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Inventor
Original Poster
#1 Old 1st Jul 2013 at 1:08 PM
Default Law says children 'must visit parents'
Don't get alarmed - only in China.

I am not exactly an admirer of Chinese law system but this one left me wondering: is it a good idea or a bad idea or just a stupid idea? We all know a horror story or two like those Chinese ones. Should a similar law be passed in the countries where we live?
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Mad Poster
#2 Old 1st Jul 2013 at 1:30 PM
In my opinion it is a bad idea. People in China would have to visit their parents, even if neither of them could stand each other.
I just hope that the laws don't catch onto other countries

Make it idiot proof and someone will make a better idiot.
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Mad Poster
#3 Old 1st Jul 2013 at 1:37 PM
The intent of the law is good, namely, don't ignore your parents in their old age. It is a sad thing to see older people who pour their lives into their families be abandoned by them. On the other hand, making it law is a bad idea. There could be many reasons not to want to continue a relationship and people should be free to decide for themselves. It also may not be in the best interests of either party to have forced visits. I think this is another case where the government should not get involved in regulating people's lives.

Addicted to The Sims since 2000.
Theorist
#4 Old 1st Jul 2013 at 8:21 PM
It's a well-intentioned, but absolutely ridiculous to make it a law.

Resident wet blanket.
And all the maladies of the world burst forth from Pandora's cooch
#5 Old 1st Jul 2013 at 8:42 PM
I guess the intent of the law is to make sure that elderly people are reasonably well cared for, and not neglected. Most countries already have laws in place that do that. This particular law, however, is overly broad, and doesn't seem to address things like "how much is 'often' ?". If you don't visit every week, will you be arrested? It is an over-reaction to horror stories in the news.

And how, exactly, can a person care for their elderly parents if they are in jail?
Top Secret Researcher
#6 Old 1st Jul 2013 at 8:52 PM
If there are elders getting beaten by their children for asking for food and being forced to sleep in pig stys, wouldn't they want to keep those people as far away from their kids as possible? That law just sounds like it would encourage abuse.

Also, I'd rather face jail time then be forced to spend time with my mother.
Theorist
#7 Old 2nd Jul 2013 at 5:43 AM
This has the agenda smell of making Chinese citizens behave in accordance to Chinese ideology, specifically respecting your elders. Unfortunately, I imagine this as yet another possible long arm to find a fault with an individual. Boss, that guy Gubo seems like an upstanding citizen, there's no grounds for us to bring him in. Check the investigator's report on parent visitation. What? Bingo, we can get him for parental neglect.
Scholar
#8 Old 2nd Jul 2013 at 2:37 PM
China seems like such a wonderful place to visit with a really rich history, but I don't think I'd ever be able to live there. Filtering the internet, filtering free speech, being forced to visit family... I love my mom, I'd gladly visit her all the time, but I don't need someone telling me to do so, and punishing me for not doing so. What if I get injured and can't go travel to see her? What if I'm out of the country? What if we have a fight and it takes a little bit for the both of us to cool off? Well intentioned, but very intrusive. It makes me sad to see such a beautiful place governed the way that it is.

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Theorist
#9 Old 2nd Jul 2013 at 2:46 PM
China is not known for lax sentencing either. Failed to visit your parents? Death penalty for you!

Resident wet blanket.
Test Subject
#10 Old 2nd Jul 2013 at 3:01 PM
Quote: Originally posted by GnatGoSplat
China is not known for lax sentencing either. Failed to visit your parents? Death penalty for you!
Whoa! They kill you for not visiting your parents?! That is a bit too much... Way too much!
Top Secret Researcher
#11 Old 2nd Jul 2013 at 3:02 PM
Yes it's kind of our obligation to visit our parents once in a while...but for it to be a law? No need
Theorist
#12 Old 2nd Jul 2013 at 5:06 PM
Quote: Originally posted by BlueSonic
Whoa! They kill you for not visiting your parents?! That is a bit too much... Way too much!


Hahah, nah, I was just kidding. Well, actually I don't know, anything is possible. China is well-known for harsh penalties for crimes and has faced lots of criticism because they give the death penalty for many non-violent crimes. Found a full list of capital offenses here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capita...public_of_China

Pretty big contrast from the US. In the US, owning a gun is a right. In China, it could get you death by firing squad.

In 2011, China removed 13 crimes from the death penalty list.

"The 13 crimes were economic-related non-violent offences, including smuggling cultural relics, gold, silver, and other precious metals and rare animals and their products out of the country; carrying out fraudulent activities with financial bills; carrying out fraudulent activities with letters of credit; the false issuance of exclusive value-added tax invoices to defraud export tax refunds or to offset taxes; the forging or selling of forged exclusive value-added tax invoices; the teaching of crime-committing methods; and robbing ancient cultural ruins."

Moral of the story - when in China, better be on your best behavior!

Resident wet blanket.
Instructor
#13 Old 2nd Jul 2013 at 9:08 PM
Quote: Originally posted by GnatGoSplat
It's a well-intentioned, but absolutely ridiculous to make it a law.


^


How will this even be enforced?
Will they leave it up to the parents to report their own children to the law for not visiting them? That might work if the parent is strict but in many cases, the parent would rather be lonely than get their kids in trouble.
Or will all children and/or parents be required to sign papers saying they visited each other, and then send them to a court or similar place? Think of all of the people in China and how much money and time it would take to sort through all of those signatures.

It sounds like a lot of hassle and unnecessary stress either way.

What if someone moves to another country but their parents stay in China? Are they expected to return to China to visit? Or what if your parents are out of the country? Will the child be expected to go to another country to visit them? Or will they not have to follow the law, if one of them is out of the country?
What if the child is in jail, or the parent(s) is in jail? Is it up to the parent to visit the child if the child is in jail?
What if the child was taken from the parents at a young age because of abuse, and the child is now living in foster care?

I'm sure they mean well by making this a law, but frankly, I think it's (for lack of a nicer word) stupid to force someone to visit their parents.
You shouldn't have to be told to visit them, if you're close to them then you'll visit them. If you and your parents aren't close or are even aggressive towards each other, and are perfectly happy NOT being around each other, why force it?


This sounds like a law that's going to be almost impossible to enforce, imo.
Scholar
#14 Old 2nd Jul 2013 at 9:52 PM


There have been worse things...


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Instructor
#15 Old 3rd Jul 2013 at 6:26 AM
I guess it those that live in rural parts of China, that have their parents live with them? I thought part of the reason boys are so prized there is due to that there's the one child policy. And that the boy's parents live with him and his family in their elder years. I guess screw the female's family, if there's only one child, and they had the courage to keep her.

Anyways, I guess the intention is nice, but as some have already pointed out, what if they don't get along with their parents or they can't afford to take time off of work to go and see them, if their parents are far away? How often? I doubt the government will give a parent visitor benefit to their citizens.

The fact is whether it's China or somewhere else, like Canada, where we tend to put elderly parents in nursing homes. Partly because they need more help than an adult child can give and also because I think there is some form of less respect for the elderly these days. Again, a parent/child relationship will be different for everyone. But, many of those that are in nursing homes, whom have children that don't visit, are often very lonely. Still, a law is a bit severe to create in any country.

And also it sounds funny, but what if a Chinese person refused or by circumstances could not visit their parents, what is the penalty for that? As some other poster pointed death! It sounds funny and severe, but seriously is that a possible punishment? Perhaps severe cash penalties or jail time would be held over the citizens. However, that could prolong not visiting their parents.

And again, what happens to the adult female parent's, whom had no son. Where do they go?? That's a separate question, I know. But, it just made me wonder?
Alchemist
#16 Old 13th Jul 2013 at 5:10 PM
i pretty much agree with those saying that the law has good intentions but is ultimately misguided. in my experience, guilt works better. :D

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Mad Poster
#17 Old 21st Jul 2013 at 4:42 AM
Problem: There maybe conflicts between parents and their kids so its sometimes better if they get some space from each other (not for ever though) in order to avoid spilling oil into the fire. Space can fix the problem. There's a saying about this that I can't remember. Hearts grow... something?

I think it should be more of a recommendation and advice rather than a law. They could set out one of those groups or org's who advice people to visit their parents, blah blah blah...

My question here is: How is the government going to find out that parents aren't getting visited by their kids? Are they going to set out groups of personnel to check on the elderly?
Top Secret Researcher
#18 Old 21st Jul 2013 at 12:29 PM
It should be up to the persons to decide on whether or not they should visit there parents not the government.

"I know, and it breaks my heart to do it, but we must remain vigilant. If you cannot tell me another way, do not brand me a tyrant!" - knight commander Meredith (dragon age 2)

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Field Researcher
#19 Old 28th Jul 2013 at 11:23 PM
A few days late, but I have to weigh in on this. I am not Chinese and I don't live in China, but I have friends who are and do. This is what they told me:

In some parts of rural China, a daughter is traditionally like property. She is transfered to the husbands family when she marries. Her connection to her birth family is considered severed. It doesn't matter if she is the only child, it doesn't matter if she is homesick, or if her parents need her. If her new family says no, she has no right to "abandon" her duties to her husbands family to even go see them. All of this is tradition, not law, but some parts of China are very traditional.

Except now there is this law. The law says that she has obligations to her birth family. The connection is not broken, she is still a daughter to her parents. Her new family HAS to let her see them.

Of course this law sounds strange to me, a Swedish woman, born and bred. Of course the primary reason for this law is to provide free care for elders. My friends from Hubei are still really happy that they have been given some new rights.

Now we just have to see if and how this will be implemented.
Scholar
#20 Old 6th Aug 2013 at 3:41 PM
In law cases, people aren't actually that interested in understanding the reasoning behind a law when people can have a good laugh.

Doubly so in foreign news.

"We're on sob day two of Operation Weeping-Bald-Eagle-Liberty-Never-Forget-Freedom-Watch sniff no word yet sob on our missing patriot Glenn Beck sob as alleged-President Hussein Obama shows his explicit support sniff for his fellow communists by ruling out the nuclear option."
Site Helper
#21 Old 6th Aug 2013 at 5:21 PM
So, instead of letting women be people instead of slaves, just force them to become slaves to two different families. Great thinking!
Scholar
#22 Old 6th Aug 2013 at 6:14 PM
Also, does the parent even want their children visiting them? My dad moved to California a few years ago and I don't even get birthday and Christmas cards anymore. Or any attempt to contact me at all.
Mad Poster
#23 Old 6th Aug 2013 at 6:19 PM
Is it forcing slavery for the women or protecting their rights to stay in contact with their own parents? I have the image in my mind of a Chinese family I knew here; every day the father followed the daughter as she walked to school. This was their only child. I would be heartbroken if I had to give my child up to another family. Maybe the law isn't well-written, but the intention was good. That could be said of many laws everywhere.


As an aside, C. U., so sorry to hear that.

Addicted to The Sims since 2000.
Site Helper
#24 Old 6th Aug 2013 at 7:20 PM
It depends on the individual. Some people are abused by their family; being forced to spend time with them is torture and may be dangerous. Other people have good relationships with their family and they want to see them.
Mad Poster
#25 Old 6th Aug 2013 at 7:40 PM
True, which is why it's a poorly written law. Maybe a better law would be that no family or employer may obstruct visitation of relatives.

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