Freedom of AssociationThe law provides for freedom of association, but the government restricted this right. CCP policy and government regulations require that all professional, social, and economic organizations officially register with and receive approval from the government. These regulations prevented the formation of truly autonomous political, human rights, religious, spiritual, labor, and other organizations that the government believed might challenge its authority.
The government maintained tight controls over civil society organizations.
In June a local government website in Shanxi Province announced that the newly formed National Security Council ordered a security review of foreign NGOs and domestic NGOS that receive foreign funding. The notice was quickly taken down and news reports about it deleted. According to the New York Times, Zhengzhou Yirenping, an antidiscrimination NGO, had its bank account frozen after it refused to complete the survey. On June 17, authorities raided Zhengzhou Yirenping’s office and seized computers and financial records. Local police charged founder Chang Boyang for “illegal business activity” in connection with the NGO, which was registered as a company. Chang was released on bail November 28 after six months in detention.
According to regulations issued by the State Administration for Foreign Exchange, foreign exchange donations to or by domestic institutions must “comply with the laws and regulations…and shall not go against social morality or damage public interests and the legitimate rights and interests of other citizens.” For donations to a domestic organization from a foreign NGO, the regulations require all parties and the banks to approve additional measures prior to processing a transaction. Application of the regulation varied, with some NGOs successfully navigating the requirements, others identifying other options by which to receive funds, and some severely limiting or shutting down operations.
To register, an NGO must find a government agency to serve as its organizational sponsor, have a registered office, and hold a minimum amount of funds. Finding a government sponsor was often very difficult, since it could be held responsible for the NGO’s behavior. Although the National People’s Congress in March 2013 announced changes that would ease registration requirements for some NGOs, nationwide regulations had not been promulgated. In any event the proposed waiver of government sponsorship would apply only to industrial associations, charities, community services, and organizations dedicated to the promotion of technology. NGO sources reported that the proposed regulations do not apply to organizations primarily focused on advocacy or rights promotion.
On January 29, the Ministry of Finance and State Administration of Taxation issued a circular on tax exemption requirements for civil society organizations that permits charitable and public benefit activities to be conducted outside the country.
Guangdong provincial government officials continued reforms aimed at facilitating the operations and work of many NGOs, including, for example, simplifying procedures so that certain categories of NGOs could register directly with the Ministry of Civil Affairs. Implementation of regulations associated with these proposals was often inconsistent. Although some NGOs perceived to be working in nonpolitical, nonsensitive areas enjoyed increased opportunities, others continued to face interference from authorities, for example, through increased financial scrutiny. Labor NGOs in Shenzhen continued to face a challenging environment, including registration hurdles and occasional government interference with their activities. On June 16, the Guangzhou municipal government published new regulations cancelling the minimum funding requirement for civil nonenterprise organizations to register and set up offices in private residences. It also issued a regulation allowing multiple associations within the same industry to register, in contrast with a previous policy of allowing one association per industry.
Although all registered organizations came under some degree of government control, some NGOs were able to operate with a greater degree of independence. The number of NGOs continued to grow, despite the restrictions and regulations. The government used the term “social organization” to categorize social groups (shehui tuanti), such as trade and professional associations; civil noncommercial units (minban fei qiye danwei), which are the equivalent of nonprofit service providers; and foundations (jijinhui). The last category included two types of foundations: public fundraising and private fundraising foundations. The government continued to impose fundraising limits on private foundations.
According to the Ministry of Civil Affairs, by the middle of 2013, there were more than 500,000 legally registered social organizations, public institutions, and foundations. Many experts believed the actual number of NGOs to be much higher. In 2012 an official of the Ministry of Civil Affairs wrote, “In 2007 China started to use the term ‘social organization’ instead of ‘civil organization’ because ‘civil’ contrasts with ‘official’ and reflected the opposing roles of civil society and government in the traditional political order. The 16th and 17th CCP Congresses changed the name to ‘social organization. NGOs existed under a variety of formal and informal guises, including national mass organizations created and funded by the CCP, known as ‘government NGOs.’”
NGOs that could not legally register faced numerous logistical challenges, including difficulty opening bank accounts and receiving foreign funding, hiring workers, fundraising, and renting office space. NGOs that opted not to partner with government agencies could register as commercial consulting companies, which allowed them to obtain legal recognition at the cost of forgoing tax-free status. Security authorities routinely warned domestic NGOs, regardless of their registration status, not to accept donations from the foreign-funded National Endowment for Democracy and other international organizations deemed sensitive by the government.
Even NGOs in areas deemed nonsensitive by the government were not immune to pressure. In August and September, authorities investigated all 22 branches of Liren Library, an NGO that ran volunteer libraries in rural areas. Schools cancelled partnerships with nine libraries, and in September officials in Henan’s Huaibin County closed a volunteer Liren library without explanation. Authorities arrested Liren Rural Library director Chen Jun in October.
Authorities supported the growth of some NGOs that focused on social problems such as poverty alleviation and disaster relief but remained concerned that these organizations might emerge as a source of political opposition. NGOs working in the TAR and other Tibetan areas continued to face a difficult operating environment, and many were forced to curtail their activities altogether due to travel restrictions, official intimidation of staff members, and the failure of local partners to renew project agreements.
No laws or regulations specifically govern the formation of political parties. The Chinese Democracy Party (CDP) remained banned, and the government continued to monitor, detain, and imprison current and former CDP members.
c. Freedom of ReligionSee the Department of State’s International Religious Freedom Report at www.state.gov/religiousfreedomreport/.