China Imposing Reproduction Rules

As of June 1, Chinese who risk passing serious ailments to their unborn children are barred from marrying until they take long-term or permanent measures to prevent pregnancy, an official report said Saturday.

The regulation is part of the new maternal and infant health law, which requires couples to pass a battery of health tests before they can legally wed.

Under the new rules, people with sexually transmitted diseases including syphilis and AIDS should put off marriage altogether. People with mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and manic depression cannot marry until they are successfully treated, the report said.

The law also requires the abortion of diseased or abnormal fetuses.