Chinese Government Encourages Charitable Activities

The hundreds of thousands of nongovernmental organizations in China must operate under the government’s approval, yet the government seems to be relaxing some of its control, reports The Los Angeles Times.

Alarmed by large disparities in income among the nation’s residents, the Chinese government has given nonprofit organizations more freedom to solve social problems.

The Catholic Social Service Center of the Liaoning Diocese in northeastern China recently held the nation’s first pan-Christian conference on HIV and AIDS. In attendance were government officials from the Ministries of Religious Affairs and Health. Both sides agreed to develop a network of religious groups dedicated to preventing the spread of HIV and AIDS.

Elizabeth Williams, an AIDS expert at the Asia Society, in New York, says, “It definitely appears that there is a recognition they need to foster, support and encourage civil-society development. But there’s also a fear of how far that will go.”

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