Beauty queen sparks ugly debate in Shenzhen
By Chen Hong (China Daily)
Updated: 2005-11-24 05:44

Kitty Wang parades in swimsuit during the contest.

"It's unfair. I have worked hard here for a decade and have no chance of getting residency. How can she get it so easily just for having a beautiful face and a shapely figure?" said Liu Yong, an interior designer working in Shenzhen.

Another employee, surnamed Lu, working for a trading company, complained: "If the government wants to attract more talent to a certain industry, the special policy should relate to a group of people rather than a single star."

According to the existing policy, companies are granted a set number of residencies for their employees if they have paid at least 50,000 yuan (US$6,165) in corporation taxes in the previous financial year or have exported more than US$2 million goods or services.

For the self-employed, only those who have paid at least 80,000 yuan (US$9,860) personal income taxes for three consecutive years can apply for a residency allowance.

Official figures show the city squeezes 10.70 million people into less than 2,000 square kilometres. Of those more than 10 million people, about 9 million are migrant workers who have no permanent residency.

Migrant workers do not enjoy the same social security benefits as permanent residents, and their children do not have the same rights to education in the city.

However, some who call the city home supported the decision to make Wang a registered Shenzhener, believing her example will encourage young people that excellence in any industry can bring success.