New Civil Society Regulations To Apply Same Restrictions to Domestic, Foreign Groups

Sun Weilin, director general of the Bureau of NGO Administration at the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MOCA), said on December 14 that the State Council is currently examining revised civil society regulations that will apply the same registration requirements to domestic and foreign organizations, according to a December 15 China Daily article. Sun stated that the regulations are expected to be published early next year.

The "dual management system" currently used to govern domestic civil society organizations will apply to foreign organizations, according to Sun. National regulations require domestic civil society organizations to have an officially approved "sponsor organization" in order to register with MOCA. Sponsors assist MOCA in supervising the operations of civil society organizations. Because Chinese authorities limit sponsors to approved government bureaus and Party organizations, this requirement is a substantial impediment to the development of an independent Chinese civil society. For more information, see Section V(b), Development of Civil Society, in the Commission's 2005 Annual Report.

The 1998 Regulations on the Registration and Management of Social Organizations and the 1998 Temporary Regulations on the Registration and Management of Non-Governmental, Non-Commercial Enterprises do not specify a system for foreign NGOs to register in China, and apply the sponsor organization requirement only to domestic NGOs. Many foreign NGOs present in China consequently operate without clear government rules. Some have registered as for-profit corporations, some have obtained specific individual approval for their activities, and others operate without any official registration.

Chinese officials have been considering amendments to the 1998 regulations for several years. Although some MOCA officials have suggested that the sponsor requirement should be abolished entirely, recent draft regulations have not adopted this suggestion. In 2004, the State Council issued the Regulations on the Management of Foundations, which allowed foreign foundations to register representative offices in China, but required them to have a sponsor organization. For more information, see Section V(b), Nongovernmental Organizations and the Development of Civil Society, in the Commission's 2004 Annual Report.

MOCA's announcement that foreign NGOs seeking to register will be required to have a sponsor organization follows heightened Chinese government concern over the activities of foreign and domestic civil society organizations. In May, the Economic Times, a publication of the Development Research Center of the State Council, said "It is necessary to learn from the lessons of the Commonwealth of Independent States, and prevent Western countries from carrying out infiltration and sabotage of China through political NGOs." In August, MOCA officials announced the creation of a system to "rate" domestic NGOs and assure their "healthy development." An academic expert cited in the December 15 China Daily article noted the need "to set up an exit system to eliminate non-performing NGOs according to the market rules."