Earthquakes Expose China's Urgent Need for NGO Legal Reform

The NGO Sichuan Union Relief Office (Relief Office) announced on May 31 that it would discontinue its earthquake relief work after 17 days of operation because it was unable to register with the government as an NGO, according to a June 2 Radio Free Asia report. The Relief Office was coordinating the work of over 100 NGOs in Southwestern China in the aftermath of the May 12 Sichuan earthquake. (See CECC's other earthquake related analyses: China's Earthquake Coverage More Open But Not Uncensored, and Officials To Watch for "Negative Content" in Supplements About Earthquake.) While the Relief Office said that its decision to close was not the result of government pressure, a volunteer noted that police raided the office after receiving reports that it was "illegally soliciting donations."

This case highlights the challenges that civil society organizations face when trying to address social issues, even in urgent crisis. It also underscores the need for legal reform in the governance of NGOs and charities in China. So far, the 2004 Regulations on the Management of Foundations, the 1998 Regulations on the Registration and Management of Social Organizations, as well as the 1998 Temporary Regulations on the Registration and Management of Non-Governmental and Non-Commercial Enterprises are the latest government regulations managing NGOs and their registration in China. All three regulations require: a sponsor organization, i.e. a government or a Communist Party organization, to support the initial registration; and a government department, i.e., the State Council's Ministry of Civil Affairs (MOCA) or a local civil affairs department, to review and approve the registration.

The restrictive requirements for NGO registration are inconsistent with the right to freedom of association as defined by art. 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), of which China is a signatory. They also lead many organizations to operate without formal legal status, as noted in 2007 CECC's Annual Report, Section III--Civil Society. Many NGOs encounter difficulty in securing a sponsor organization and have to struggle for legitimacy, as detailed in a January 2003 Report by the U.S. Embassy in Beijing entitled Chinese NGOs--Carving a Niche within Constraints.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs is considering legal reforms to regulate the non-profit sector, according to Vice Minister Li Liguo's interview with People's Daily on May 25, 2007. A proposal to reform the dual-management of NGOs was also submitted to the National People's Congress in March 2007, according to China Law Digest. However, an October 2007 analysis by China Development Brief, an independent publication to report on social development and civil society in China, reports that the State Council and the National People's Congress have yet put the proposal on their legislative agenda.

For more information about China's civil society and NGO development, please see 2007 CECC's Annual Report, Section III--Civil Society, and 2006 CECC Annual Report, Section VII(a) Development of Civil Society.