From The China in Transition blog:
China should eliminate residence-based discrimination and stop differentiating between rural and urban residents, Ma Kening, a NPC delegate from Shaanxi, proposed to China’s top legislature.
In the proposal, which Ms. Ma also posted on her blog at people.com.cn, she pointed out that rural residents, or nong min (peasants) as they are usually called, have not be granted full citizen rights as those who live in cities, including political rights, education and social security, like government sponsored health care and pension.
“The word ‘nong min’ should not appear in China’s formal law texts. The term itself is a discrimination against citizens living in the rural area,” Ms. Ma wrote, and suggested the word be replaced with “rural residents” or “rural citizens” in the Constitution and other laws. [Full Text]
