Teaching Comparative Government and Politics

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

China's welfare state

Creating a welfare state in a communist country? That sounds like an oxymoron. But China hasn't been a communist country for a long time. And most people have been going without family subsidies, health insurance, education, and food. Are things changing? Will they continue to change under new leadership?

And catch that last sentence. Government action in China "will require the support… of its citizens…" It's not a democracy. What's with the claim that popular support is needed by the government?

China's 'golden decade' brings some relief to rural poor

In a land now dotted with skyscrapers and designer stores, [the rural poor farmers] are scraping by… As others prosper, they fall further behind. Yet in the past decade, a string of measures have offered some relief: the abolition of agricultural tax and tuition fees, the rolling out of medical insurance that reimburses most of their bills, [old age pensions], and now school lunches…

As China prepares for its leadership transition… the administration is leaving behind what could yet prove a significant political legacy: building the skeleton of a welfare state and attempting to put a shelf below those at the bottom of society…

A decade ago, 147 million urban employees and 55 million rural residents had pension coverage. Now 229 million urban employees are covered, and 449 million rural and urban residents; 124 million are already receiving payments. A few years ago, barely 20% of rural dwellers had medical insurance; now 96% of the population are covered…

Many also believe that creating a proper welfare state will require a long-awaited overhaul of the hukou, the household registration system that defines people as urban or rural and allocates their rights to services such as education accordingly. At present migrants – and their children, who inherit their parents' status – in effect become second-class citizens in cities.

"It's the hardest thing to touch because it involves popular sentiment. City dwellers don't want a wave of people coming to share the same benefits as them," warned Kelly.

Developing a welfare state in China will require the support not just of China's new leaders – but of its citizens, too.