Shenzhen Special Economic Zone
The Shenzhen Special Economic Zone () is a special economic zone (SEZ) of China. One of four special economic zones (SEZ) established in May 1980, it was the first SEZ created by Deng Xiaoping, and, like the other three zones, was modeled after Ireland's Shannon Free Zone. Until 2010, the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone comprised four of the nine districts of Shenzhen City in Guangdong Province, namely Luohu, Futian, Nanshan, and Yantian, with a total area of 493 km2. In 2010, it was expanded to include the rest of the city, substantially increasing the geographical size of the SEZ. Population characteristics Before Shenzhen became a special economic zone in 1980, it existed as a small city containing only 310,000 residents and less than 30,000 workers. By the end of 2000, however, the population had grown to 4.33 million and its labor force to 3.09 million. By 2007, the official population count reached 8.6 million, of which only 2.1 million people were permanent residents, but it is difficult to estimate the exact population because of millions of unaccounted migrant workers, and the true population could have reached 12-14 million. Less than 30 percent of the population are permanent residents. These are mainly state officials, entrepreneurs, technicians and skilled workers who have traveled from major cities. The other 70 percent are temporary residents, mainly migrant laborers from rural areas who lack official household registration and citizenship. The majority of migrants in Shenzhen are female. Pun Ngai, president of the Chinese Women Working Network and sociology professor at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, suggests that the rapid economic development of Shenzhen and the advancement of its position in the global economy are dependent on extracting female workers from the rural areas, and considers this process to be a precarious employment system in which women face inhumane working conditions and receive low wages for extensive hours. Legislation SEZs were authorized to develop their own legislation. The Shenzhen Special Economic Zone was the most active SEZ for legislative experiments from 1979-1990 and its legislation had a significant role in shaping national economic law on foreign trade and investment during that period. Advantages and disadvantages of migrant work While Pun and others are critical of the system that has been implemented, empirical studies suggest that migration may promote women's autonomy — specifically when considering unmarried women migrants. Although these women may face challenges and discrimination at times, they often gain freedom from traditional expectations of women's familial and social roles, primarily by being separated from older family members and because of the influence of urban culture. Ultimately, migration can allow young women to feel more confident and self-aware whilst providing the opportunity to increase their own social status through the acquisition of savings and personal property. It also means that they can marry later than non-migrants, thereby avoiding marrying into agricultural families that support patriarchal traditions. In contrast, married female migrants are expected to continue living under restrictive gender roles. While urban life