ROMANIAPro-Natalist policies

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• Economic growth was very important so their political system made long term plans to make sure they could keep this on.

• The government realized the country was approaching a zero population growth which carried alarming implications for future labour supplies for industrialization.

• At this time Romania was communist and was under influence of the soviet union.

BACKGROUND

• Abortion was made illegal• No sex education• No birth control• Taxes• Divorces were really difficult• Marriage policies• Labour reformes• Child rewards• Health care

RESPONSES

1966 abortion was prohibited It was only legal under this circumstances:• Pregnancy threatened the woman's life.• Pregnancy was a result of rape or incest.• The woman was over 45 years old.• The child was likely to have a congenital disease or

deformity.• The woman had already given birth to 4 children

that reminded under her care.• In 1985 this increased to 5 children.

ABORTION

Presence of police in hospitals to make sure illegal abortions were performed.

Penalty:• Women that had illegal abortions could be

prosecuted.• As well with the doctors and hospital that

preformed them.

ABORTION

• Contraceptives were not manufactured in Romania and the government stopped importing them so birth control was really difficult.

• Sex education was practically non existent during the 1980s.

CONTRACEPTIVES AND SEX EDUCATION

• Divorce rates were rising so the government made divorce much more difficult so couples had to stay together.

• In 1967 only 28 divorces were allowed compared to 26 thousand the previous year.

• 1980s Legal age for marriages was lowered to 15 years for women.

MARRIAGES AND DIVORCES

• Monthly gynecological examinations to

HEALTH CARE

• There were two types of taxes:

Against not having children:•Single people or married couples who remained childless over the age of 25 would have to pay from 10 to 20 percent of income taxes.•1980 additional taxes to this group of people.

To help people with children:•Income tax for parents of 3 or more children was decreased by 30 percent.

TAXES

1974 revisions in the labor code granted special allowances to pregnant and nursing mothers:

• Lighter work load• Excluded overtime and hazardous work • Time off to take care of children without loss

of work benefits

LABOUR REFORMS

• Family allowances paid by state were raised. If the family had more kids this allowance will raise.

• Monetary awards to mothers when they had their 3rd child and upwards.

REWARDS

• Number of births rised from 273,687 in 1966 to 527,764 in 1967. This is an increase of 98% percent.

• Legal abortions fell just as dramatically with only 52,000 performed in 1967 as compared to more than 1 million in 1965.

• But on the other hand mother and infant mortality rates rose.

SHORT TERM IMPACT

• After police returned to more normal duties the number of abortions categorized as legal rose dramatically as well with spontaneous abortions.

• Birth rates began to decline again.

• By 1983 the birthrate had fallen to 14.3 per 1000.

• The rate of annual increase in population had dropped to 3.7 per 1000.

• Number of abortions (421,386) again exceeded the number of live births (321,489)

• Gov complained that only 9% of abortions had the necessary medical justification.