Sat, April 28, 2012
China should enhance its legal system to curb a proliferation of dual citizenship that has fostered official corruption and elite immigration, experts urged Friday after a senior member of the standing committee of China's national legislature called for the problem to be addressed.
Chen Yiyu, a member of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, said that many Chinese have taken advantage of loopholes in the system to illegally hold dual citizenship, forbidden under Chinese law, Xinhua reported Friday.
The remark echoed a recent official campaign against corrupt officials.
"Some people" have secretly obtained dual citizenship and foreign identities, transferred money and goods overseas, and used relatives and mistresses to conceal their wealth, said an article published by People's Daily on April 11.
However, "a few Chinese with foreign nationalities have still managed to get their Chinese identity cards and permanent residency registered by using special connections with local officials who usually turn a blind eye to the issue," Wang Yukai, a public affairs professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, told the Global Times, without giving exact numbers.
The other reason for the grey areas is the lack of an open platform that shares people's citizen information nationwide in all administrative departments, Lin Yun, a finance commentator for China Central Television, said on Friday.
In contrast, Wang Yaohui, director of the Center for China & Globalization, suggested China lift the prohibition on dual citizenship to attract talent and investments.
The approval will help encourage foreign and domestic high-end talent to settle in the country without being worried about losing their interest in other countries, Wang was quoted by the Shanghai Securities Journal as saying on Friday.
