Measures of Henan Province for the Implementation of the Law of China on the Protection Women's Rights and Interests

· Area of Law： Civil Law

· Level of Authority： Provincial Local Regulations

· Date issued：09-26-2008

· Effective Date：11-01-2008

· Status： Effective

· Issuing Authority： Henan Province

Measures of Henan Province for the Implementation of the Law of China on the Protection Women's Rights and Interests
(Adopted at the 7th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the 8th People's Congress of Henan Province on April 28, 1994 and amended at the 5th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the 11th People's Congress of Henan Province on September 26, 2008)
Table of Contents
Chapter I General Provisions 
Chapter II Political Rights 
Chapter III Cultural and Educational Rights and Interests 
Chapter IV Labor and Social Security Rights and Interests 
Chapter V Property Rights and Interests 
Chapter VI Personal Rights 
Chapter VII Marriage and Family Rights and Interests 
Chapter VIII Legal Liabilities 
Chapter IX Supplementary Provision 
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 These Measures are formulated in accordance with the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests, the pertinent laws and regulations and in light of the actual conditions of this Province.
Article 2 It is a basic State policy to institute equality between men and women. It is the common responsibility of the whole society to safeguard women's lawful rights and interests.
Article 3 The people's governments at or above the county level shall work out women development programs which shall be included in the national economic and social development plans; the expenses in relation to the protection of women's rights and interests shall be incorporated into the fiscal budgets.
The relevant governmental departments shall, within their respective functions and responsibilities, carry out effectively and efficiently the implementation, monitoring, assessment and gender-specific monitoring and statistics of the women development programs.
The people's courts and people's procuratorates shall do a good job in upholding women's rights and interests within their respective functions and responsibilities.
Article 4 The working committees for women and children of the people's governments at or above county level shall be in charge of organizing, coordinating, guiding and promoting the protection of women's rights and interests within their respective administrative areas.
The women federations at all levels shall represent and protect the interests of women of all the ethnic groups and in all walks of life, play a social supervision function, support and assist the working committees for women and children at all levels to protect women's rights and interests, have the right to put forward opinions and suggestions to the relevant departments; and have the right to support the women whose rights and interests have been infringed upon to file lawsuits at the people's courts.
The trade unions, the Communist Youth League and other social organizations and groups shall protect women's rights and interests within their respective areas of functions and responsibilities.
Chapter II Political Rights
Article 5 When the State organs, enterprises and institutions, and the people's self- government organizations at the grassroot level make policies and decisions involving women's rights and interests, they shall solicit women's and women organizations' opinions, respect the religious beliefs and customs and habits of the women of the ethnic minority groups, and there may not be any provision detrimental to women's legitimate rights and interests.
Article 6 When the people's congresses at all levels come up for trans-session elections, of all the candidates for deputies to the people's congresses of the municipalities directly under the provincial government and the cities delineated into districts, the proportion of women candidates should be more than 30%; of all the candidates for deputies to the people's congresses of the counties (districts and cities) and townships (towns), the proportion of women candidates should be more than 33%. The women federations at all levels and the relevant departments shall do a good job in recommending and making publicity for women candidates so as to raise the proportion thereof gradually.
Article 7 The women federations at all levels and their member organizations should recommend women candidates for leading positions in the State organs, social organizations and groups, enterprises and institutions. The state organs, social organizations and groups, enterprises and institutions shall respect the recommendations of the women organizations, and give priority to appointing women officials who meet the requirements.
The State organs, social organizations and groups and enterprises and institutions shall be equipped with an appropriate number of women leading officials. The entities with a greater concentration of female employees shall have an appropriate proportion of women in leading positions there.
There shall be at least one woman member on the urban residents' committee and one member at least on the rural villagers' committee.
Article 8 The women deputies to the employees' congress and the women members of the trade union committee shall be proportionate to the women employees.
Chapter III Cultural and Educational Rights and Interests
Article 9 Parents or other guardians shall ensure that school-age female children and adolescents receive the compulsory education, and they shall not be forced to drop out of school.
The administrative departments of education of the people's governments at the township (town) level or the county level shall strengthen supervision over the performance of the obligations by the guardians of female children and adolescents as prescribed in the preceding paragraph.
The people's governments at all levels shall include the education of children living together with the migrant population in the local education plans, and ensure that the school- age female children and adolescents living together with the migrant population in the cities get enrolled in the schools nearest to where they live.
Article 10 The people's governments at all levels shall make specific plans and take measures to eliminate illiteracy or semi-illiteracy from among women, raise women's educational level and provide conditions for women to receive life-long education.
The people's governments at all levels and the relevant departments thereof shall make plans for women to receive education in legal knowledge, professional education and technical training and shall organize for the implementation thereof.
Article 11 Schools and other educational institutions shall be encouraged to take such measures as the reduction, waiver or deferral of tuition and miscellaneous fees to help the poor and handicapped female students get enrolled in schools.
The social forces shall be encouraged to conduct public interest activities, donate money for education and set up student subsidy funds and scholarships to provide support and help for handicapped female students.
Article 12 Schools and the departments concerned shall ensure that women enjoy equal rights as men do in school enrollment, enrollment in institutions of higher learning, admission to specialties, the conferment of academic degrees, overseas studies and continuing education, and no restrictive conditions may be added, except where the State has otherwise provided.
Schools shall offer such commonsense education as the equality between men and women and women's self-protection. Schools with hostels for female students shall provide the necessary hygienic and health care facilities and security measures.
Article 13 The State organs, social organizations and groups and enterprises and institutions shall carry out cultural and sports activities which are beneficial to women's physical and mental health. The municipalities directly under the provincial government and counties (cities and districts) that are in a position to do so shall establish women and children activity centers.
Sports lottery public interest funds should support women sports activities in accordance with the relevant provisions of the State.
Chapter IV Labor and Social Security Rights and Interests
Article 14 The principle of “equal work and equal pay for men and women” shall be instituted. Women shall enjoy equal rights with men in welfare entitlements.
Where the State organs recruit civil servants and social organizations, enterprises and institutions and other associations recruit and employ staff and workers, they may not refuse to recruit and employ women on the grounds of gender, marital and maternity status, they may not raise or covertly raise the employment criteria for women, where the pertinent laws and regulations have provided otherwise, these provisions shall prevail.
Article 15 In respect of the female employees who follow family planning according to law, no entity may dismiss them or unilaterally terminate the labor contracts with them on the grounds of marriage, pregnancy, maternity or breast feeding. Where a labor contract expires or the conditions for the termination of the labor contract agreed upon in the contract have arisen during the pregnancy, maternity and breast-feeding periods, the entity shall extend the labor contract until the end of the pregnancy, maternity and breast-feeding periods, except where the female worker agrees to terminate the labor contract.
Where female employees are in the statutory pregnancy, maternity and breast-feeding periods, no entity may withhold or lower the salaries and welfare benefits of the female employees, and their promotion in official ranks and grades, assessments and determination of their professional and technical positions shall not be affected for the afore-mentioned reasons.
No entity may terminate the labor contract with the spouse on the excuse that the husband is transferred, his labor contract is annulled or terminated, except where there is an agreement between the two parties.
Article 16 Women shall be under special protection during the menstruation, pregnancy, maternity and breast-feeding periods. Entities shall, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the State, reduce their labor quotas or numbers of working hours, lower their labor intensity, and ensure that they enjoy the breast-feeding and rest time prescribed by the State.
The employer entities shall, in accordance with the relevant provisions, provide female employees with working space and living facilities which meet the requirements of labor safety and occupational health, organize gynecological diseases, mammary gland diseases scanning at least once every two years; the employer entities that are in a position to do so may increase the examination items and times.
The people's governments at all levels shall provide impoverished women with the necessary hygienic and health care services to prevent and treat common diseases, diseases of frequent occurrence and infectious diseases. In the areas with the capability, the health departments shall organize regular gynecological disease survey for rural women and the migrant women laborers in the cities.
Article 17 Employer entities shall, according to law, purchase for female employees the old age, health, unemployment, work-related injury, maternity and other social insurance policies, and pay the social insurance premiums in a timely manner.
The people's governments at or above the county level shall establish the maternity safeguard system, include the rural women who are consistent with the maternity policy in the new rural cooperative medical care system, and provide impoverished women with maternity help.
Article 18 When the employer entities implement the State retirement system, they may not discriminate against women, or force women to retire early or put off retirement in contravention of the relevant provisions, and they may not reduce the women's retirement benefits.
Chapter V Property Rights and Interests
Article 19 The property rights and interests women enjoy in marriage and family according to law shall not be affected by their incomes. During the continuity of the marital relationship, both husband and wife shall enjoy the right to know about the shared property of the spouses.
Article 20 When the shared property of the spouses or the common property of the family is to be sold, mortgaged or disposed of in any other ways, the other joint owners of the said property shall obtain the consent of the female joint owners.
Husband and wife may jointly register the immovable property and such movable property as motor vehicles that require joint registration; where the wife demands joint registration, the relevant department should support her demand.
Article 21 Women shall enjoy equal property inheritance rights and interests with men. When partitioning inheritance, women with special difficulties in life or lack labor capabilities shall be given greater consideration.
No entity or individual may deprive of the property inheritance rights and interests of widowed women.
Article 22 Women's legitimate rights and interests shall be protected according to law when villagers' congresses and representative conferences make village self-government statutes, village rules and regulations or discuss and decide on the interests in land or distribution of profits of the collective economic organizations.
Article 23 No entity or individual may compel women to remove their residence registrations for reasons of marriage.
Chapter VI Personal Rights
Article 24 Women's right to life and health shall be inviolable. It shall be prohibited to drown, abandon or cruelly maim or kill female babies; it shall be prohibited to discriminate against or maltreat women who gave birth to female babies, handicapped babies or women who are infertile and other female family members; it shall be prohibited to cruelly maim or kill women by superstition, violence or other means; it shall be prohibited to maltreat or abandon sick, disabled, mentally retarded or insane women and aged women.
Article 25 It shall be prohibited to insult and have carnal knowledge of women by taking advantage of headship affiliation, guardianship or relationship between the teacher and the taught.
It shall be prohibited to subject female children and adolescents to any form of sexual abuse. Parents, schools, kindergartens, and other entities or personnel that are responsible for guardianship of female children and adolescents shall execute their guardianship functions and responsibilities in respect of female children and adolescents.
It shall be prohibited to sexually harass women through acts, speech, characters and pictures. Women victims shall have the right of complain to the relevant entities and departments. The relevant entities and departments should carefully look into and deal with such cases upon receipt of complaints.
Article 26 It shall be prohibited to abduct or kidnap women; it shall be prohibited to buy abducted or kidnapped women; it shall be prohibited to impede the rescue of abducted or kidnapped women. It shall be prohibited to coerce and induce women to take drugs. It shall be prohibited to organize, coerce, induce, or hire women to conduct pornographic performances or provide sex service on the Internet or in other forms. It shall be prohibited to organize, coerce, trap, or use female minors, disabled women to engage in such activities that are harmful to their physical and mental health as begging and curbside entertainments for money.
Article 27 It shall be prohibited to resort to the desecration of the female body and gender features in product advertising and sale induction.
Chapter VII Marriage and Family Rights and Interests
Article 28 When registering marriages, the registration departments shall brief the spouses on the property rights and interests and other rights and obligations of the spouses under the pertinent laws and regulations.
Early marriage and early maternity shall be prohibited; arranged or mercenary marriages shall be forbidden; prohibited shall be the acts to prohibit or interfere in the freedom of middle-aged or aged women to divorce or get remarried and other acts that infringe upon women's freedom of marriage.
Article 29 It shall be prohibited to resort to any form of domestic violence towards women.
Where women victims of ongoing domestic violence seek help or insiders inform thereon, the public security organ should arrive on the scene promptly and the entity, the residents' committee and villagers' committee to which they belong should step in to stop the violence in a timely manner. Where women victims of accomplished domestic violence file complaints about the violence, the women organizations and the relevant State organs should promptly deal with the cases.
The people's governments at the county or township level may establish or designate asylums for women, and support and encourage social organizations to establish asylums for victims of domestic violence, and provide temporary shelters and relief for women victims who suffered domestic violence and cannot return home for the time being.
Article 30 When husband and wife are going through the procedures relating to divorce, nobody may hinder the wife from exercising her right to divorce by restricting her freedom of movement, etc.
Nobody may, in any way, infringe upon the wife's child visitation right, her personal rights and property rights and interests after the divorce.
Divorced and widowed women shall have the right to dispose of their personal property according to law and no entity or individual may interfere therein.
Article 31 When divorced spouses have dispute over child custody, the mother's request for the custody of her child (children) shall be given priority consideration where there is no adverse effect on the growth of the child (children) if they live with the mother.
Chapter VIII Legal Liabilities
Article 32 Where the State organs and their functionaries have, in violation of the provisions of these Measures, failed to perform their duties according to law and given rise to serous consequences, administrative sanctions shall be meted out to the responsible executive officers directly in charge or other directly responsible officers by the entity they belong to or by the superior organs; where crimes have been committed, the offenders shall be investigated for criminal liabilities according to law.
Article 33 Where an individual has, in violation of the provisions of Paragraph 1, Article 9 of these Measures, the administrative department of education of the people's government of the local township (town) or at or above the county level shall order the offender to make corrections within a time limit.
Article 34 Where an entity or an individual has, in violation of the provision in paragraph 1, Article 12 of these Measures, the relevant department shall order the offender to make corrections within a given time limit; where it/he has refused to make corrections within the given time limit, it/he shall be dealt with according to the relevant provisions of the State.
Article 35 Where an entity has violated the provisions of Articles 14, 15, Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 16, Paragraph 2 of Article 17 and Article 18 of these Measures, the people's government at or above county level and its relevant departments shall order the offender to make corrections within a given time limit; where it has refused to make corrections within the given time limit, the women concerned may apply for arbitration or file lawsuits at the people's courts according to law.
Article 36 Where an entity or an individual has violated the provisions of Articles 20,21,22 and 23 of these Measures, the people's government of the township (town) or the sub-district office shall mediate according to law; the women involved may apply for arbitration at the rural land contract arbitration institution, or file lawsuits at the people's court according to law.
Article 37 Where an entity or an individual has, in violation of the provisions of Articles 24,25,26,27, Paragraph 1 of Article 29 and Article 30 of these Measures, infringed upon women's personal rights and interests, the public security organ or other relevant departments shall deal with it in accordance with the relevant provisions. Where a crime is constituted, criminal liabilities shall be investigated for according to law.
Chapter IX Supplementary Provision
Article 38 These Measures shall be effective as of November 1, 2008.