FAMILY SUPPORT AND ELDERLY WELL-BEING IN CHINA: AN EVALUATION IN THE CONTEXT OF FAMILY RESPONSIBILITY (FILIAL PIETY) LAW

Year 2021, Volume: 1 Issue: 1, 28 - 37, 17.06.2021

Bora Balun

Abstract

The case of the elderly has turned into a global phenomenon and, for instance, in the United Nations reports, it is stated that one out of every 10 people is 60 years old and over, and in the population projections for 2050, one out of every 5 people will be 60 and over. Because of that, many countries produce alternative social policy methods to enhance the welfare of the elderly population and take measures for the future. One of these practices is Filial Piety Law, which is applied in countries such as Bangladesh, India, and China, where the care and supervision duty of the elderly is based on family responsibility and will be examined in this study. China is an ideal representative of this practice with its stereotyped social policy practices for population size and representation rate of the elderly population in the world population and the elderly.
In this study where literature review was preferred, Filial Piety Law, which has an essential place in the understanding of China social policy and places legal responsibility on families with elderly care, was examined by limiting it to the period up to the present, considering the year 1950 when the Marrige Law came to power as the beginning. Findings from the study show that China, which created a new synthesis between capitalism and socialism, was greatly affected by the rapid demographic change, economic growth, and changing social norms. These developments put pressure on the traditional family-based elderly care system and it is forcing long-standing values between family and the elderly population.

Keywords

Family support, Familiy responsibility (filial piety) law, Social policy, Elderly

ÇİN’DE AİLE DESTEĞİ VE YAŞLI REFAHI: AİLE SORUMLULUĞU (EVLADA DİNDARLIK) YASASI BAĞLAMINDA BİR DEĞERLENDİRME

Abstract

Günümüzde her 10 kişiden biri 60 yaş ve üzerinde bulunmaktadır. Birleşmiş Milletlerin 2050 yılına dair nüfus projeksiyonlarında ise her 5 kişiden birinin 60 yaş ve üzerinde olacağı belirtilmektedir. Bu nedenle özellikle birçok gelişmiş ülke yaşlı nüfusun refah düzeyini geliştirmek ve geleceğe yönelik tedbir almak üzere yeni politika arayışlarına yönelmektedir. Bu uygulamalardan birisi de Bangladeş, Hindistan, Çin gibi ülkelerde uygulanan ve yaşlı bireylerin bakım ve gözetim görevinin aile sorumluluğu üzerine kurgulandığı ve bu çalışmada da incelenecek olan Aile Sorumluluğu (Evlada Dindarlık) Yasasıdır. Gerek nüfus büyüklüğü ve yaşlı nüfus oranı gerekse de yaşlılara yönelik kalıplaşmış sosyal politika uygulamalarıyla Çin bu uygulamanın ideal bir temsilcisidir.
Literatür taramasının tercih edildiği bu çalışmada, Çin sosyal politika anlayışında önemli bir yere sahip ve ailelere yaşlı bakımı konusunda yasal sorumluluk yükleyen Aile Sorumluluğu (Evlada Dindarlık) Yasası incelenmiştir. Çalışmada, Aile Sorumluluğu Yasasının öncü aşaması olan Evlilik Yasasının yürürlüğe girdiği 1950 yılı referans noktası olarak alınmıştır. Elde edilen bulgular, kapitalizm ve sosyalizm arasında yeni bir sentez yaratan Çin’in, hızlı demografik değişim, ekonomik büyüme ve değişen sosyal normlardan fazlasıyla etkilendiğini ve bu gelişmelerin geleneksel aile temelli yaşlı bakım sistemi üzerinde bir baskı oluşturduğunu ifade etmektedir. Bu baskı ise aile ve yaşlı nüfus arasındaki uzun süredir var olan değerleri zorlamaktadır.

Keywords

Aile desteği, Evlada dindarlık yasası, Sosyal politika, Yaşlı

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