when the communist regime plays intermediary to facilitate marriages and encourage birth rates

While China is facing a worrying decline in the birth rate and the Chinese are increasingly hesitant to start a family, the regime is particularly active in encouraging young people to find their future partner. Report from a singles meeting organized by the Communist Youth League.

Decline in the number of births, aging of the population, number of marriages halved, China is facing an emergency: reviving the family and the birth rate. To do this, the authorities go so far as to organize meetings for singles. A kind of speed dating the Chinese way, which Franceinfo attended in Zhejiang province, in southern China. A meeting day for 36 singles, organized by the Communist Youth League.

The setting is rural, with music, the event takes place on the banks of a river in the middle of wheat fields and rice fields, on the outskirts of the city of Shaoxing with its five million inhabitants. The Communist Youth League set up a large tent here to accommodate the singles group. Two of them have known each other for barely an hour, but when you look at them posing for a souvenir photo, you get the impression that they are almost already a couple. She is 27 years old and works in taxes, he works in the private sector.

“What a coincidence ! We drew the card with the letter E to form our couple. I think my partner is simply great, she is beautiful, she has class, she has a good job at the tax office, and she is very lively and cheerful. I give him 99 out of 100, just hoping he’s not an overly proud person. We have already arranged to meet up to play board games on the weekend or after work.” says the young man. She, glued to this bachelor, completes: “My partner is very gentlemen and lively, we get along well. Everything is possible with him.”

Singles participate in activities: umbrella painting, shrimp fishing and curling. Everything is done during this day to allow young people to get to know each other and, above all, to get as close as possible. All this is completely assumed by Yu Chengang, vice-president of the local Communist Youth League.

“On the day of the event, we Let’s ask each man to prepare a bouquet with his favorite flowers which he places on one of the seats of the bus. Then the girls get on board and they choose their favorite flowers. And that’s how the couple is formed.”

Yu Chengang, vice president of the local Communist Youth League.

at franceinfo

If the authorities invest so much in this type of event, it is because it is urgent. It is quite rare to see public authorities intervene in romantic encounters in this way, but reviving the family and the birth rate has become a priority political objective in China because the entire Chinese economy depends on it. And particularly here, in Shaoxing explains Xu Jia, the representative of the neighborhood committee.

“Shangyu District is one of the main areas in China where umbrellas and camping equipment are produced. There are more than 1,500 companies and therefore the demand for talent is very high, which is why our office organizes this type of event. We hope that young people will find a good partner and settle in our city to live and work as a couple. This is really the primary objective of our activity.”

And it works. Couples begin to form and isolate themselves in a corner of the garden. The activities are organized so that you can change partners discreetly if things don’t work out. The members of the Communist Youth League observe everyone’s comings and goings and if necessary, we do not hesitate to force fate a little, recognizes Ci Ren Gaji, one of the organizers. “If some couples are too shy, the workers on site signal them to come closer so that the photos are better, we break the ice for them.”

“We see that for some couples, the flame of love is already lit. For others, it’s slower. They need to be pushed a little, so we give them a little helping hand.”

Ci Ren Gaji, one of the organizers

at franceinfo

“Didn’t you notice earlier? There is a man over there who has already started carrying his partner’s handbag on the outing in the village. It’s a sign that they get along well that they feel good together”, she notes.

Convincing young Chinese to form a couple is not an easy task in a country where the number of marriages has almost been halved since 2013. But this type of meeting seems to appeal, more in any case than traditional meetings. arranged by parents and family explains Jinping, a 30-year-old librarian. “The partners that our parents introduce to us, we only see them once, and it is therefore difficult to know the person well. Here, this activity is more fun because everyone participates and interacts to get to know each other better. The boy I met has very white skin and is very civilized. We talked happily on the bus, and we decided to stay partners for that day and then get to know each other better.”

In Shaoxing, this kind of activity is organized once a month. Of the 36 singles who registered that day, the organizers estimate that they have identified four to five couples likely to lead to marriage. Very small victories on the scale of China, but which the communist regime considers essential to be able to stop the inexorable aging of the population.