Review and Assessment of China’s Nonprofit Sector after Mao

Abstract

Published research in English is reviewed on the Nonprofit Sector (nps) in China since Mao’s death in 1976. A large, diverse, and rapidly growingnpsexists, but openly political Nonprofit Organizations (npos) outside the Communist Party and its control are prohibited. China has civil society in thenarrowersense that a substantial civil society sector ornpsexists. However, the party-state in China continues to play a dominating role in regard to thenps, especially for registerednpos. Freedom of association is still limited in China, especially for national associations, which are nearly all Government Organized Non-Governmental Organizations (gongos), not genuinengos/npos. Genuine associational freedom at lower territorial levels, especially the neighborhood level, is widespread though incomplete, but present far more significantly than under Mao. A 1989 law madenpos legal for the first time after Mao, butonlyif they are registered with the government (Article 7 of 1989 law states that nationalnpos can only be registered with Ministry of Civil Affairs, and localnpos can only be registered with the local Bureau of Civil Affairs).Millions of small, largely unregulated, Unofficial orUnregistered Social Organizations(orusos), as grassroots organizations (grassroots associations/gas) are important evidence for some significant associational freedom at the local level. Technically, all theseusos are illegal under Chinese law, but they have substantial social legitimacy and relative freedom of action nonetheless. Mostnpos, even registerednpos, can freely structure their internal governance, although nearly all the national associations are clearly controlled by the party-state. For the vast majority ofnpos, especially small and usually localusos, membership and levels of individual participation are now essentially voluntary. There is also a surprising range of volunteering, voluntary citizen participation, andorderly activism(restrained advocacy) throughnpos, especially at the local level.All the above facts constitute substantial progress for thenpsandnpos in China since Mao. Thebroaderscope definition of civil society focuses on the general autonomy of thenpsin relation to the government, with functioning civil liberties, and on the ability ofnpos in general to influence significantly the government on various policy issues. In these terms, China has a comparatively weak but perhaps slowly emerging civil society. The party-state in China does not have either full associational freedom and civil liberties nor participatory or strong democracy as current, stated or operative goals. Indeed, the government has an ambivalent attitude and policies toward thenpsandnpos. But such ambivalence is at least a huge improvement over Mao’s totalitarian repression of thenpsandnpos.