
"We should make every effort to create an acceptable environment
for man's involvement among society, communities, families and
individuals."
The ruthless spread of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases
has left some 40 millions of population infected by HIV in the
world. Some 600,000 people are infected in China.
According to figures provided by the United Nations Fund for
Population Activities, about 175 million women get pregnant every
year. And 75 million of those pregnancies are unwanted. These women
usually choose induced abortion, leading to reproductive health
damage.
It
is universally acknowledged that men's sexual behavior has great
influences on women's reproductive health. The problem now is that
men lack awareness and responsibility. Men play a key role in
behavioral role based on their biological make-up. Research
indicates that changing unhealthy male sexual behavior may help
stop the spread of AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases. The
social roles played by men can decide their lead function in
contraception and birth control. So, men should take more
responsibilities on reproductive health care.
Participants in the family planning and reproductive health
symposium in Beijing also emphasized the involvement of
adolescents. Sexually transmitted diseases are mainly concentrated
in people between the ages of 15 and 24. If anyone infected with a
sexually transmitted disease goes without medical treatment, he
will be ten times more likely to contact HIV. Half of the 5.9
million newly HIF-infected people are under 24 years old. According
to a figure released by Family Planning Commission of Nanjing [the
capital of Jiangsu Province], half of the women there who had
abortions were unmarried. So it is also urgent to help adolescents
to become aware of reproductive health.
Professor Liu urged improvement of male reproductive health
services, including the establishment male outpatient and hot-line
services. Preventative measures should also be implemented with
regular checkups for diagnosis of infections caused by
sexually-transmitted diseases.
In
addition, a national campaign to advocate condom is expected. Ru
Xiaomie, of the International Cooperation Department of the State
Family Planning Commission, said the double functions of
condom-contraception and prevention measures related to sexual
disease is more and more stressed in China. About 160 million
condoms are distributed free of charge by the state. More measures
have been taken to improve the quality, marketing and application
of condoms. She also said that the popularizing condoms is
imperative with an increase of extramarital sexual activity and a
rampant expansion of sexually transmitted diseases.
According to World Health Organization, each year about 545,000
women die from problems related to pregnancy, childbearing and
unsafe abortions. WHO believes most of these deaths could be avoid.
In addition, sexual violence has increased widely in the world.
According to a survey of 35 countries by the World Bank, 25-50
percent of women had suffered from violence related to sex.
It
is universally accepted that men's decision and actions can make a
great difference between illness and health, life and death. Men
should be encouraged to care and understand women, stop domestic
violence and cultivate their families together with women.
Zhao Baige, director of the International Cooperation Department of
State Family Planning Commission, said:
"The only way to call upon the awareness of men is let them know
their important role in a family and society -- as husband, lover,
father and friend. Men's ideas, knowledge, attitudes and actions
affect the quality of the family."
Zhao Baige also said the State Family Planning Commission is
carrying on some domestic and international activities to publicize
men's awareness including a campaign to educate the public on new
concepts of marriage and family planning.
Supported by the Ford Foundation, Turner Fund and PATH [Program for
Appropriate Technology in Health], the State Family Planning
Commission located sample targets for research and analysis in
Jilin, Shandong and Jiangsu provinces where programs were carried
out with training, lectures, publicity and technical services --
playing a vanguard role and proving that men's involvement is
realistic. Figures from the three targeted areas showed that
condoms are better accepted and used when condom information is
available. Incidents of induced abortion were greatly reduced.
People learned more about sexual transmitted diseases and their
prevention.
Director Zhao also said that a national family planning and
reproductive health service network has been set up over the past
30 years, which will provide a solid foundation for advocating
men's involvement, disseminating information and offering services
for men. The State Family Planning Commission is trying to promote
domestic programs and international cooperation based on existing
resources.
"A
single spark can start a prairie fire," Zhao said. According to
her, in addition to the aforementioned national campaign, many
international cooperation projects are under way, including a
reproductive health project sponsored by the UN Population Fund in
32 counties, a high-quality service project that will cover 821
counties, an adolescent reproductive health project that has just
been launched and will target a population of 80 million, and an
AIDS project that targets 6 million people. She believes all these
efforts surely will promote men's involvement in reproductive
health throughout the country.
(by Hui Ting, china.org.cn staff reporter, translated by Li
Liangdu, March 28, 2002)