What do gay marriage, the one child policy and edible toothpicks have in common? All are being discussed at the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Congress.

As well proposing that the cadres lose weight, the experts attending and advising China’s largely symbolic parliament are putting forth more proposals that will not be debated. Topping the list of doomed proposals for today, we have an attempt to legalize gay marriage.:

Sociologist calls for legalizing same-sex marriage

BEIJING, March 3 (Xinhuanet) — A famous Chinese sociologist said on Friday she will submit a proposal on same-sex marriage again to the annual session of the country’s top political advisory body, the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

Li Yinhe, a member of the CPPCC National Committee, said the legitimation of same-sex marriage is an effective way to help eliminate discrimination against homosexuality.

This will be the third time for the expert on marriage and sex studies with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences to submit a similar proposal.

Admitting she is aware it is unlikely for her proposal to win approval, the sociologist said she still feels it her duty to help the country’s gays and lesbians win favorable living environment.

While Li acknowledges that this will get no traction in China, it should be noted that the gay marriage proposal would unlikely fly in most of Asia.

The next proposal could have a slim chance in China, but none elsewhere. This runs contrary to the teachings of Asia’s smartest authoritarian ruler Lee Kwan-yew, but it is largely in line with Asia’s biggest democidal dictator Mao Zedong.

Expert Calls for Strict Birth Control over Rich People in China

More measures should be adopted in addition to monetary penalty to prevent China’s wealthy people from having more children, which runs counter to the national policy of one child, a population expert said on Sunday.

Business tycoons and show business celebrities are joining rural people to challenge China’s family planning policy by paying the punitive “social maintenance fee” to have two or more offspring.

“Simply imposing fines or administrative punishments would not produce an ideal result,” said Yang Kuifu, vice chairman of the Committee of Population, Resources and Environment under the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), which is in a ten-day session.

Yang said he had presented a proposal to the annual session of the top advisory body, namely the CPPCC National Committee, to invite reasonable and effective ideas to tackle the problem.

Statistics showed that at least 84 multi-baby cases were registered between 2002 and 2005 among affluent citizens in Shanghai, China’s commercial hub. And there was a growing trend of the cases. In Shenyang, capital of Northeast China’s Liaoning Province, 76 wealthy people were punished for having extra babies in 2000.

Singapore’s founding father and the People’s Action Party has long attempted to encourage the wealthy and well-educated to breed. Mao, meanwhile, brought us the ‘one child’ policy and tended to marginalize or murder the wealthy and well educated.

Both countries are of course facing a pension crisis - and to be fair most countries are - but AsiaPundit expects that Singapore will have much better luck managing the problem.

That said, AsiaPundit would not be willing to guess how either Lee or Mao would rule on edible toothpicks.:

Lawmaker Promotes ‘Edible’ Toothpick at Annual Session

When Nan Shunji brought a lot of toothpicks made in her hometown to the annual session of China’s top legislature, she meant to promote a concept of environment- friendly consumption.

The toothpicks of the deputy to the National People’s Congress (NPC) are special not only in color, but also in raw material. They were made of corn flour instead of bamboo or wood.

The lawmaker from Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in northeast China’s Jilin Province, said she will share the new product with her fellow deputies, hoping they can help bolster environmental protection.

Following her call for a ban on disposable wood chopsticks at NPC’s annual session last year, she is focusing on wood toothpicks this time, Nan said.

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