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A sexual revolution silently going on in China
By Esther Zhao
June 3, 2005
Li Yinhe, China's first female sociologist on sex issues, was born in Beijing
in 1952. She is currently the researcher and mentor of doctorates with the
Institute of Sociology at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
She has a PhD degree in Sociology from Pittsburg University in the United
States and a post-PhD degree in Sociology from Beijing University. She was once
listed as one of China's 50 Most Influential People by Asian Weekly.
Summarizing her research in the past decade, Li says that a sexual revolution
is silently going on in China.
Exploring Chinese People's Most Private Moments
Sexual issues are considered by Chinese to be the most private topics. During
Li Yinhe's 10 years of study about the sex life of Chinese people, such as her
survey on women's initiatives in having sex and homosexuality, she ran into a
great deal of misunderstanding, which sometimes put her in awkward situation.
"The majority of Chinese believe sex is a negative thing that can't be talked
about in public," says Li. She hopes her work might help Chinese live a healthy
sexual life.
"I recently got a letter from a father in South China, who complained that his
family was on the verge of collapse after he and his wife found their young son
to be a gay man, and such information greatly worried me," she recalled.
"One doesn't necessarily show his or her affection to only one person, or to
the same sex. Homosexuality should be tolerated and accepted by society
provided that it doesn't harm others, as it's not as unhealthy as some believe
it to be," Li asserts.
Are Chinese Content with Their Sexual Life?
"Generally speaking, Chinese people's marital life is relatively harmonious."
Li found in one of her recent survey that 50 percent of Chinese couples were
content with their spouses.
However, there is a seemingly contradictory result from a survey recently
conducted by Renmin University of China that among the interviewed 3,824
married or cohabiting Chinese, more than 25 percent of them have sex less than
once a month and there are 6.2 percent who have had no sex in the past year.
What's Li's comment on these seemingly contradictory data? She analyzed that
the second survey didn't mean that Chinese are sexually incapable.
Two factors are attributed to such phenomena—the increasing pressure and stress
in daily life and the traditional Chinese viewpoint which tells people to be
abstinent so as to keep good health (traditional Chinese medicine holds that
too much sex is unhealthy).
Li felt strongly that a sexual revolution was silently going on in China during
her years of study. It's true that sex issues such as one night stands,
extramarital affairs, prostitution, cohabitation, contraception and abortion
have already become part of Chinese people's life.
Li has been shocked at how rapidly Chinese people's sexual attitudes are
changing. According to her study in Beijing, the percentage of Chinese people
having premarital sex was 15.5 percent in 1989, which increased to 60-70
percent in 2004. According to Li, there are four types of sexual relationships
in China:
- Marital sexual relationships with child-bearing as the main intent
- Marital sex relationships which don't prioritize child-bearing but place more
importance on gratifying sexual experiences
- Heterosexual relationships outside of marriage
- Homosexual sex.
Extramarital Sex Dishonors Marital Commitment
In today's China, extramarital sex has become a severe problem, endangering the
harmony of many families. Li believes that extramarital sex dishonors the
commitment between the spouses and should be condemned, but it is permissible
if the couple has a mutual agreement about extramarital encounters. Li offers
two methods to solve the problem—divorce, or the couple each has a sexual
partner other than his or her spouse so as to maintain the balance.
One Night Stands Are a Personal Choice
One night stands are but a personal choice and it shouldn't be morally
reprimanded if both participants are unmarried. Though, Li says that this kind
of sex is full of risk, as having one more sexual partner means an increased
risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease. So people need to have safe
sex.
Male Homosexuals in China
Li's research indicates that the biggest difference between Chinese male
homosexuals and those in Western countries is that the former will eventually
choose to enter marriage with a woman. This may somehow baffle Westerners. But
for a native Chinese, this is quite understandable, because in China men are
unavoidably under pressure to get married, not only to continue the family, but
also, these are the overwhelming behavioral norms established by traditional
Chinese culture. So most male homosexuals find ways to conceal their sexual
preference or take advantage of their wives' minimal demand for sex. And if
their "secret" is disclosed, some of the wives react in a mild way, for the
wives are more jealous of their husbands' love affairs with a woman. The reason
behind this phenomenon is that many Chinese heterosexuals remain ignorant of
homosexuality, and that Chinese aren't confined by religious doctrines and are
more motivated by the cultural importance of continuing the family.
Prostitution Concerns Morality
"It would be more reasonable to issue license to Chinese prostitutes and
administer regular physical examinations to them. This will safeguard women's
rights and be conducive to the social problems related to prostitution. I
believe that day will come. I don't mean to legalize this special trade, but I
opt not to view it as a crime. We need to deal with it as a moral issue, or a
business based on free will, whether there is money paid or not. We should
reserve the right to reprimand it from the prospective of morality.
"It's impossible to eliminate the problem by criminalizing it, for that will
drive it underground and create a chain of social problems such as gang
involvement and police corruption. We should find a solution to it, instead of
punishing prostitutes."
Li points out that legislation on sex issues in different nations should stay
conform to the different cultures. As for China, legal reform should emphasize
moral reprimand as well as preventing sexually transmitted diseases.
Li's appeal on this issue has been publicized at an international conference
and was received with much concern.
Legislation on Sexual Harassment to Protect Women in Workplace
"The concept of sexual harassment was originally put forward during the Western
feminist movement, and it mainly refers to a superior using his or her
workplace seniority to harass subordinates, who have to bear the mistreatment
for fear of losing their jobs or chances of being promoted. China has taken
legal measures to protect women from sexual harassment. The All-China Women's
Federation has completed the draft of the Amendment on the Law on the
Protection of the Rights and Interests of Women, which has been sent to the
State Council. This amendment explicitly bans sexual harassment to women."
"The victims of sexual harassment are not always women, and men sometimes
suffer from the same problem." Nevertheless, Li says that the ratio of women as
victims to that of men as victims is 9 to 1.
China is undoubtedly going through a sexual revolution. Li says
that although Chinese haven't advanced "sexual freedom" as a slogan for sexual
emancipation, they have demonstrated this behavior in practice. She said in
respect to sexual practices, that Chinese would "catch up" with Western
countries in no more than 20 years.
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