12 July 2011

Oxford & Cambridge Essay Writing Competition's winning essays- 2nd runner up

Nur Amalina Binti Khairul Anuar (SMK (P) Methodist Klang)

The ‘One child per family’ policy has been making waves worldwide ever since it
was first implemented in china years ago. Heated debates were held in all four corners of the world, discussing the pros and cons of the aforementioned policy. Some agreed, some disagreed and some just agreed to disagree. This particular topic is still relevant even though a substantial period of time has passed. So, the big question is: Should parents have only one child?

There is no doubt that it is in man’s nature to want to reproduce and gain offspring. It is simply in our genetic makeup, a trait that has not been altered even countless years of evolution. Ergo, this all comes down to a simple matter of preference. Some parents might only want to remain childless. Others may want busloads of children while others parents might only want one child. A majority of the nations on the earth place emphasis on the freedom of rights of its citizens. Whether it be freedom of speech or the liberty to practise any religion of choice, the rights of a country’s people is one of the most pivotal, if not the most crucial, building block of a nation. Do these rights, these liberties, not encompass the choice of the number of offspring that one wants? To go against these rules would be hypocritical for a nation as these rights are written in black and white in the very constitutions that are akin to the core of a nation’s framework.

If there was to be a golden rule about one child to every set of parents, it would certainly have a detrimental effect for the married couple. However, what of the effects to the child itself? The bonds of siblings are some of the strongest ties in existence. An only child might very well have a lack of companionship. Some might argue that peers can offer the same camaraderie. After all, the ubiquitous sayings of ‘my sister from another mister’ or even, ‘my brother from another mother’ would probably not have originated, no? However, it should be noted that even if something is similar to another object, it is still not necessarily the exact one and the same. As the adage goes, blood is thicker than water. Just by being related by blood, a relationship can hold a much deeper meaning.

When discussing this particular delicate (and controversial) subject, there is no doubt that the matter of twins and the like has to be brought up. If perchance a law about parents only having only one child were to be legislated and passes in every country on the face of the earth, what will become of twins, triplets, quadruplets, etcetera, etcetera? Does this mean that the other children will have an intake of air? Does this rule translate to the killings of children that have not even had an opportunity to pry their eyes open and take a glimpse of this world? Furthermore, if this were the case, how would the process of choosing which getting rid of the others. Besides which, who is to say that the parents (or policy makers) can play god and have the final word on the birth of children?

On a national scale, the nation of having a single child to every set of parents ratio will affect countries. The population will decrease, leaving nations with insufficient manpower. This in turn will cause economies to fail, leaving numerous nations in an even worse recession than there is now and leaves the world’s population poverty-stricken. Loss of productivity will be a constant variable, affecting he strength and dominance as well as the competitiveness of a country on the global stage. The utter lack of sufficient manpower will leave a country at it’s knees, a sitting duck to possible threats on both a domestic and international scale. Wars might very well rage and the homicides of people might be rampant if certain Machiavellian people were to take advantage of opportune moments.

Should parents have only one child? I for one, disagree. Such measures will certainly affect individuals, families, communities, nations and even the world in more ways than one. Future generations will very well face more problems if such rules were to be abided. For every action there is an equal reaction, or in other words, doing so will certainly cause a butterfly effect. Therefore, it is pivotal that today’s people make suitable decisions to ensure the wellbeing of humanity.

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