ABSTRACT
The hosting of the Women’s Conference was the historical moment for the development of women’s non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in China. NGOs occupy a legitimate place within the United Nation (UN) system. The NGO Forum serves both in controlling and initiating functions in the decision-making mechanism of the UN. Current reforms and China’s open-door policy offer women’s NGOs an unprecedented historical opportunity to develop. The development of women’s NGOs in China must be attributed to their historical and political foundations. The evolution of women’s NGOs in China is connected also with a deeper cultural phenomenon: the subordinate nature of women’s roles and the marginalization (bianyuanhua) of women’s organizations. Different types of women’s NGO in China play different roles and operate differently. First, women’s NGOs must build up new kinds of partnership with the government. Secondly, new forms of cooperation between the new women’s NGOs and the organizations of the Women’s Federation must be found.
