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Guarding a New Great Wall: The Politics of Household Registration Reforms and Public Provision in China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 May 2022

Ren-Jie Hong ,
Yu-Chi Tseng  and
Thung-Hong Lin
Ren-Jie Hong*
Affiliation:
Binghamton University, SUNY, New York, USA.
Yu-Chi Tseng
Affiliation:
Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Taoyuan City, Taiwan. Email: yctseng@mail.cgust.edu.tw.
Thung-Hong Lin
Affiliation:
Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan. Email: zoo42@gate.sinica.edu.tw.
*
Email: rhong2@binghamton.edu (corresponding author).
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Abstract

The household registration (hukou) system has been widely recognized as a key contributory factor to social inequality and tensions in China yet it remains intact despite a series of institutional reforms. What explains the resilience of the system? In this study, we address this puzzle by drawing on policy documents, statistical data and interviews. We argue that the hukou system remains because it is used to protect the beneficiaries of welfare provision and to ensure pivotal groups continue to offer political support. We find that owing to the reforms, a formidable barrier has been erected between the guarded cities and other regions to protect healthcare and education resources from inbound migrant workers. Consequently, the institutional reforms of the hukou system serve as a political contrivance for the survival of the Chinese party-state regime. The findings contribute to emerging literature on China's political control by elaborating political elites’ subtle tactics through various institutions at central and local levels. We expect the new “Great Wall” established under Xi's administration to be an even stronger barrier than before for migrants during the current pandemic and in the future.

摘要

摘要

中国的户籍制度被认为是许多社会不平等与衝突的来源，但是在数十年的制度改革之后，户籍制度仍然有没废除的迹象，我们该如何解释户籍制度的韧性？本文透过政策文件、统计资料和访谈，发现由于最好的教育及医疗资源大量集中在大城市，户籍制度的存在，使政治菁英得以透过严格控制大城市户籍来保障既有的城市居民的福利，以换取政权的稳定。因此，户籍制度改革虽然取消了二元身份的区分，但是改以城市规模作为开放户籍的标准，其实是筑起了新的高牆，用来阻挡甚至驱逐不具城市户籍的流动人口。我们认为在新冠病毒的疫情影响之下，在可见的未来，由于医疗资源稀缺，这些大城市的落户标准可能更加严格。

Keywords

household registration (hukou)urbanizationwelfare provisionmigrant workersChina户籍制度城市化福利分配流动人口中国
Type
Research Article
Information
The China Quarterly , Volume 251 , September 2022 , pp. 776 - 797
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of SOAS University of London

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