Of course, if one is eager to become an urban resident, they are able to achieve the goal by taking part in blood donation or other kinds of charity activities. A donation of 1,000 yuan ($147) means another 2 points, but no matter how much work a migrant worker has done or how much he or she has donated, he or she can, at most, earn 10 points.

Besides, if one performs so well that they win a high-level award, they might get 100 points at a single time. However, such things rarely happen and, given the large migrant population, the chance for this kind of luck to befall a worker is very slim.

As long as discrimination against migrant workers and their population does not diminish, any new policy is in essence the same as the ineffective ones that came before.

A major step forward

Fu Ruisheng (Qianjiang Evening News): Many Chinese cities, like Beijing and Shanghai, have started programs that grant excellent migrant workers urban household registration. Some cities have even given permanent residence directly to migrant workers who have won a national honor for their work. However, only a small portion of migrant workers qualify for these programs.

The points system in Guangdong has been the most comprehensive, efficient, fair and feasible program invented so far to turn migrant workers into urban residents. It is neither too conservative nor too radical.

Some people suggest abolishing the household registration system immediately without considering that dismantling the symbolic barrier will not enable migrant workers to enjoy equal social benefits. A failed example is the reform in Zhengzhou, Henan Province, where different types of household registration status were unified overnight. The reform caused a mess to the household registration administration and had to be called off in the end.

Although the points system adopted in Guangdong Province is only part of a progressive process, it still marks a major step forward for the country's household registration reform. Instead of completely denying the original system, the new system is an improvement since it grants social welfare to migrant workers who have contributed to the cities where they have resided for a certain period of time.

This system upholds the principles of equality, fairness and balance of contributions and rights. For example, migrant workers who want the full rights of urban residents have to give up the rights they enjoy at their old residence, such as social welfare in rural areas and the rights of contracting farmland. If they were allowed to enjoy the rights of both residences, it would be unfair to urban residents.

Under the points system in Guangdong, the urban household registration status and social welfare benefits of urban residents are no longer a privilege, but can be obtained by a farmer-turned-worker through making contributions to the cities of residence.

Liang Jiangtao (www.gmw.cn): The points system to give qualified migrant workers urban resident status is practical and attainable for migrant workers. Applicants' educational background, skill level and social security records are converted into points. They can transform their household registration status to local residents after reaching required points. That means migrant workers with professional skills, dedication to their jobs and enthusiasm for charity work can be granted urban resident status and full social welfare linked to it.

Many people are questioning the fairness of this system. Why aren't urban residents required to meet certain moral standards to keep their status while migrant workers are encouraged to do good deeds for the public to obtain their urban household registration? Actually they have misread the policy. Urban household registration, especially that of big cities, cannot be opened to the entire migrant population overnight. The middle path is to establish some conditions and let some people become urban residents first.

The points system will help boost the overall quality of migrant workers. Many cities are trying to climb the ladder through economic restructuring, adopting new technologies that conserve energy, reducing carbon emissions and shutting down backward production facilities. This change has raised their standards on recruitment and a large number of migrant workers might have to lose their jobs due to their low education level and lack of vocational training. The points system encourages migrant workers to take the initiative to receive vocational training and find better jobs.

Under the system, migrant workers can earn points for their contributions to society and lose points for committing a crime. This design can help cities stay safe and migrant workers who care about public good become model citizens for society. With the implementation of this system, migrant workers will gradually enjoy the equal treatment in children's education, public health care, housing supplies and social security.

Qu Fangye (Workers' Daily): Experimental reforms on the household registration system have been carried out for many years without making a breakthrough. Local governments have explored different paths. Some have adopted residence permits for migrant workers while others promise to grant urban resident status to investors or badly needed high-caliber professionals. Compared with these trials, the points system invented by Guangdong Province is more creative and feasible.Moving freely is an important right for citizens. In light of this, the points system is a sound vehicle to guarantee this right since anyone who contributes to local communities and meets certain criteria can apply for local household registration.

The ideal situation is that citizens can move wherever they want to live and enjoy local social welfare. However, in reality, the limited supply of social welfare is mainly created by local taxpayers, and it is unfair for newcomers to have equal access to them. But it is also unfair to deny immigrant workers access to the local social welfare after they have worked in a city for many years. The reform based on the points system is really worth a try.