Book Discussion: Non-Governmental Orphan Relief in China: Law, Policy and Practice, by Anna High: Comments by Zheng Xu and Shahla Ali

Abstract

Anna High ’ s masterful and thoughtful book, Non-Governmental Orphan Relief in China: Law, Policy and Practice , examines the interplay between non-governmental and governmental orphan relief efforts in Mainland China. Both specialist and non-specialist readers will appreciate the humanitarian value of this work, focusing as it does on issues of child rights in the context of China ’ s most disadvantaged children — gu ’ er , otherwise known as “ the lonely orphans. ” High ’ s book is the result of in-depth socio-legal case-based research published by the Routledge Contemporary China Series focusing on the legal grey zone of non-state orga-nized gu ’ er relief in contemporary China. It draws on a multi-year process participant observation and semi-structured interviews with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and private caregivers across rural and urban China to shed light on the ambiguous role of law in child welfare. The author ’ s nearly decade-long longitudinal ethnographic fieldwork reflects recent developments in Chinese charity law, with particular reference to the silent, and at times invisible, uphill struggle of non-governmental gu ’ er welfare providers in China.