Evolutionary Governance in China: State-Society Relations under Authoritarianism

by Szu-chien Hsu (Editor), Kellee S. Tsai (Editor), Chun-chih Chang (Editor)

Overview

The People’s Republic of China has experienced numerous challenges and undergone tremendous structural changes over the past four decades. The party-state now faces a fundamental tension in its pursuit of social stability and regime durability. Repressive state strategies enable the Chinese Communist Party to maintain its monopoly on political power, yet the quality of governance and regime legitimacy are enhanced when the state adopts more inclusive modes of engagement with society.

Based on a dynamic typology of state–society relations, this volume adopts an evolutionary framework to examine how the Chinese state relates with non-state actors across several fields of governance. Drawing on original fieldwork, the authors identify areas in which state–society interactions have shifted over time, ranging from more constructive engagement to protracted conflict. This evolutionary approach provides nuanced insight into the circumstances wherein the party-state exerts its coercive power versus engaging in more flexible responses or policy adaptations.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780674251199
Publisher:	Harvard University Press
Publication date:	02/09/2021
Series:	Harvard Contemporary China Series , #20
Pages:	420
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Szu-chien Hsu is Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Republic of China and Associate Research Fellow at Academia Sinica.

Kellee S. Tsai is Dean of Humanities and Social Science and Chair Professor of Social Science at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and Research Professor at Johns Hopkins University.

Chun-chih Chang is Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at Xiamen University.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures ix

Acknowledgments xiii

List of Contributors xvi

List of Abbreviations xviii

Part I Introduction

1 Evolutionary Governance in China: State-Society Interactions under Authoritarianism Kellee S. Tsai 3

2 Measuring State-Society Interactions in China's Evolutionary Governance: Examining Extant Literature (2005-2015) Szu-chien Hsu Chun-chih Chang 38

Part II Community Governance

3 Participation under Authoritarianism? Legislative Impact of Homeowner Activism in Beijing Yousun Chung 75

4 Cellularized Civil Society: Public Participation in Community Governance Szu-chien Hsu Muyi Chou 98

5 Contention and Inclusion of a Grassroots Community: Conflict over Rural Land Requisition in Nanhai, Guangdong Yi-chun Tao 129

Part III Environmental and Public Health Governance

6 AIDS Governance in China: Transitional Tripartite Interaction among State, Societal, and International Actors Chanhsi Wang 159

7 Not a Zero-Sum Game: State-Society Interaction and Anti-Incinerator Campaigns in China Szu-chien Hsu Chin-chih Wang 196

Part IV Economic and Labor Governance

8 Decentralized and Differential Labor Policy Governance: The Implementation of China's Labor Contract Law in the Pearl River Delta Chih-peng Cheng 229

9 Governing Foreign Capitalists in the Name of Workers: Policy Shifts Following Worker Suicides at Foxconn Thung-Hong Lin 255

10 Unintended Consequences of Enhanced Labor Legislation in Reform-Era China Christina Chen 284

Part V Social and Religious Governance

11 State-Society Interactions in the Campaign against Domestic Violence in China Weiting Wu 311

12 Local Strategies of Engaging the State: The Cultural Legitimation and Heritagization of Mazu Belief Ming-chun Ku 340

13 Governing an "Undesirable" Religion: Shifting Christian Church-State Interactions in Post-Mao China Ke-hsien Huang 362

Epilogue: China's (R)evolutionary Governance and the COVID-19 Crisis Elizabeth J. Perry 387