The Future of Overseas NGOs in China

On October 13, 2021, Katherine Wilhelm hosted Mark Sidel and me to discuss five years of the Foreign NGO Law in China.

“In 2016 China passed a law tightly restricting the activities of non-profit organizations from “overseas” jurisdictions, including Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan. NGOs, foundations, think tanks, and many universities, museums, and even industry associations suddenly faced a new regime of reporting obligations and surveillance. It is now almost five years since the law took effect. Law Professor Mark Sidel of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Jessica Batke, editor at the China NGO Project, will talk with USALI Executive Director Katherine Wilhelm about what five years of a heavily securitized regulatory regime has meant for overseas nonprofits in China, how the regime is adapting and expanding, and prospects for the future.”