Rare Outspoken Reform Call From China State Media

Premier Wen Jiabao

It might seem that 'freedom of speech' is a basic right alloted by the government to its people. However, this is clearly not the case in China. As reported by the Associated Press in the New York Times, thirteen different newspapers pulished a joint editorial criticizing the hukou policy. The hukou policy dates back to ancient China and is now required by law in China and Taiwan. Houkou refers to the residency system that is managed by household registration. Mao's purpose in implementing this policy was to control migration between cities and rural areas. Yet in recent years, with increasing urbanization in China, the system's limits have begun to be pushed. It is extremely hard to change one's status from rural to urban, meaning that migrant workers in the cities miss out on government services. Furthermore, the problem continues into the next generation, as children born in the cities to migrant parents are registered as 'rural' citizens, preventing such children from access to education. The editorial, signed with the logos of thirteen newspapers, was published on Monday; by Tuesday, the orginals and the links had been removed. On the past Saturday, Premier Wen Jiabao noted the tensions stemming from hukou and promised reform. The timing of these events is particularily significant since the National People's Congress, China's biggest event, began on March 12th.

''Freedom of movement is a human right."

                            -- Removed Editorial

Here, regional cleavages are displayed as are issues with citizen-state relations. By hindering access to government services from a certain group of citizens, the Chinese government is diminishing their own legitimacy and distancing themselves from their own people. The now removed editorial praised Wen Jiabao for acknowledging the problem and promising to take action which indicates a faith in the governement. Nevertheless, disregarding recent investments in interior China, there is a very distinct regional cleavage between the rural interior and urbanized coastal area. The Hukou policy enforces this cleavage and by doing so hinders national unity. The apparent lack of freedom of speech, which as mentioned earlier is a basic right of democracy and is seen as vital in many Western states, will do nothing for China in the international realm. However, the strong words of the editorial are being repeated across the globe which may have a positive effect on the abolishment of hukou.

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Factory Labor Shortage in China

“You can walk into any factory and get a job."

This statement by a 22 year old plastics worker would not be true in the current American economic situtation. However, as reported in the New York Times yesterday by Keith Bradsher, China is facing an growing labor shortage for several reasons. Factory wages have risen by as much as 20% in recent months, telemarketers are spending their time cold-calling random people to offer them jobs instead of calling customers, and some manufacterors are closing down production lines because of a lack of workers. The main cause for this shortage is that China once drained its interior population to find workers for the blossoming factories in the coastal areas. Now, after a major stimulus from the Chinese government to create jobs in the interior, many workers are not returning to the coast after going home for the Lunar New Year. Two other impacting trends are the rapid exspansion of higher education -- which decreases the number of people looking for factory jobs -- and the One Child Policy.

This shortage has the potential to impact Americans because of the possiblity of higher priced imported goods from China, as the minimum wage might be increased and many bonuses are being offered. Unfortuntely, in the past, higher wages have resulted in inflation for the Chinese economy. The article also reveals a decreasing regional cleavage between the coastal and interior regions. Where the coastal regions were once the economic center, more and more jobs are being created in the interior, often due to government projects like rail and highway construction. Social cleavages are also briefly discussed in the article as those normally accustomed to "white-collar," desk jobs are being forced to participate in more hard labor. However, the Chinese labor shortage could also be a positive factor for the Obama Administration in the renminbi-dollar negotiations.

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