NGO Law Monitor: China RESEARCH CENTER - The International ...

China - NGO Law Monitor - Research Center - ICNL
http://www.icnl.org/research/monitor/china.html[11/9/2012 4:19:31 PM]
with illegal Protestant house churches - either to not seek registration or to register as commercial
organizations. Despite these challenges, RNGO leaders remain cautiously optimistic about the future.
Clinton comments on human rights blocked in China (July 2012)
A Chinese microblogging site has blocked remarks on human rights made by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary
Rodham Clinton in Mongolia, according to a Hong Kong group that monitors Chinese media. The China Media
Project, based at the University of Hong Kong, spotted that a post on the Sina Weibo site quoting Clinton had
been deleted Wednesday morning. The Monday speech at the International Women’s Leadership Forum was
widely regarded as an implied jab at Beijing, effusively praising the power of democracy at a time when
Chinese pundits have cautioned that too much democracy could destabilize the region.
Eric Schmidt: The Great Firewall of China will fall (July 2012)
Technology and information penetration in China will eventually force the Great Firewall of China to crumble
and even lead to the political opening of the Chinese system, according to Google Chairman Eric Schmidt.
Charity Law submitted to State Council (June 2012)
The Ministry of Civil Affairs has submitted a draft of the Charity Law to China’s State Council (cabinet), a sign
that the country may be progressing towards rules covering philanthropic organizations. If passed, the new
law would finally address tax deductions for donations, a system for supervising charity work and how
donations can be used. This is intended to bring order to an area plagued by scandal in recent years.
Environmental NGOs grow across China but struggle for support (June 2012)
Environmentalism has made giant strides in China, led in part by the efforts of NGOs that have taken it upon
themselves to bring about small changes capable of making big differences. Their campaign to improve the
environment across the country began years ago, before this current age when checking the air's PM2.5 levels
was as easy as a swipe on a smartphone. There are more than 3,500 environmental NGOs in China, not
counting unregistered organizations active at universities and in rural areas. However, such grassroots
activism remains a relatively new phenomenon, according to Deng Guosheng, director of the NGO Research
Center at Tsinghua University.
Corporate-NGO Partnerships in China: Fostering Employee Volunteer Programs (June 2012)
Corporate-NGO partnerships are increasing in China, but most follow a fairly traditional, PR-driven formula.
Some companies are just looking to donate to a ready-made philanthropy program or basic ways for their
staff to volunteer in community activities, which tend to be unrelated to their core business. Furthermore,
these programs are typically limited in the ways they engage with nonprofits to foster a complimentary
exchange of resources and alignment of organizational missions.
China keen to scale down EU human rights talks (June 2012)
China wants to hold human rights talks with the EU just once a year and to curtail discussion of individual
cases. Wang Xining, the Chinese EU embassy's spokesman, said the meetings should take place "maybe once
a year and not twice." The behind-closed-doors talks of mid-level diplomats have been going on for 16
years. In 2010 and 2011, China declined to hold a second meeting. The last one took place on 29 May in
Brussels. But the second 2012 talks have not been tabled yet. Wang added the EU should ask fewer questions
about individual victims.
Law to give new start to embattled charities (June 2012)
A new law draft, aiming to enhance the transparency of the charity sector, which was rocked by scandal last
summer, has been submitted to the State Council for further review, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs
(MOCA). "The new law will standardize the donation information which will be open to the public, including
the donor's identity, the value of donated objects and the date the donations were made," said Dou Yupei,
vice minister of civil affairs.
China tells Tibetan NGOs to register or else face closure (May 2012)
Following a wave of self-immolations and mass protests in Tibetan areas, China is implementing policies
aimed at striking the social and cultural backbone of the Tibetan people. In the latest development, Chinese
authorities in Kardze, eastern Tibet, issued a notification requiring all non-governmental organizations in the
region to be registered under set criteria, failing which the groups will be declared illegal.
Will pressure make Chinese aid more transparent? (March 2012)
An article discusses China as a secretive donor country in economically poor but resource-rich countries,
funding infrastructure construction in return for business deals and access to natural wealth and land.
However, China is increasing aid transparency at its own pace. Notably, on 1 December 2011, China publicly
declared transparency a principle it will uphold when it signed an agreement at the Fourth High Level Forum
on Aid Effectiveness held in Busan, South Korea.
Revisions of law to ensure human rights related to detention, arrest and surveillance (March 2012)