Director Zhang apologizes for violating policy

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Zhang, who has a daughter with his ex-wife, told Xinhua that he had three children with Chen because he followed his father's wish to have sons to continue the family bloodline.

Zhang's three children with Chen were born in 2001, 2004 and 2006 in Beijing, before the couple married in 2011. Chen told Xinhua that they fell in love in 1999 and were not willing to register as husband and wife for fear of media exposure.

Chen denied media reports that Zhang had at least seven children with multiple women, calling it a rumor "that has hurt the family".

The incident, coupled with Zhang's aversion of the media, stirred a heated discussion online. At the center of the discussion was whether it is fair for wealthy citizens to buy their way out of the one-child policy.

A recent online survey by ynet.com found that about 70 percent of people are unsatisfied with Zhang's apology, saying it is unfair that Zhang can buy privileges with money.

Zhou Haiwang, deputy director of the Institute of Population and Development under the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, told China Daily that the family planning policy doesn't favor the rich because the fine is set based on personal income.

Xinhua cited lawyers representing the Wuxi authority and Zhang on Sunday as saying Zhang might need to pay a fine of at least 7 million yuan.

Zhou added that Zhang's high-profile case serves as a warning to the rest of the country.

"When people see the government gets tough on celebrities, they know they can't get away with it," he said.

On Saturday, the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, formally allowed couples in which either parent has no siblings to have two children, as the nation faces looming demographic challenges, including a rapidly growing elderly population, a shrinking labor force and male-female imbalance.

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