Beijing plans high fines for celebrities who break "one child" rule

[url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-01/21/content_7463280.htm]Beijing plans high fines for celebrities who break "one child" rule[/url]

Quote:BEIJING, Jan. 21 (Xinhua) -- Beijing will impose fines on celebrities who violate the one-child rule that will be much higher than for common citizens, a senior family planning official said on Sunday.

"Celebrities and wealthy people would be more heavily fined forgiving birth to more than one child. The commission is still deliberating on the amount of the penalty," Deng Xingzhou, head of the Beijing Municipal Commission on Family Planning, told a meeting of the municipal political advisory body.

In recent years, more celebrities such as film stars and sports stars have faced media criticism over the size of their families.

Media reports said that Hao Haidong, a football star, was fined 50,000 yuan (about 6,850 U.S. dollars) for having a second child. His annual salary is 5 million yuan, one of the highest for a football player in China.

Couples can potentially be fined up to 10 times the local per capita income, although actual fines are often lower. In Beijing, for example, the per capita annual income for urban residents was 21,989 yuan in 2007. Sources said that the fine in Beijing now is around 100,000 yuan.

More [url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-01/21/content_7463280.htm]here[/url]

From the guardian, a list of a few celebs under scrutiny:

[url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,,2244594,00.html]Famous babies[/url]

Quote:· Footballer Hao Haidong was reportedly fined 50,000 yuan (£3,500) for having a second child. Although he had an annual salary of 5m yuan, some commentators speculated that it encouraged "China's Alan Shearer" to leave for Sheffield United in 2005.

· Pop star Sun Nan, who has won millions of fans with his emotional ballads, is likely to become less popular with the authorities: he and his wife, who already have a daughter, are expecting another child.

· Zhao Benshan, an actor and director, has four children - although those with his second wife are twins. The exemption of multiple births from the one-child policy is thought to have encouraged some couples to turn to fertility drugs so they can enjoy a larger family without penalty.