VZCZCXRO8391
RR RUEHCN RUEHGH
DE RUEHGH #0491/01 3170547
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 120547Z NOV 08
FM AMCONSUL SHANGHAI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7314
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 2263
RUEHCN/AMCONSUL CHENGDU 1523
RUEHGZ/AMCONSUL GUANGZHOU 1494
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 1683
RUEHSH/AMCONSUL SHENYANG 1515
RUEHIN/AIT TAIPEI 1316
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEHGH/AMCONSUL SHANGHAI 7913

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SHANGHAI 000491 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/CM, DRL 
NSC FOR LOI 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM SOCI CH
SUBJECT: SERVICE PROVIDER OR A SUPPLEMENT TO GOVERNMENT:  A 
CONFERENCE ON NGO DEVELOPMENT IN NANJING 
 
REF: A. (A) SHANGHAI 461 
     ¶B. (B) SHANGHAI 374 
 
(U) This cable is sensitive but unclassified and for official 
use only.  Not for distribution outside of USG channels or via 
the internet. 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶1. (SBU) Scholars at an international conference on social 
welfare in Nanjing said strengthening service-oriented 
non-government organizations (NGOs) would be a stable and secure 
strategy for NGO development in the future but would have 
limited influence in China's political system and promotion of 
democracy.  A former official in the Nanjing-based Amity 
Foundation said government officials remain wary of NGOs and 
therefore remain closely involved in NGO functions.  The lack of 
clear development policies and inadequate financial resources 
are the major factors preventing NGOs from progressing, 
according to one scholar.  NGO representatives attending the 
conference called for the Chinese Government to craft a 
sustainable policy that treats NGOs as fully vested service 
providers rather than merely as supplements to government work. 
End Summary. 
 
Nanjing University Hosts 3rd Social Welfare Conference 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) ConGen Shanghai LES Political Assistant attended the 
International Nanjing Conference on Social Quality and Social 
Welfare at Nanjing University October 24-26.  (See Ref A for a 
report on other meetings in Nanjing.)  The conference was the 
third in a series of social welfare conferences held in Asia -- 
Chiba University in Tokyo (March 2006) and the National Taiwan 
University (March 2007) were the previous hosts.  The focus of 
the Nanjing Conference was to extend theoretical discussions on 
comparative studies of social welfare between European and Asian 
societies to discussions on NGOs and their role in China.  Many 
speakers used the Sichuan earthquake as an example testifying to 
the positive role of NGOs in China particularly with regard to 
the government's role in social welfare, the features of 
charitable efforts and volunteer activities, and the environment 
for NGO development in China. 
 
Service NGOs:  Stable, Secure... and Suspicious 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶3. (SBU) Several conference participants highlighted the 
importance of service-oriented NGOs for the future stable and 
secure development of China's NGO sector.  Lin Ka from Nanjing 
Univerity's Department of Sociology, one of the conference 
chairs, presented his research paper on "The Power of NGOs in an 
Authoritarian Regime: A Study of the Types and Functions of NGOs 
in Contemporary China," emphasizing that NGOs are a relatively 
new phenomenon in China with fewer than 100 registered NGOs 
nationwide until the economic opening of the 1980s contributed 
to NGO growth.  By 2007, according to a Ministry of Civil 
Affairs report, there were 1758 registered NGOs at the national 
level, Lin said.  If unregistered and grass-roots NGOs are taken 
into account, however, the number of Chinese NGOs could reach 
2.5 - 3 million organizations, Lin stated. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Lin identified five types of Chinese NGOs, namely 
policy-oriented NGOs, industry associations, charitable 
organizations, tenant associations, and service-oriented NGOs. 
Of the five types, Lin said service-oriented NGOs are the most 
strongly supported by government officials and welcomed by the 
public because they help local authorities address social 
welfare problems. 
 
¶5. (SBU) On the other hand, Lin said, human rights and democracy 
NGOs continue to be targets of suspicion.  Lin therefore 
asserted that developing service-oriented NGOs is a stable and 
secure strategy to expand the scale and influence of NGOs in 
China.  He admitted, however, that service-oriented NGOs have 
less influence in the Chinese political system and a limited 
role in promoting democracy. 
 
Developing Civil Society in China 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) In one session, conference participants outlined some 
 
SHANGHAI 00000491  002 OF 002 
 
 
of the key milestones in China's development of civil society. 
Zhang Liwei, Deputy Director of Nanjing University's Office of 
International Cooperation, openly discussed NGO development 
since the 1989 pro-democracy demonstrations at Tiananmen Square. 
 According to Zhang, NGOs developed rapidly during the 1980s but 
were much more low-key after Tiananmen, and they changed their 
focus to alleviating poverty and addressing basic needs.  The 
1995 UN Conference on Women was a perfect example of this 
changing focus, he said, as organizations involved in providing 
services in education, HIV/AIDS, rural development, and 
environmental protection met together in Beijing.  The Chinese 
Government remains ambivalent towards NGOs, however, Zhang said, 
as evidenced by the dual management policy announced in 2004 
that required NGOs to secure support both from the registration 
office and the government department related to the NGOs 
activities.  There therefore remains strong government 
involvement in most Chinese NGOs, Zhang said. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Formerly an official at the faith-based Amity 
Foundation in Nanjing, Zhang added that Amity's volunteers 
worked closely with officials of local government departments 
and other organizations from the provincial level to the 
grass-roots level in order to provide assistance after the 
Sichuan earthquake (see Ref B for reporting on the Amity 
Foundation).  Zhang said cooperation in earthquake relief 
somewhat blurred the lines between government departments and 
NGOs, and some local government officials were deeply influenced 
by NGOs.  For the most part, however, NGOs have been confined by 
the government to a "supplementary" role, and NGOs are 
struggling with a lack of a coherent development policy and 
inadequate financial support, Zhang lamented.  The future 
development of civil society in China will depend on how the 
Central Government arranges the dynamics between the government, 
private sector, and civil society, he said. 
 
NGO Representatives:  We Need a Sustainable Policy 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶8. (SBU) Several NGO representatives echoed Zhang's concerns 
about the future development of civil society.  A young Amity 
volunteer in her late 20s said NGOs should be regarded as a 
"self-sufficient service provider" rather than merely a 
supplement to government work.  During her stay in Sichuan 
conducting earthquake relief work, she found communication 
between different NGOs was insufficient and cooperation between 
organizations was weak.  Shen Limin, Secretary General of the 
Shanghai YWCA, called for the government to provide NGOs with a 
sustainable policy for development.  Wu Jianrong, Secretary 
General of the Shanghai YMCA, asserted that the government 
should support NGOs as independent entities, but at the same 
time, NGOs should establish good relations with the government 
and take advantage of government resources.  Zhu Li from Nanjing 
University's Sociology Department told Political Assistant that 
any new NGO policy should lower the entry requirements for NGOS, 
allowing them to be established so long as they abide by Chinese 
law and are willing to register with relevant government offices. 
 
Comment:  Open Discussion on NGOs 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Scholars and NGO representatives attending the Nanjing 
Conference spoke quite openly in public about NGO development -- 
an infrequent occurrence in China where NGO representatives are 
cautious about upsetting government officials.  Such discussions 
are especially rare in East China where many people pay more 
attention to business and economic growth than to the 
development of civil society.  NGO representatives who attended 
the Nanjing Conference said they would like to enjoy greater 
operational independence, but they also realize it will be a 
while before the Chinese Government grants NGOs more autonomy. 
CAMP