The tangled web: does the internet offer promise or peril for the Chinese Communist Party?

This paper seeks to address the divide between political rhetoric and reality on the question of the impact of the Internet on China. Many politicians and pundits steadfastly promote the Internet as a conduit for democracy, without empirical proof to support their statements. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the debate over information technology and the Internet in China. The Chinese Communist Party is employing a number of approaches to control the Internet, from introducing numerous regulations to encouraging self‐censorship, with some success. This paper will examine state‐coordinated measures to control the use of the Internet, look at how the Internet could be making CCP rule more effective, and consider the validity of the argument that the Internet represents a threat to CCP rule.     

认真贯彻十六大精神开创民族科研工作新局面--对江泽民同志"三次"讲话的学习体会

本文通过对党的十六大报告和江泽民同志关于哲学社会科学"三次"重要讲话的学习,认为江泽民同志的讲话内容在十六大的报告中得到了充分的体现,是新世纪新阶段包括民族科研在内的哲学社会科学事业的纲领.民族科研工作有极其重要的历史地位和现实意义,要以十六大报告和江泽民同志的"三次"讲话为指针,开创民族科研工作的新局面.     

基于文化安全视角下的中国传统文化艺术的保护与传承——以陕北为例

文化安全问题目前在世界范围内受到广泛关注并逐渐上升到影响国家安全的战略高度。中国共产党的十七届六中全会把维护国家文化安全列为文化建设的一项重要任务。文化之所以出现"安全"问题与全球化进程中的"双刃剑"效应以及西方发达国家极力推行文化霸权主义的理论和实践行为有直接而密切的关系。在全球化大潮的冲击下,保护和传承好我国的传统文化,是一个重大的课题。论文以陕北传统文化艺术的保护传承为例,通过对陕北民间文化艺术的蕴藏及其保护状况阐述,分析当前传统文化艺术的保护传承过程中存在的问题和不足。力图提出有效措施发扬我国优秀的传统文化艺术,进而加强我国在全球化中的竞争力,切实维护国家文化安全。     

党在民主革命时期逐梦的历史轨迹及其当代启示

中国共产党成立后,根据不同历史时期的国情把握和实践需要,围绕实现中华民族伟大复兴的中国梦这一主题,提出诸多长远的和阶段性奋斗目标。党在民主革命时期逐梦的历史轨迹的当代启示是:实现中国梦,必须善于根据中国国情和具体历史条件的变化,制定切合实际的纲领和奋斗目标,并找到使中华民族走向伟大复兴的正确道路和依靠力量;实现中国梦是一个长期曲折的过程,不可能一蹴而就,需要一代又一代中国共产党人带领人民接续奋斗。     

Mao Zedong on contradictions under socialism revisited

This paper explores the political background to, the reasons behind, and the stages through which Mao Zedong reversed the position of the Resolution of the 8th Party Congress of 1956 on the issue of the major domestic contradiction in China. Relying on recently published Chinese sources, both primary and secondary, the paper argues that Mao arrived at his position, in which the primacy of class struggle was once again asserted, principally as a result of his negative assessment of the criticism leveled against the CCP in the Party rectification of May 1957, but in an ambivalent and diffident frame of mind, and one highly sensitive to the question of theoretical orthodoxy. Mao's reversal on this crucial issue both confused his colleagues in the CCP CC and aroused strong arguments within that body.     

How Do You Solve a Problem Like Legitimacy? Contributing to a new research agenda

Previously in this journal, Gunter Schubert's article, entitled ‘One-party rule and the question of legitimacy in contemporary China’, called for the setting up of a new research agenda to analyze the legitimacy of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). While making a valuable contribution to the study of the CCP's legitimacy, Schubert's emphasis on the empirical measurement of this concept gives rise to a number of conceptual and theoretical issues. As a consequence, this article seeks to contribute to the research agenda by addressing these issues. In so doing, it suggests that a shift away from a narrow empirically-measured focus on legitimacy towards a broader conceptually-driven concern with legitimation would allow for a more inclusive agenda within the China studies community and lead to a more complete understanding of why the CCP remains in power.     

The Party and the Sage: Communist China's use of quasi-Confucian rationalizations for one-party dictatorship and imperial ambition

The current bloom of quasi-Confucian political thinking and writing in the People's Republic of China (PRC), encouraged by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and deployed both to discredit Western ideals of democratic pluralism and to rationalize continued one-party rule in China, has been a long time coming. This article examines the origins of this line of thinking, its development since its first appearance with the CCP's cultivation of Confucius studies in the mid-1980s, and the current parameters of this discourse as it has taken a growing role in Beijing's domestic political and emerging geopolitical narrative.     

中国共产党政治理想的张扬

本文从政治理想引领政治生活的角度，阐述中国共产党领导中国人民进行社会主义现代化建设进程中政治思想和政治实践的发展历程，揭示出我党提出的科学发展观以及构建和谐社会发展战略的重要意义。     

Revolution and Reform: the role of ideology and hegemony in Chinese politics

This paper aims to further an understanding of Chinese politics through a focus on ideology and hegemony. Drawing on the writings of Antonio Gramsci and Henri Lefebvre, the paper examines the nature of ideological domination held by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and generates three implications. First, Gramsci's theory of hegemony can be applied more broadly to build a socialist regime, particularly in China where the party of the proletariat and its allies have been in a quandary over how to consolidate its ruling position after capturing political power. Second, the party needs to incorporate mass consciousness into the battlefield of politics so as to attain or maintain its hegemony. Third, the ideologies of revolution and reform are formulated to embed the CCP's beliefs into people's consciousness and to acquire consensus which is essential for the CCP's hegemony in China.     

Democrats within the Chinese Communist Party since 1989

The focus of this article is the discourse of democracy among a group of senior retired officials and academics within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) since 1989. The post-totalitarian regime prevents them from forming a formal faction, but does not stop them from establishing a visible network and effectively arguing for the case of democratization. They want nothing less than Western style democracy as a system involving effective competition between political parties for positions of power through regular and fair elections, in which all members of the population enjoy the freedom of expression and the freedom to form and join political groups or associations. They publish chiefly on the Internet, but also through printing media home and abroad, including some high profile journals under their control or influence in China. By taking advantage of their profound thinking, rich experience and particularly their seniority within the communist hierarchy, democrats within the CCP are making increasing impacts on democratization in China, effectively keeping the debate on China's democratic future alive in the state media and among the CCP leadership. The response of the top CCP leadership to the proposals by their democrat colleagues is not entirely negative, especially on reaching a consensus of accepting democracy and human rights as universal values. The process of the conversion of Chinese communists to liberals is well under way, and sufficient intellectual resources have been accumulated for a democratic transition or a historical breakthrough of democratization in China.     

The PLA and Diplomacy: unraveling myths about the military role in foreign policy making

The PLA's role in Beijing's foreign policy-making process is a closed book but it is a key research topic in our study of Chinese diplomacy. This paper argues that generally the PLA abides by a fine division of labor with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) in managing Beijing's international pursuits. The civilians are in charge of China's generic foreign affairs and daily diplomacy. The Central Military Commission (CMC) is responsible for security/military-related foreign affairs and defines the bottom-line for employing force in conflicts. Institutionally the PLA's role is more directional than detailed and is often behind the scenes. This complicates our research of the subject matter, as the line between this division of labor is thin over many diplomatic issues. Often times it is hard to demarcate where Beijing's normal diplomacy ends and where security/military dynamics begin. This paper adopts a two-layered analysis on civil–military interaction on foreign and security affairs: the broad consensus of CCP–PLA leaders on CCP regime stability at a time of drastic domestic change and world pressure; and the PLA's directional role in China's security/military-related foreign affairs under a generic civilian guidance.     

党的三代领导人与西部大开发

解放50多年来,以毛泽东、邓小平、江泽民为核心的党的三代领导人十分关注西部地区的发展。为了推动西部地区的经济发展和现代化建设,他们进行了艰辛的探索和伟大的实践。在不同的历史时期,采取了不同的政策措施,提出了不同的发展战略,对西部地区的经济发展都产生了深远的影响。以江泽民为核心的第三代中央领导集体作出西部大开发战略决策,将进一步推动西部地区经济的腾飞。     

苏区妇女运动中的性别与阶级

本文以"土地"和"婚姻"为两个观察点,考察苏区妇女运动中的"性别中的阶级"和"阶级中的性别",回答为什么苏区的妇女运动能够赢得劳动阶级青年妇女的支持。以国统区报纸中的两份报道、中共的工作文献、口述资料来展示中共、苏区青年妇女及中共反对者对于这场革命的不同态度。由此,从方法论角度说明言说者的"立场"如何影响了看待苏区妇女运动以及妇女的主体性。另外,本文想强调正视阶级性并以劳动妇女作为自己的社会基础,是中国共产党领导的妇女运动最宝贵的历史经验。     

Did the CCP sign a secret document on mutual defense with the DPRK in 1949?

Based on investigations of newly released sources in China and Russia and interviews with retired high‐ranking officials of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), this study concludes that the CCP did not sign a secret document on mutual defense with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) as was first reported in 1949. This conclusion, however, should not be followed by an inference that Kim Il‐sung, Stalin, and Mao Zedong did not jointly plot the Korean War.     

“第三次国共合作”解读

现在有不少人希望能够通过“第三次国共合作”实现祖国和平统一,这种可能性是否存在？本文从国民党对“国共合作”的历史记忆、台湾现行的政治体制、国民党的政治转型、民进党以及台湾社会对国民党的看法、共产党的态度等五个方面进行分析,得出结论：通过“第三次国共合作”实现祖国统一的可能性已经不存在,但以两岸关系和平发展为目标的国共合作则是可行的。     

论党对马克思主义中国化时代化大众化的历史探索

党的十七届四中全会提出要大力推进马克思主义中国化、时代化、大众化的重大战略任务。这项任务的提出具有十分重要的现实意义和长远的历史意义。在中国共产党90年的发展历程中,一直致力于推动马克思主义的中国化、时代化、大众化,但是党对于这一问题的认识却经历了一个曲折的历史过程。综观党对马克思主义中国化、时代化、大众化的历史探索,将有利于总结历史经验,进一步推动马克思主义理论创新。     

坚持依法行政

中共十六大报告提出"坚持依法执政,实施党对国家和社会的领导".这是新世纪新时期对党提出的必然要求,也是党在执政理念上的重大创新.     

Peasant challenge in post‐communist China

Peasants constitute about 73% of China's population. To a large extent, the success of China's modernization program and transition depends on where peasants are heading. Peasants have posed new challenges for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the 1990s after 17‐year economic reform. This article argues that these challenges derive from the empowerment of the peasants since the mid‐1980s. How well the CCP could deal with these challenges directly concerns China's political stability and reform. Through the examination of the evolution of the peasant‐CCP relations and of the implications of the challenges for China in the 1990s and beyond, this article raises an open question for China scholars to address.     

The Revival of Confucianism and the CCP's Struggle for Cultural Leadership: a content analysis of the People's Daily, 2000–2009

The revival of Confucianism in the first decade of the twenty-first century is a political phenomenon that cannot be ignored with regard to its social influence and the particular meaning it has brought to China. However, so far, there has not been much academic research into the political reasons for this revival at a deeper level. Based on the 228 articles published in the People's Daily in the years between 2000 and 2009, a content analysis is conducted on how Confucianism was represented in this authoritative official medium. The examination of the role that Confucianism plays in the construction of the socialist ‘advanced culture’ provides a clear lens to observe the role of Confucianism in the Chinese political ideology, which is still rooted and based on Marxism–Leninism. This research is aimed at clarifying how Confucianism was pragmatically promoted by the government of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) with the purpose of securing its cultural leadership. This state-led promotion reveals the vulnerability of the political status of Confucianism in contemporary China and its unsecured future.     

发展社会主义民主政治建设社会主义政治文明

党的十六大报告,把发展社会主义民主政治,建设社会主义政治文明,确定为全面建设小康社会的一个重要目标。实现这一重要目标,必须深刻理解政治文明的深刻内涵和重大意义;必须坚定不移地走自己的政治发展战略,积极稳妥地推进政治体制改革;必须发挥我们的政治优势,把坚持党的领导、人民当家作主和依法治国有机的统一起来;必须坚持我国社会主义政治制度的自我完善和发展;必须改革和完善党的领导方式和执政方式,实现党的领导方式、执政方式的现代化和民主化;必须处理好改革、发展和稳定的关系,维护国家统一、民族团结和社会稳定;必须实现整个社会运行机制的制度化、规范化和程序化。