Han Hong, a CPPCC member and popular singer in China. [File photo: people.com.cn]

Han Hong, a member of the 11th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and a famous singer, will raise a proposal calling for the better protection of begging children this year, the local newspaper, The Beijing News, reported.

Her proposal urges government to build a state-level institution to offer a hand for children when their families fail to take care of them.

China has seen a widespread online discussion about the crimes of kidnapping children and forcing them to become child beggars after Yu Jianrong, a professor with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, launched a campaign via a micro-blog to rescue child beggars, which soon attracted a large number of followers.

Afterwards, both netizens and lawmakers suggested proposing new laws to prohibit child begging and severely punish human traffickers during this year's plenary sessions of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislative body, and its advisory body, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

Han Hong is one of the people who are concerned with the topic. To draft the proposal, she held a special seminar on February 19 to solicit opinions from both law experts and teachers, with the help of Beijing's Center for Juvenile Legal Aid and Research.

Han Hong has made great efforts to help children in the past few years. For instance, she submitted two proposals at the CPPCC meeting in 2009: One was about raising the monthly subsistence allowance of orphans; the other proposal was about the protection of personal safety of "left-behind" female children of rural migrant workers.