China'S Governance Model: Flexibility And Durability Of Pragmatic Authoritarianism (China Policy Series) - 9780415734479

Many books on government in China either simply describe the political institutions or else focus, critically, on the weaknesses of the system, such as corruption or the absence of Western-style democracy. This book, on the other hand, takes a more balanced, more positive view. This view is based on a study of China s institutions for coping with critical crises in governance since 1978. It argues that, although the party-state is determined to preserve itself, China's governance model has changed for the better in many respects in recent years. These changes, discussed fully in the book, include better management of leadership succession, better crisis management, improved social welfare, the management of society through treating different social groups differently depending on their potential to rival the party-state, and a variety of limited, intra-party and grassroots democracy. This book applies to the Chinese model the term "pragmatic authoritarianism." It explains the thinking which lies behind China's governance model and the changes to it, and assesses how the governance model is likely to develop. It compares recent developments with changes and fatal threats in China's governance over a long historical period, and concludes that the regime can be expected to survive for the foreseeable future. "Few topics in Chinese politics are as significant as the nature, state and prospects of the political regime. While the topic had been unduly understudied for a long period of time, a young generation of scholars has emerged on this subject. Among others, the book by Hongyi Lai stands out and provides a comprehensive and penetrating analysis on this topic....I am confident that his book will make a significant contribution to the study of Chinese politics and may well define the debate on China s political development, governance and model for years to come." - Yongnian Zheng, Director, East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore"

• | Author: Hongyi Lai
• | Publisher: Routledge
• | Publication Date: Mar 16, 2016
• | Number of Pages: 364 pages
• | Language: English
• | Binding: Paperback/Social Science
• | ISBN-10: 0415734479
• | ISBN-13: 9780415734479