pgs 237-252

• Ethnic cleavages:

  • Ethnicity is primarily Han Chinese, with only 8% being minorities
  • Minorities live near borders and in 5 autonomous regions: Guanxi, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Tibet, and Xinjiang
  • Tibetans have never recognized Chinese authority and fight for independence, with riots benefiting the Tibetan government in CCP
  • Uyghurs are of Muslim and Turkish descent living in Xinjiang, bordering Afghanistan and Pakistan
  • Unrest in Xinjiang is still an issue based on discrimination against those who leave, as people don't want them as employees
• Linguistic diversity:

  • CCP tried to make Mandarin the official language, with rules set in place to use Mandarin in public
  • Other languages are fighting back against this imposition
• Urban-Rural cleavages:

  • Referred to as “two Chinas” due to economic and social-cultural divides
  • Protests in rural areas due to the feeling that the government isn't looking out for their interests
  • Created the “new socialist countryside” to help the rural economy
  • Hukou system makes rural workers work longer than necessary because their pensions are significantly less than urban workers
• Political participation:

  • Communist party established a relationship between citizens and the party after 1949
  • Social movements supporting democracy and community over nationalism influence Chinese politics and international relationships
• • Growth of civil society includes private organizations focusing on social issues like the environment and AIDS
• Party and participation:

  • CCP is the largest party with around 8.5 million members, only 6% of the population
  • During the Maoist era, cadres led the CCP at all levels, with careers dependent on party loyalty and ideological purity
  • Technocrats started to lead the CCP more during the Deng Xiaoping era
  • Women are the least hired, with very few making it to top leadership positions
  • Concept of cadre altered by the fact that a quarter to a third of Chinese entrepreneurs are CCP members
• Protests:

  • Pose threats to the CCP in the future
  • Tiananmen Square massacre showed the limits of protests in China
  • Responded to riots in Tibet and Xinjiang with arrests and court hearings, with some facing execution
  • Urban unrest is increasing due to the hukou system, leading to overcrowding in cities
• Political Institutions:

  • Regime is authoritarian, decisions made by elites without citizen input
  • Leaders recruited through CCP membership and personal connections
  • Moved from a command economy to a market economy, but still centralized
  • Political framework organized by the CCP, integrating the military into the political hierarchy
• Organization of the CCP:

  • General Secretary is the highest position
  • National Party Congress has 2000 delegates chosen from lower-level congresses, meets every 5 years
  • Central Committee has 340 members elected by NPC, meets weekly in plenums
  • Politburo/Standing Committee is the top of the CCP structure, chosen by the central committee, with the standing committee having 7 members
  • Non-communist parties are only to serve as a loyal opposition
  • Elections held to legitimize the government and CCP, with CCP controlling election commissions
• Factionalism:

  • Split into conservatives and liberals, with other emerging factions like Princelings and CC Youth League
  • Factions follow the process of “fang-shou”: tightening up, loosening up cycle
  • Corruption stems from the combination of guanxi and economic growth
• Interest groups:

  • Not allowed to influence the political process unless under party-state authority
  • Danwei are social units based on a person's place of work, providing housing, daycare, income, medical care, etc
  • Relationship between state and interest groups reflects state corporatism
• Media:

  • State-run until the 1980s, now CCTV is the major broadcaster