Zhuowen Li

Opinion | China should not let its children be treated as a public nuisance

Public displays of intolerance are symptomatic of a society hostile to children. Given its plummeting birth rate, China must push back against this trend

Reading Time:3 minutes

Why you can trust SCMP

Zhuowen Li

Published: 9:30am, 14 Sep 2024Updated: 10:27am, 14 Sep 2024

In a shocking incident that made headlines recently, a toddler travelling with her grandparents on a flight from Guizhou to Shanghai was locked in a plane toilet by two passengers who claimed they were “disciplining” her. The crying one-year-old girl was trapped inside until she finally calmed down after being threatened repeatedly by two adult strangers.

This incident was captured on video and widely shared on social media, igniting a heated debate on the rising hostility towards children in public spaces. Unfortunately, this is not an isolated event. In recent years, reports of public intolerance towards children, particularly on high-speed railways and planes, have been on the rise.

Some Chinese netizens have gone so far as to suggest banning underage children from planes and trains altogether. Such proposals are not only absurd but also reveal a deeply worrying trend – that Chinese society is becoming increasingly hostile to its youngest members.

While such proposals may not be the majority opinion, they reflect a disturbing fundamental misunderstanding of children and their needs. It is entirely normal for toddlers to struggle in unfamiliar environments such as an enclosed vehicle. They cannot and should not be expected to conform to adult standards of behaviour.

What may seem like disruptive behaviour is often just a child exploring the environment or coping with the discomforts of an unfamiliar setting. It’s important to remember that children are not miniature adults. A society that expects toddlers to behave like adults is not only unreasonable but also inhumane.

The idea that children should be “disciplined” for simply being children speaks to a larger societal problem. This intolerance stems largely from the one-child policy’s legacy. During its 35-year implementation, this controversial policy resulted in as many as 100 million one-child families, according to estimates by researchers.