Con

Gao Jianchu

China Business Times

Even though reasons exist for the rich to leave China for other countries, ordinary people are reluctant to accept emigration on such a large scale. Most feel rather cheated by it. In some cases, company employees feel abandoned when their noveau-riche bosses decide to emigrate after they have all worked to build a business together.

With today's stress on social harmony, it is imperative that the rich stand by the poor, and that entrepreneurs take on more social responsibility in the advancement of society.

We don't mean that the rich should give away their fortunes, but we do need a more reasonable wealth distribution system that allows the fruits of China's development to benefit as many people as possible. In this sense, emigration of the rich is a social issue, and the government should no longer turn a blind eye to such a serious problem.

Pro

Qi Hao

Company Employee in Beijing

I don't think there should be any restrictions on emigration, as they would go against the nation's policy of reform and opening up and also deprive people of the freedom to emigrate.

The rich choose to emigrate for many reasons. They're searching for better education for their children, better medical care, better living conditions, safer food and more convenient international travel. Emigration has nothing to do with one's patriotism.

We should not take away people's choice to emigrate, but instead get people to stay by improving domestic living conditions. If a person feels happy and satisfied with life, why would they leave their homeland?

Con

Qing Chuan

Rednet.cn

The emigration of the rich is an obviously loss for China. They not only take a large amount of money, but also their expertise and wisdom with them when they leave, deepening social crises in China. Some people hope that emigration restrictions will be put in place to prevent these losses. However, this seems unlikely. Keeping people from emigrating overseas not only goes against China's major policy of opening up to the outside world, but also tramples citizens' legitimate right to free movement.

In most cases, emigration has nothing to do with a lack of patriotism. In fact, many millionaires continue doing business in China after emigrating in an effort to share their success. They are motivated to emigrate for reasons relating to their children's education, food safety and asset safety. To some extent, emigration is simply a form of family insurance, reflecting a lack of confidence in China's future. This is truly depressing news in light of China's impressive progress.

But China is actively working to convince its wealthy citizens to remain by deepening economic and social reforms, improving the nation's education system, reforming relevant laws to better protect private assets, setting up a healthcare and pension system and promoting social justice.