Securitizing HIV/AIDS: a game changer in state-societal relations in China?

Lo, Catherine Yuk-ping

Grassroots NGOs are regulated by the Regulation on Registration and Administration of Social Organizations (Shehui tuanti dengji guanli tiaoli). According to the 1998 regulation (amended in February 2016), a NGO must possess a minimum asset of 100,000 yuan and have a "professional management unit" (Zhuguan danwei) that acts as a supervisory body to the organization in order to register under the Ministry of Civic Affairs (MOCA). 5 Fulfilling these two requirements is very formidable for grassroots NGOs. The financial situation is problematic in many grassroots NGOs because of the limited source of funding. On the one hand, most grassroots NGOs receive limited financial support from the government, as they usually do not have political ties with the government. Grassroots NGOs also seldom receive donations from local communities because (1) newly developed NGOs do not have good track records that enable them to win the trust of the locals, and (2) donors cannot receive tax breaks for their donation to unregistered NGOs [23, 24] . In addition, most government departments simply reject their applications due to fear of consequences of taking responsibilities for grassroots NGOs. Many grassroots NGOs are hence often unregistered or registered as business entities with the Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MOIC) [25] . 6 In addition to the abovementioned restrictions, the Regulation also bans "similar organizations" coexisting at the various administrative levels [21] , facilitating the management and even control the legal status of grassroots NGOs in China. 7 Having official registration, to certain extent, is sine qua non to the survival of organizations as the legal status entitles NGOs as official recognized entities to receive legal and financial supports from the government; unregistered NGOs are officially perceived as illegal that would be subjected to prosecution and coercion by the state apparatus. 8 Considering a restrictive engagement of grassroots NGOs in China, instead of grassroots NGOs, early HIV/ AIDS-related responses at societal level were largely conducted by GONGOs [26] , 9 [27] . Considering the low priority of health policies since the economic reform, the limitation of the "third sector" activity permitted in authoritarian China, together with the political sensitivity of the HIV/AIDS problem in the country, it is intriguing to uncover the reasons for the growth of HIV/AIDS-focused NGOs in China since 2003.