Actually, it's gotten much easier for Chinese to get tourist visas abroad. Except for the UK where the conservative government is making it as difficult as possible for immigrants, most Western countries have loosend their border restrictions. As long as you can prove that you have a steady income and job in China, you should be fine.

If they would change the passport to the passport that allows Interpol and The FBI to have a look at their history, it wouldn't be problem at all. The fact is China was suppose to implement the passport with the computerchip inside but that would put all the crooks in danger of not travelling abroad

actually it's a lot on the part of the Chinese government not wanting their people to travel outside of China and be exposed to western thinking.

Unlike in other countries (such as UK/US) when you apply for a passport you could be turned down, whereas in the UK you're guranteed a passport.

Again there is also some visa issues but as others have said the visa process is quite simple. My wife (who is Chinese) has recently travelled to France on business with her company, and she needed lots of paperwork including her own bank account statements and her companies. BUT once the paperwork was processed it was very easy.

Well as I believe in the 'right' of freedom to travel I have to say yes it should be easier.

In a perfect world the individual trumps the state and no individual should need a passport to leave 'their' nation. The only reason for a passport should be so that receiving states can control who gains access to the services paid for by the taxpayer of that state, NOT to control who may leave a state.

However, we don't live in a perfect world, and while China IS making progress we have to applaud what they have done while we hope for (and perhaps encourage) more.

Try coming from the Uyghur minority and wanting to travel or study overseas. I have a Uyghur friend who received her passport in June 2012 -- she's been trying to get one since 2010. Her Han friends repeatedly got theirs after the standard two week process. This is a girl who was educated in the Chinese state school system and is so naturalised into Han culture that she cannot write in her own language. This kind of discrimination makes me sick. Other Uyghur people I knew have had to give up on promising post-graduate careers for no other reason than their ethnicity, even when expressly invited to top western universities by faculty staff members working there.

HELL YES!!!!!!

My wife and I have gone through this once when trying to visit my family and are currently going through it again as we are trying to get her a green card. It's a huge pain in the ass, really. The first time around, when we were trying to get a visitors visa, having to demonstrate strong ties to China was fairly difficult as we are both young and neither of us make a ton of money, comparatively speaking. We were actually pretty lucky really. The Shenyang consulate actually denies most of the people that apply for sort term visas. This is done because something like 90% of visitors to the US from this part of the country either overstay their visas or declare asylum once within the US. The people who conduct the interviews are actually instructed to assume that visa applicants will do the same unless given concrete evidence to the contrary. I haven't really got much to say about trying to get my spouse an immigration visa and, eventually, green card other than that its nothing short of an absurdly byzantine clusterfuck of interviews and paper work that takes absolutely forever. It's like something out of the movie Brazil.  

It is very ridiculous for some countries. My wife and I wanted to go to Korea but the nonsense for her visa was too much of a hassle. 

Yes I do think it's unfair and too bad that it's so difficult for some people to travel outside of China. 

Like others said, part of this is due to the Chinese government, it's not always or solely the foreign country that's making it difficult.

For example I know a few people who have government positions (low level office type work) and when I've told them they should come visit my home country with me some day they always say they same thing..... they would love to but since they work in government they aren't allowed to.  That's what they tell me anyways, I don't know the rules but if that's the case it's really too bad.  I have one friend who said he's waiting for retirement just so he can finally be allowed to go see other countries. 

China is like the Hotel California:  You can check out, but you can't ever leave.