| First of all, the UN Human Rights do not apply to countries that deliberately object to them. The Hukou system seems to be a very complex and nerve-racking practice indeed. However, I don't believe that "discrimination" is the most adequate term to characterize it. As everybody knows, China is regarded as a country full of disparities or even inconsistencies. Based on this assumption, I - when looking at China-related issues - look at China not as one country but as a large area enclosing many smaller regions, all of which may well be regarded as a country of their own. China is a territory much too large to be managed by one government, and the administrative structure in place (central vs. provincial governments) indicates that in practice, provinces have a country-like status. Thus, crossing provincial borders is virtually equal to crossing country frontiers. Crossing country frontiers is anywhere else in the world as difficult as in China. And this approach removes a lot of the accusatory sentiments against the Hukou system. Some of the writers of the previous posts have already pointed out that similar forms of "discrimination" exist in other countries as well. A couple of years ago, it wasn't that easy to move across borders within the EU, so people there were facing problems just as the Chinese do when planning on cross-border healthcare, job-hunting, studying and so on and so forth. I admit that the extent is much more severe in China, but from an overall perspective, the underlying principle of the Hukou system is not uniquely Chinese. Apart from cross-border healthcare, which is a matter to specific to be discussed in just a few lines, the rules applicable to cross-border movement and employment are the same in China as in other places and can be summarized as follows: If you're in demand at the intended destination, you will be pulled there. But if you're not in demand, you have to fight to get yourself pushed to that place. |
Hukou System in China