Hukou
The role of the Household Registration System or Hukou in structuring mobility in China is well documented (see, for example, Cai, 2003; Chan, 1996; Chan, 2010b; Chan and Zhang, 1999; Fan, 2002; Fan, 2004; Logan, 2008; Murphy, 2002; Roberts et
al., 2004; Unger, 2002; Wang, Xiaozhou et al., 2013; Wu, 2010; Zhang, 2008; Zhang
and Tao, 2012) and is also discussed in Appendix 4. As the reforms in China have progressed so the influence of the Hukou system as a means to control movement has decreased. However, the Hukou system still has a profound influence on mobility both directly and indirectly. Zhang (2008: 467) stresses that continuities from the ‘pre-reform system continue to shape current urban development’ whilst Fan (2004: 285) argues that the state is empowered by the pre-reform socialist control instruments and uses these to maintain a significant influence over the ‘production, distribution and access to resources’. The Hukou system exerts an influence primarily in two forms: directly on the population and indirectly by restricting access to other forms of social welfare support (Demurger and Xu, 2013).
The mobility of the younger generation appears to have been strongly influenced by structural changes at the societal level in China. The reforms that China has pursued over the last 35 years have seen movement restrictions relax gradually from the 1980s onwards. The easing of movement restrictions on one hand and other structural factors encouraging movement on the other has seen a corresponding increase in the number of people migrating (see Table 3-4). In the case study sites the vast majority of people who have moved away are under the age of 35. This suggests that the easing of movement restrictions from the late 1980s onwards may have acted to segment the village population. People under a certain age felt able and willing to leave (regardless of the reason), at a time when mobility is traditionally high (at the end of schooling, looking for employment or around the time of marriage). This pattern appears to have persisted, most of the young people leave the village once they reach their 20s and the majority will have left by the time they are 35 years old. This type of demographically structured rural mobility is not uncommon in China and has been documented in a number of studies on migration in China (see, for example, Sun and Fan, 2010; Taylor, 2011; Wang and Fan, 2006; Zhao, 2005). Older people, in contrast, were generally unable to leave the rural areas due to the more stringent movement restrictions, even
at points in their life where levels of mobility would have been higher in a less restricted environment.
Hukou and its interaction with other state structures
The Hukou system exerts an influence indirectly by limiting access to other forms of state support. These forms of state support include access to poverty alleviation programmes, education and health services. In urban areas access to education is often restricted for children of rural families who do not possess an urban Hukou registration. As discussed above (see section 4.2.2), availability of poverty relief
programmes (such as the Wu Bao Hu or Di Bao Hu) are accessible to those residing in the same location as their Hukou registration. The linking of social welfare support with
Hukou and current residence strongly limits the mobility of those requiring social
welfare support. In addition, the Wu Bao Hu or Di Bao Hu programmes provide only a basic standard of living, thus limiting access to resources reducing the capabilities of individuals to migrate. In sum, the mobility of those relying on social support
programmes are strongly structured (in a negative sense) by the Hukou system.
Similarly, access to health services is also mediated through one’s Hukou registration (see also section 4.2.2). The costs of health services in locations that are not within the same locale as their Hukou registration are higher. Access to health services reveals a further discrimination that rural residents face when compared to their urban cousins. Only basic services are available in rural areas and those suffering from serious or more complex illness will often have to travel to urban centres to get appropriate treatment. As a result, the treatment is only available in locations away from one’s
Hukou registration, reducing the amount of subsidy the state is prepared to offer.
Lastly, access to education is more restricted for children of rural residents residing in urban areas compared to their urban cousins (Chan, 2013; He et al., 2010).
Government regulations state that children are entitled to 9 years of compulsory free education. However, the budget is allocated through local government and non- transferable. Urban schools with limited budgets are often reluctant to accept children from a province other than that in which their Hukou is registered. In addition, an enrolment or tuition fee is also required per semester and some schools also ask
As a result of the restrictions described above, the children of rural migrants commonly spend a significant amount of time being raised by their grandparents in order to
access the much more affordable schools in their home province (Connelly et al., 2011: 284). Supporting their grandchildren through school can cause problems, as many rural grandparents are illiterate and unable to provide much educational support. For example, an interviewee, when describing his children’s schooling, stated that,
She [daughter] did very poorly in study. At that time, my wife and I went out to work, no one can take care of the children in their studies at home, and they did poorly in their studies. When my son was in elementary school, he did well in study. … Yes, we didn’t go out to work at that time, it is better for him that we looked after him at home. When he was in junior high school, no one looked after him, and his performance in study was bad (20140203 Interview Wang Zhou).
The impact of this dislocated family life on the children, parents and grandparents has been postulated to have a number of impacts (both positive and negative). For the grandparents, their burden (provision of food, clothing, shelter, effort and responsibility) is increased due to the additional number of people requiring care. The additional workload can be partly offset through increased remittances from those working outside. Echoing the concerns raised in the quote above, Demurger and Xu (2013: 6) highlight the potential impact on the child’s educational attainment in a working paper exploring the impact of left behind children on return migration decisions. Other issues mentioned in the paper associated with this type of dislocated family arrangement include children’s psychological wellbeing and health condition although the evidence appears mixed and inconclusive (in terms of positive or negative outcomes).
The type of skipped generation family arrangement described above results, in part, from the discriminatory way in which educational access is structured. The demands placed on grandparents who have to look after grandchildren, parents who live away from their children and might only see them once or twice a year and the children themselves whose educational attainment might suffer are high. Furthermore, the expectations and norms associated with this sort of family arrangement highlight the importance of maintaining a family presence in one’s home village to ensure continued access to certain services. The grandparents, in providing access to (state) services are enabling their children to work and exploit opportunities (through mobility) that may not otherwise have been available to them if they had to invest more time in caring for their children. In facilitating access in this way, the mobility of the grandparents is likely to be more constrained as the location of the home (the physical asset) is required to enable the grandchild(ren) to access schooling and the grandparents are required to provide support and caregiving.
4.4.2 Village institutions