Critical Issues in Contemporary China

by Tubilewicz; Czeslaw

• ISBN13: 9780415395854
• ISBN10: 0415395852
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2006-10-16
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Critical Issues in Contemporary Chinaoffers up-to-date and in-depth coverage of the social, political and economic problems facing contemporary China. It provides students with a comprehensive analysis of a number of key issues including: Critical developments in Chinese politics The privatization of China's economy and social services Regional economic inequalities Environmental problems Population growth and food security Ethnic minorities Social change Social and economic inequalities Cross-strait relations with Taiwan By examining the three interrelated themes of stability, sustainable development and territorial integrity, the contributors raise important questions regarding the Chinese Communist Party's capacity to continue fast paced economic development and maintain the territorial unity ofChina. Critical Issues in Contemporary Chinais both accessible and informative with a numberof useful pedagogical features that will equip undergraduates with the analytical skills needed to assess the political, economic and social challenges surrounding China as it enters the twenty-first century.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	p. xii
List of Contributors	p. xiv
Acknowledgements	p. xvi
Stability, development and unity in contemporary China	p. 1
Introduction	p. 2
Stability in China prior to the reform era	p. 2
Sources of instability in contemporary China	p. 4
Weaknesses of the political system	p. 4
Economic inequalities	p. 5
Unrest among ethnic minorities	p. 7
Sustainable development	p. 8
Environmental sustainability	p. 9
Population growth and food security	p. 10
China's territorial unity	p. 11
Reunification with Taiwan	p. 12
Centrifugal forces in contemporary China	p. 13
Secessionist movements in ethnic areas	p. 14
The peril of regional disintegration	p. 15
Development riddled with challenges	p. 16
References	p. 17
Critical developments in Chinese politics	p. 19
Introduction	p. 20
Ideology	p. 21
Marxism-Leninism in China	p. 21
Jiang Zemin's Important Thought of the Three Represents	p. 23
Building a 'socialist harmonious society'	p. 24
Government reform	p. 25
The Party's control of government	p. 25
Restructuring the relationship between government and the Party	p. 26
The state and the economy	p. 27
The state and society	p. 27
Leadership succession	p. 29
The transfer of power	p. 29
Leadership succession in CCP history	p. 29
The role of the army in CCP leadership succession	p. 31
Jiang's succession strategies	p. 32
Grassroots-level elections: an experiment with pluralism	p. 34
Political participation in China	p. 34
Villager committees: the origin of grassroots democracy	p. 35
Challenges to grassroots democracy in China	p. 36
Significance of grassroots democracy	p. 37
The information revolution and political control	p. 37
Social surveillance and ideological control	p. 38
The growth of information flow	p. 38
The state's responses to the information revolution	p. 40
To what extent does the information revolution challenge the state?	p. 43
Conclusion	p. 44
References	p. 44
Further reading	p. 47
Privatisation	p. 49
Introduction	p. 50
What is privatisation?	p. 50
The narrow definition: privatisation from above	p. 50
The broad definition: privatisation from below	p. 50
An 'unintended' privatisation in China	p. 51
'Crossing the river by groping for stones'	p. 52
Rural privatisation	p. 52
Urban privatisation	p. 54
Legitimisation of the private economy	p. 55
Post-1992 acceleration	p. 56
From the Fifteenth National Party Congress to the present	p. 59
Political economy of privatisation in China	p. 60
Privatisation from below	p. 60
Privatisation from above	p. 66
Consequences of privatisation in China	p. 68
Fiscal consequences	p. 68
Decline of the state's control over society	p. 69
The rise of an entrepreneurial class and democratisation	p. 70
The rise of unemployment	p. 71
Privatisation of welfare and social service systems	p. 72
Conclusion	p. 73
Glossary: key terms related to privatisation in China	p. 74
References	p. 76
Uneven economic development	p. 79
Introduction	p. 80
A historical overview of regional economic development	p. 82
Regional development during the Mao years	p. 82
Changes in regional disparities since 1978	p. 84
The economic causes of uneven regional development	p. 92
Proximate sources of output growth	p. 92
Sources of capital accumulation	p. 94
The political causes of uneven regional development	p. 97
Government intervention: revenue collection vs egalitarianism	p. 98
Mao's China (1949-76)	p. 99
Policy changes and regional inequality in the reform period	p. 100
Policy shifts in the 1990s	p. 103
Declining central extractive capacity	p. 105
Options for addressing regional disparity	p. 107
Conclusion	p. 108
References	p. 110
Further reading	p. 111
China's environmental problems	p. 113
Introduction	p. 114
Historical background to environmental problems in China	p. 115
Environmental problems in early Chinese history	p. 115
Environmental problems and policy from 1949 to 1978	p. 115
What causes China's environmental problems?	p. 117
Population pressure	p. 117
Shortage of natural resources	p. 119
Government planning, policy and management	p. 121
How serious is pollution in China?	p. 121
Water pollution	p. 121
Solid wastes	p. 123
Air pollution	p. 125
Noise pollution	p. 128
Government responses to China's environmental problems	p. 129
How serious is the resource degradation found in China?	p. 129
Deforestation	p. 129
Soil erosion	p. 131
Aridity	p. 132
How is nature conservation managed in China?	p. 135
China's flora and wildlife	p. 136
Conservation during the Mao years	p. 136
The establishment of nature reserves	p. 137
Government responses to endangered wildlife	p. 138
What are the effects of environmental degradation?	p. 138
Worsening conditions for the urban poor	p. 139
Increasing political commitment to environmental issues	p. 139
Environmental diplomacy	p. 139
Conclusion	p. 140
References	p. 141
Further reading	p. 141
Population change and food security in China	p. 143
Introduction	p. 144
Demographic trends in China since 1949	p. 145
Population policies in China	p. 149
Food production in China	p. 151
The Mao era	p. 152
The reform era	p. 155
From food production to food consumption: feeding the Chinese population	p. 158
China's food security in the twenty-first century	p. 161
Conclusion	p. 164
References	p. 165
Ethnic minorities	p. 167
Introduction	p. 168
Policies on minorities 1949-90	p. 168
Mao's policies on ethnic minorities	p. 169
Ethnic minorities under Deng Xiaoping	p. 170
What is a 'minority nationality'?	p. 171
Ethnic consciousness	p. 174
Recent policy towards ethnic minorities	p. 174
Economic development and the suppression of separatism	p. 175
Autonomy and affirmative action	p. 175
Minority economies	p. 177
Preferential policies	p. 178
Inequalities	p. 179
Poverty	p. 180
Population issues	p. 181
Han immigration	p. 182
Religion	p. 183
Islam	p. 183
Buddhism	p. 183
Religion and separatism	p. 184
The question of national unity	p. 185
Challenges to national unity	p. 185
Tibet	p. 185
Xinjiang	p. 186
Ethnic minorities and international relations	p. 188
Tibet and the USA	p. 188
Xinjiang, Russia and the USA	p. 189
Conclusion	p. 190
References	p. 191
Further reading	p. 192
Critical social issues	p. 193
Introduction	p. 194
Family and women	p. 195
Family in traditional China	p. 195
Women in traditional China	p. 196
The family during the Republican period	p. 197
The PRC and family	p. 198
Changing household patterns	p. 199
Marriage	p. 199
Divorce	p. 200
Women's role and status	p. 201
The education system	p. 203
Education in imperial China	p. 203
Education in the Republican period	p. 204
Education under Mao Zedong	p. 204
Changes in education during the reform period	p. 205
Challenges ahead	p. 212
The health system	p. 212
The health system under Mao	p. 213
Reform and the health system	p. 213
Disease crises and health care management	p. 215
Economic inequality in Chinese society	p. 218
Land reform, collectivisation, and the elimination of private enterprise	p. 218
Economic inequalities during the reform period	p. 220
The elimination of absolute poverty	p. 222
Conclusion	p. 223
References	p. 224
Cross-Strait relations and China's reunification prospects	p. 227
Introduction	p. 228
China and Taiwan before 1949	p. 229
Taiwan as a Japanese colony	p. 229
The 28 February Uprising	p. 230
Taiwan during the Civil and Korean wars	p. 231
Taiwan Strait Crises	p. 232
The first crisis: 1954-5	p. 232
The second crisis: 1958	p. 233
The 'one China' question	p. 233
Sino-Taiwanese dialogue	p. 234
Beijing's peace overtures	p. 234
Dialogue formalised	p. 235
Renewed tensions	p. 237
Flexible diplomacy	p. 237
The missile crisis	p. 238
Taiwan's democratisation	p. 241
The lifting of martial law	p. 241
Evolution of Taiwanese democracy	p. 242
The rise of Taiwanese identity	p. 243
The DPP era in cross-Strait relations	p. 244
Chen Shui-bian's first term	p. 244
2004 presidential elections	p. 246
China's push and pull	p. 247
Cross-Strait economic relations	p. 249
The US factor	p. 252
Future scenarios	p. 253
The status quo	p. 253
War	p. 254
One country, two systems	p. 255
Federacy	p. 255
Confederation	p. 255
Conclusion	p. 256
Note	p. 257
References	p. 257
Index	p. 263
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