"Hukou" scoring system quickens China's pace towards urbanization
来源：百度文库 编辑：神马文学网 时间：2024/10/02 22:26:43
"Hukou" scoring system quickens China's pace towards urbanization
16:23, November 12, 2010
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Hukou fraud exposes home truths about registration system
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Resolve for residence card
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Premier Wen says to advance reform of household registration system
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Enthralling Hukou waterfall in winter
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New residency rules spark disputes in Shanghai
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New household registration policy allows talents to settle in Hebei
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Privileges attached to the Hukou should be eliminated
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What does the "Hukou" bring for Chinese people?
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Hire graduates without local hukou
Increases the bookmark Hukou fraud exposes home truths about registration system
Resolve for residence card
Premier Wen says to advance reform of household registration system
Enthralling Hukou waterfall in winter
New residency rules spark disputes in Shanghai
New household registration policy allows talents to settle in Hebei
Privileges attached to the Hukou should be eliminated
What does the "Hukou" bring for Chinese people?
Hire graduates without local hukou
The prosperous Guangdong Province is the temporary home of more than 26 million farmer-turned-migrant workers, some of whom have long hoped to change the word "temporary" to "permanent" so they can send their children to public schools without being charged extra money and qualify for public medical insurance and government welfare payments, just like the registered permanent residents- those who have a Guangdong urban "hukou", or household registration permit.
To close the gap in the urban-rural divide that has long been a sore spot for the country's sustainable development and speed up urbanization, Guangdong unveiled a scoring system in June for the millions of farmer-turned-workers hoping to settle in cities and towns.
A migrant worker will be qualified to apply for urban household registration once his or her scores accumulate to 60. At the same time, his or her minor children, or even spouses in some cities, could also become registered.
Under the system, migrant workers earn different points depending on their educational background, skill level, social security records and participation in charity activities such as donating blood. For example, a senior high school graduate will receive 20 points, compared to 80 points for a university graduate, and criminal records and other offending behaviors will lead to a deficit in points.
However, for a metropolis like Guangzhou, the threshold for new citizens is higher. A minimum of 85 points is required by the city for migrant workers to receive a Guangzhou hukou.
The provincial capital is among the first nine cities, including Shenzhen, Huizhou, Dongguan and Zhongshan, which have already mapped out their own policies on requests for the provincial government. The remaining 12 cities are still preparing, according to Li Changfeng, deputy director of the provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security (DHRSS).
As of July, more than 17,000 migrant workers had become citizens of Guangdong through the scoring system, according to the department.
Further, Lin Wangping, another DHRSS deputy director, estimated that 1.8 million migrant workers would become urban residents in Guangdong via the scoring system by the end of 2012.
GROUND BREAKING MOVE
Some experts and media reports have referred to the scoring system as a ground breaking move for China's "hukou system" -- long criticized for hindering free labor movement, which is essential to building a modern economy and urbanization.
The hukou is a household registration permit that contains all of a household's identifying information, such as parents' names, births, deaths, marriages, and divorces. Most importantly, it identifies the city, town or village to which a person belongs.
However, the hukou is far more than just a data system for the government to manage information about its citizens. The benefits attached to the hukou are what makes it so sought-after.
Residents without a local hukou cannot enjoy medical and social insurance provided by the local government and their children are not allowed to attend public school, unless they pay extra fees.
In the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee's Proposal for Formulating the 12th Five-Year Program for China's Economic and Social Development (2011-2015), which was issued last month, the ruling party has stressed that accelerating urbanization would be an important mission during the next five years.
It specifically mentioned the task of making rural residents, who qualify under certain conditions, to gradually become urban residents .
Urban citizens accounted for 63.4 percent of Guangdong's total population in 2009, the highest level among China's provinces. The province aimed to achieve an urbanization target of 67.5 percent by the end of 2012.
Besides hampering urbanization, some also say the hukou system has created a two-tiered system of haves and have-nots among urban and rural residents, which is unfair and fails to ensure equal access to public services.
Efforts have been made before by many provinces to reform the hukou system by relaxing rules and allowing people to acquire a local hukou if they meet certain requirements, such as buying property or investing a large sum of money.
However, the scoring system provides alternatives for rural residents who cannot afford to buy homes or make investments and is more systematic and fair as applicants can obtain points through various ways such as education, skills, not violating the family-planning policy and participating in charity activities such as donating blood. Names of those qualifying would be publicized for public scrutiny before being finalized.
By Xinhua writers Wang Yue, Huang Haoyuan