Civil Code strengthens adoption law

'De facto orphans'

Another vulnerable group is "de facto orphans", whose parents are inmates, drug addicts or have severe disabilities that prevent them from fulfilling their responsibilities to their children.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs said there were about 500,000 de facto orphans nationwide last year, with many living under the care of aging grandparents or other relatives.

The challenges facing the group attracted national attention in 2015 after a 14-year-old boy in rural Guizhou province led three of his sisters－ages 10, 8 and 5－to commit suicide by drinking pesticide.

Local authorities said the parents had been violent and negligent, spending years working away from home and leaving the children to fend for themselves.

From this year, members of the group are officially classified as orphans, which entitles them to related State benefits－including a monthly allowance ranging from 1,000 to 1,500 yuan ($141 to $211), student grants and government-paid healthcare. They have also been granted access to orphanages.

Kang Yongzhong, who leads a nonprofit organization in Hunan province that has helped more than 1,500 de facto orphans since 2011, said the adoption rate among the group is especially low.

He said many of the children grow up in the care of aging grandparents, who are mostly financially strapped but resistant to the idea of adoption, even if it means better living conditions for the children.

"Seniors in rural areas hold dear the old wisdom that raising kids is essential, as the children can provide for their old age," said Kang, adding that inadequate pension coverage in rural areas is partly to blame.

Because of poverty and low awareness of social security policies, very few rural seniors pay into pension funds when younger.

When they reach retirement age, many become heavily reliant on the State allowance for rural seniors age 60 and older, which is about 800 yuan a year, in addition to money provided by the children when they reach working age.

To boost adoption among de facto orphans, Kang suggested that authorities should allow adopters to voluntarily support such grandparents financially until the children come of age and are able to provide for them.

"This would make poor and aging grandparents more willing to accept adoption and would benefit their grandchildren," he said.