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As part of the third annual " National Security Education Day" on April 15, several Chinese government institutions released a cartoon warning citizens to be on alert for attempts at foreign political infiltration. The cartoon, produced jointly by the Ministry of State Security, the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, and the China Aerospace Science and Industry Cooperation, shows a foreign NGO employee meeting with a Chinese workers' organization, paying for worker trainings abroad, organizing protests, and providing extra money to his contact at the Chinese organization. Following the cartoon panels is an article describing how foreign spies-often dressed as travelers, diplomats, journalists, or researchers-will try to casually strike up a conversation as a means of initial contact, and then use other means to develop relationships with individuals they discover have access to key government agencies.

Awkward government warnings to citizens about foreign spying are certainly not unique to China. In 2014, the United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation released a video warning students abroad about foreign intelligence agents approaching them. The video, based on one student's experiences in China, was frequently described in terms such as "unintentionally hilarious . . . updated version of the schlocky anti-Soviet films the government used to pump out during the Cold War."

In this case, the relevant feature of the cartoon is its use of a foreign NGO employee as the threat vector. Though one of the cartoon's titles is "Be on Alert for 'Friends' Who Wear Masks," nowhere in the actual cartoon is it stated that the foreign NGO employee is actually an undercover spy. Several of the foreign NGO employee's activities in the cartoon in fact show normal non-profit advocacy work that could occur in any country: promoting and holding trainings, providing funding for local organizations to help organize trainings, or explaining to workers how to advocate for their rights. Without any of the ensuing text, one could easily read the cartoon as saying that foreign non-profits supporting advocacy work are themselves a threat to national security and merit being reported to the hotline. It also implies that worker protests are likely to be organized by foreign forces.

It is not clear whether the intention of the cartoon is to show how foreign spies use other professions as cover to secretly conduct destabilizing activities-and in this case, the "other profession" just happens to be a foreign NGO employee-or whether the intention is to raise concern about foreign NGOs themselves. In either case, the choice of a foreign NGO employee as the subject of the cartoon does underscore the notion of foreign NGOs as a national security, rather than a charity or civil society, issue.

Below is ChinaFile's English translation of the original Chinese-language cartoon.

Be on Alert for "Friends" Who Wear Masks

"Citizens Guarding against Political Infiltration" Cartoon

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Government Cartoon Portrays 'Foreign NGOs' as National Security Concern

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As part of the third annual "National Security Education Day" on April 15, several Chinese government institutions released a cartoon warning citizens to be on alert for attempts at foreign political infiltration. The cartoon shows a foreign NGO employee meeting with a Chinese workers' organization, paying for worker trainings abroad, organizing protests, and providing extra money to his contact at the Chinese organization.

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List of non-governmental organizations in China - Wikipedia

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This article is a list of domestic and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) operating in .

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Chinese NGOs playing greater role in conservation

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New Chinese law tightens control over NGOs

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Written by Yongshun Cai.

The Chinese central and local governments are ambivalent to NGOs but not for the same reason. The central government recognizes the contributing role of NGOs in social governance, but it is also concerned with the potential political threat arising from any organizations independent of the state's control. Local governments feel the direct need of NGOs in helping local governance, but they are worried about the political responsibilities tied to the management of NGOs. The central government addresses these concerns by regulating NGOs, whereas local governments tend to create and support NGOs that are more controllable.

The Chinese state seems to be an all-encompassing one, but it is unable to assume all the responsibilities in governance. The central and local governments understand that NGOs have helped to address a variety of issues arising from the fast socio-economic changes in the country. These issues include poverty, rural development, environmental protection, education, children, public health, migrant workers, women, legal aid, community issues, and disaster relief. Given the constructive role of NGOs, the government becomes tolerant of them, which leads to their proliferation. The number of registered NGOs in China is estimated to exceed 500,000, and there are many more non-registered ones.

On the other hand, the assumption that the rise of NGOs may challenge the government's rule may be reasonable, but it is not realistic in China at least for the time being. For example, some labour NGOs have helped to organize workers to pursue their interests. But such NGOs are not necessarily a challenge to the government because they are small in number and have rather limited influence. As a matter of fact, labour NGOs can be constructive and prevent disruptive labour protests when they help disputing parties to reach agreements on disputed issues.

More importantly, the Chinese government has limited the political influence of NGOs with its regulatory power. An important measure is its regulation on the registration of NGOs. By instituting registration procedures, the government creates its own NGOs or supports trustworthy ones. NGOs in China fall into several categories: governmental or semi-governmental NGOs, formally registered NGOs, and grassroots NGOs, many of which are not registered. The many non-registered NGOs are mostly privately operated and self-governed; they often lack stable financial resources. But these NGOs are not necessarily a threat to the regime. Non-registered NGOs become more dependent on local authorities because they are vulnerable to local discretion.

Another measure taken by the government is the management of sources of funding that affect NGOs' independence. NGOs' funding comes from domestic organizations, government, firms, membership fees, and international organizations. Overseas funding may be first allocated to the government for further distribution to NGOs within China. Compared with overseas NGOs, domestic NGOs are easier to control partly because many of them are financially dependent on domestic parties that are subject to government control or regulation. Domestic NGOs have to establish good relations with the government or its agencies either to sustain their operations or to obtain financial resources or both.

The government has understandably taken a more cautious approach when allowing overseas NGOs to operate in China. In 2016, the Chinese government enacted a new law "Management of Foreign Non-Government Organizations Activities in China," which is likely to influence about 10,000 overseas NGOs in the country. According to this law that took effect in 2017, all foreign foundations, charities, advocacy organizations and academic exchange programs must register with public security bureaus for authorization to conduct their activities; they must also find approved Chinese sponsors. In addition, overseas NGOs must report to the public security bureau annually and submit to inspections of their offices and bank accounts. Their registration can be cancelled if they are charged with creating rumors, engaging in defamation or publishing harmful information that endangers state security or damages the national interest.

The new law stipulates that overseas NGOs are allowed to deal with issues related to the economy, education, science, culture, health, sports and the environment. But the law does not ease the difficulties faced by overseas NGOs. In December 2016, the Ministry of Public Security issued a list of qualified sponsors for overseas NGOs but it may remain difficult for overseas NGOs to find one. Many government agencies or public institutions are reluctant to become sponsors for overseas NGOs due to the political responsibilities involved. Indeed, even domestic NGOs have encountered difficulties in finding sponsors. In addition, overseas NGOs cannot engage in fundraising in China, a regulation that increases the difficulties for overseas NGOs to provide financial support for domestic NGOs in the country.

The Chinese government has differentiated between overseas NGOs and domestic NGOs in terms of mode of management. Cognizant of the demand for NGO services, the Chinese central government has decentralized the management of domestic NGOs by shifting the responsibility and discretion to local governments. Decentralized management of domestic NGOs is an important factor determining the variation in local governments' tolerance and acceptance of NGOs. But the new law regulates that overseas NGOs have to register with the appropriate national and provincial-level police department, which is a centralized mode of management.

The central government's policy is therefore not to cease NGOs' activities in China, but to create and support reliable ones while taking precautions to manage less trustworthy ones. A combination of decentralized management of domestic NGOs and centralized management of overseas NGOs serves the government's policy goal. The management of NGOs in China reflects the government's strong adaptive capacity in dealing with the changing environment.
Yongshun Cai is Professor of Social Science at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Image Credit: CC by Lennon Ying-Dah Wong/Flickr.

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Written by Yongshun Cai. The Chinese central and local governments are ambivalent to NGOs but not for the same reason. The central government recognizes the contributing role of NGOs in social governance, but it is also concerned with the potential political threat arising from any organizations independent of the state's control.

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Why foreign NGOs are struggling with new Chinese law

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Only about 1 per cent of the foreign NGOs believed to be operating in mainland China have registered as required by a new law, meaning that thousands could be operating in a risky legal limbo....