NGOs cautious over new rule

Non-governmental organizations have expressed concern over new municipal regulations regarding registration of NGOs, which came into force Monday, as the government has yet to announce specifics of the new rule.

Four types of non-governmental organizations can directly register with the Beijing Civil Affairs Bureau without finding governmental supervising departments from Monday, Beijing government announced Friday.

According to the Beijing Civil Affairs Bureau, the four types of NGOs include industrial associations, technological, charity and suburban and urban community service organizations. The law will be published later, the bureau announced at a press conference Thursday.

Fan Popo, executive chair of Beijing LGBT Center, said he is concerned that gay organizations will not be included.

"I don't want to register even though we have the right. I'm so afraid that if I register with the government, every project we do will be censored," said Fan.

"The government is still conservative with gay issues. But we must do what we want to do," said Fan.

Han Hongmei, leader of Yiyuangongshe, an NGO for vulnerable groups, said she is also concerned that the registration would lead to a loss of freedom.

"I want to wait to see the specifics, and to know the qualifications needed for registration and whether money needs to be paid after," said Han.

Han said that if the law is acceptable and their work will not be interfered with, she will register because it is good for the development of the organization.

"Because we're not registered, we can't get public funding. Many Chinese foundations only want to donate to registered organizations, so we can't get their money," said Han.

Han noted that if they can register, they can increase their public credibility.

According to the previous NGO registration regulations issued by the Certification and Accreditation Administration in 2006, the NGO needs to get approval from the government departments which are in charge of the organizations' business field to be registered.

Feng Yongfeng, founder of environment NGO Nature University, which registered in July 2011, said the law will be helpful for those organizations which cannot find supervisory departments.

"However, the most difficult thing about the registration is the passive attitude of the bureau's staff members to process your registration," said Feng.

Feng said that his organization now operates in the same way as before.

"It's better to register because your job will be easier. We can have a company account to raise funds, which is more trustworthy to people," said Feng.