Economic Reform and Social Change in China: Past, Present, and Future of the Economic State

China's socioeconomic crisis before 1978 and its success over the past two decades can be viewed as a zigzag process of politicization and depoliticization of the economic state. By summarizing the Chinese experience, this article shows the importance of a specific pattern of general public policy (GPP) in determining the nature of a policy system. China's economic and serialized reforms since 1978 are reviewed in order to illuminate the current situation and future direction of the nation. The changes have undermined the economic state by creating a trend of de-economicization in the Chinese government. If economic reform and social change are to continue smoothly, another transfer of state emphasis to more balanced development is required.     

试析古代中国的天下观

“天下观”是古代中国思想界利用空间概念建构出的一套世界秩序观。它具有鲜明的人文和政治含义,既体现了“天下一家”的高级旨趣,又显示了森严的尊卑等级特征。作为产生于古代的、区域性的世界秩序观,对于改造当代民族国家体系虽有借鉴意义,但缺乏实际的可行性。     

The integration of cooptation and coercion: China’s Taiwan strategy since 2001

In the past half-decade, China has developed a careful balance of cooptative and coercive power in its attempts to dampen the Taiwan independence movement and pursue political unification. In essence, attempts to curry favor with politically relevant constituencies on Taiwan have been paired with attempts to diplomatically isolate and militarily threaten the island's top policymakers. This balance is risky because of the possibility that it may appear too lenient to PRC nationalists, and too provocative to ROC residents. Nevertheless, the current structure of carrots and sticks has emerged for three reasons. First, the institutional coherence of Chinese decision-making and implementation has allowed for the viability of an adaptive, long-term approach. Second, the constraints on both unreinforced cooptation and coercive diplomacy have mediated toward a posture in which the former is enhanced and the latter downplayed. Third, expanded external opportunities in recent years have made it possible to exploit this middle ground.     

中国历代死刑制度的考察与反思

据《史记.殷本纪》记载的法律规定的行刑方式有:醢:把罪人刴成肉浆。碟:原意为分裂牲体以祭神。磬:缢杀。斩:杀头。杀:用刀割头。绞:用绳带之类将罪人缢死。轘:将罪人的肢体分解,又称“车裂”。枭首:悬头示众。支解:将罪人杀死后又将尸体分解。弃市:杀之于闹市,表示“与众共弃”。赐死:君主命王公、大臣自缢,谓之“赐死”。连坐:要邻居对相邻人的犯罪承担连带责任的制度制度。灭九族:较之夷三族进一步扩大了诛连的范围。还有不曾入律的非法之刑,如凿颠(又称“凿顶”):“抽胁、镬烹、刳胎、锯颈。宋朝的死刑除绞、斩外,增加了“凌迟”。清末,沈家本修法,删除清律中原有的凌迟、枭首、戮尸、缘坐等酷刑。     

西方多民族国家的自治立法与中国民族法制建设研究

本文论述了西方多民族国家的自治立法在立法目标、立法原则及立法内容等方面与中国民族法制建设的相同和不同之处;认为认真总结和研究西方民族国家的自治立法,对中国进一步加强民族法制建设,坚持和完善民族区域自治制度,具有重要的理论和现实意义。     

多元文化背景下的云南道教——以南诏大理时期为中心

秦汉以来中华民族多元一体格局基本形成,道教逐渐传播进入西南少数民族地区。历史上唐朝与南诏的“苍山会盟”,其文书采用五斗米道“三官手书”的方式。南诏大理政权建立的神异事迹,反映出道教影响的历史事实。南诏大理时期的道教是多元文化背景下的必然产物,这与道教在中国社会的长期影响,与历史上各民族经济文化的密切联系有关。     

Does China’s middle class think and act democratically? Attitudinal and behavioral orientations toward urban self-government

In the West, the middle class has been considered a potent agent of the sociopolitical transition toward democracy and the cornerstone of democratic rule. Does a middle class in China think and act democratically and hence serve as the harbinger of democratic change in that country? This study attempts to answer this critical question by examining the attitudinal and behavioral orientations of middle-class individuals toward grassroots self-government in urban China. It is based on data collected from a representative-sample survey conducted in Beijing. The findings indicate that China’s middle class expects grassroots self-government to be formed in a democratic way; yet the middle class is critical of the currently-implemented self-government system because it is not organized as democratically as they expect, and therefore the middle class is less likely to participate in the system. These findings have significant implications for the role of the Chinese middle class in the democratization of China.     

Japan and the cross-Taiwan Strait conflict

An armed conflict between Taiwan and China is not unthinkable in the future. For historical, geographical, economic, and diplomatic reasons, Japan would not be able to stand on the sidelines. Relying on three major concepts—national interests, path dependence and balance of power, this paper explores Japan’s three possible roles in the event of a cross-Strait conflict. First, Japan could pass the buck, staying out of the conflict as much as possible and providing at most logistical and intelligence support for an American military operation. Second, it could balance power, throwing its weight behind Washington against Beijing. Finally, it could play peacemaker. At the end of the article, the author discusses several key factors that would shape Tokyo’s decision-making in the event of a cross-Strait conflict and assesses the relative probability of each option. He is the author ofExplaining Chinese Democratization (Praeger, 2000). His recent research interests include Chinese pacifism and China’s historical place in the world. For their comments, the author would like to thank anonymous reviewers, Natalie Edwards, Mei Guan, Sujian Guo, James Hsiung, Wade Hudson, Erica Johnson, Chien Liu, Andrew Needle, Anne Schotter, Steve Snow, Liang Tang, Wallace Thies, Yong Wang, and Kim Worthy.     

Crafting village democracy in China: The roles, networking, and strategies of provincial elites

There is no obvious and direct correlation between the provincial level of economic development and democratic level of village elections. There is a great disparity in the level of rural democratization and the implementation of village self-governance among and within provinces. The modernization model alone cannot explain why village elections work well in some provinces but not in others. This paper looks at the political elite’s ongoing efforts at provincial level to conduct village elections and implement village self-governance in rural China. These efforts include the strategies for crafting village democracy employed by provincial elites: elite cooperation, local legislature, political responsibility, political programming, and the art of balancing party leadership and village elections. He has published extensively on China’s village elections and local governance. He is author and coauthor of several books. His current research interests include the development of non-state, local governance, and political participation. The author gratefully acknowledges the anonymous reviewers, Professor He Baogang of Deakin University and Professor Zhong Yang of University of Tennessee for their suggestions on an earlier draft. My special thanks to Professor Joseph Fewsmith of Boston University, Professor Tan Qingshan of Cleveland State University, and three anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments, as well as to East Asian Institute of National University of Singapore for providing support for this research.     

对影响我国国家安全的若干经济问题的思考

经济安全作为国家安全的重要组成部分,是保障国家安全的必要条件,维护社会稳定的坚实基础。现阶段,金融安全问题,经济发展中的资源环境安全问题,小康社会建设中的公平公正问题,以及和平发展中的外部风险问题,是我国国家安全面临的主要经济问题。我们必须坚持以经济建设为中心,以科技创新提升综合国力,为保障国家安全构建良好的经济基础。