| China limits births with 336m abortions | Chinese doctors have performed more than 530m abortions and sterilisations since the government began a family planning policy 40 years ago, according to official data from the health ministry.
The figure is an indication of the impact of China's one-child policy amid growing debate about whether a relaxation is needed to avoid causing damage to economic growth and social stability.
China introduced a policy in 1971 to limit the size of the population, encouraging couples to have fewer children, and it launched its controversial one-child rule at the end of the decade.
Since 1971, doctors have performed 336m abortions, and 196m sterilisation operations on both men and women, the data reveal. They have also inserted 403m intrauterine devices, a normal birth control procedure in the west but one which local officials often pressure women to choose in China.
http://link.ft.com/r/IOCBMM/7ZD37W/NSVWP8/XHFE8G/7ZJ89D/GX/h?a1=2013&a2=3&a3=15
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