Local government agencies must shoulder their responsibilities and help the existing large number of
heihu – people without household registration
(hukou) and hence
proof of identity – to gain their
hukou, wrote Shen Bin, a professional in the media sector, in a commentary for
The Beijing News.
A recent investigative report by the newspaper shed light on a “hidden” group of people in China: Those who were abducted and trafficked as children, and thus were unable to have their household residence (hukou) registered; without one, they lost access to a personal identity card, alongside rights to education and employment. A national census in 2010 found that 13 million Chinese had such status.
A solution was put forward at the national level; in 2015, the State Council released a document on the issue, which stipulates that all unreasonable preconditions hindering its solving are banned.
In reality, the “abducted” or “stray” kids still find it hard to regain their proof of identity from local governments, who pose questions like “how to confirm they were indeed abducted?” and “whether it should be their duty, not that of others, to give them a hukou?” Shen wrote.
Given the central government’s clear policies on this, local government agencies should show their sincerity and sense of responsibility by acting in earnest, Shen argued.
In cases where foster parents or village committees are unwilling to give heihu a certificate, he noted that the State Council’s document already states that people without a hukou or their guardians can file an application with public security organs, who will grant the hukou upon verification.
Concerned about an extra person to share their collective wealth, some villages are unwilling to let him/her register residence there. Shen noted that since China recently rolled out policies to relax restrictions on people settling down in cities, offering them an urban hukou is thus worth exploring.
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