The law, passed by Chinese legislators on Thursday, is designed to crack down on any activities undertaken by foreign nonprofits which threaten national security or ethnic harmony. The Chinese Ministry of Public Security will now be put in charge of registering foreign nonprofit organisations working in China, while police will be granted the authority to search offices. Additionally, all foreign organisations working across Chinese civil society on issues including the environment, civil rights, cultural exchange and possibly even education and business will be required to find a Chinese organization to sponsor their activities, or cease operation in the country. According to local news reports around 7,000 foreign organisations are likely to be affected, the bulk of them nonprofit charities.

International opposition

The international business community has joined in the chorus of opposition to the new laws, which threaten the continued operation of any organisations whose work is viewed as politically sensitive by the Chinese government. According to reports in the New York Times, organisations which provide training to lawyers will likely be pressured to limit or completely curtail such programs. Groups which promote workers’ rights, ethnic equality and religious freedoms are also among those most likely to have their status in China undermined by the new legislation. In response to the law’s passage, White House National Security Council spokesperson Ned Price commented: ‘We urge China to respect the rights and freedoms of human rights defenders, journalists, business groups, development professionals, and all others who make up civil society, including by protecting the ability of foreign NGOs to operate in China.’

Sources: New York Times; Wall Street Journal