The Quest For Legitimacy In Chinese Politics

Xiang explains the nature and depth of the legitimacy crisis facing the government of China, and why it is so frequently misunderstood in the West. Arguing that it is more helpful to understand the quest for legitimacy in China as an eternally dynamic process, rather than to seek resolutions in constitutionalism, Xiang examines the understanding of legitimacy in Chinese political philosophy. He posits that the current crisis is a consequence of the incompatibility of Confucian Republicanism and Soviet-inspired Bolshevism. The discourse on Chinese political reform tends to polarize, between total westernization on the one hand, or the rejection of western influence in all forms on the other. Xiang points to a third solution - meeting western democratic theories halfway, avoiding another round of violent revolution. This book provides valuable insights for scholars and students of China’s politics and political history.

This book examines the new equity-enhancing politics in China in the context of Chinese traditional cognitive patterns of political legitimacy and its implication for Chinese political development in the near future. Based on an analysis of the new governing philosophy, the generation of political elite, and a new set of public policies, the book reaffirms the emergence of a new Chinese polity that infuses one-party rule with limited electoral and deliberative democracies. Unlike many scholars who perceive the contemporary Chinese history as a constant search for democracy, this book takes a very different approach. It asserts that the enduring question in political development in China today is no different from what was sought after throughout Chinese history, namely, the constant search for political legitimacy. Even though the quest for democracy is instrumental to that end, it may not ultimately lead to the embrace of a full-fledged liberal democracy. The new politics is not only a rationalization of the efficiency-based development, but also a major paradigm shift in China's developmental strategy.

This fascinating collection of papers on China's ongoing efforts in reviving legitimacy has approached the issue of legitimacy from both normative and empirical perspectives, and from Western and Chinese perspectives, thus this edited volume offers lessons and insights for and from China, and contributes to the ongoing theoretical debates as well as empirical research on legitimacy in the Chinese context.

This book documents the bases for a new view of legitimacy in general and in various parts of Asia, including China, Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan and Japan. The authors see legitimacy anywhere as always partial, rather than total, and somewhat measurable.

The desire for the 'core' leader has been imbedded in the ruling philosophy of the Chinese Communist Party. As the role of the 'core' leader and his interactions with other ruling elite are important in understanding Chinese politics, this book attempts to focus on the role of the party chief and how he could become the 'core' of the leadership. Xuezhi Guo provides the most detailed and comprehensive scrutiny of the 'core' of the Chinese Communist Party leadership and meticulously analyses the cultural, philosophical, and ideological origins as well as its evolution throughout the party's history. This study introduces an eclectic approach that integrates the most useful analytical perspectives and insights from Chinese political history, philosophy, and mainstream Western methodologies in order to explain the consistent patterns of elite politics and the behavior of the party's high-ranking leaders during times of cooperation and conflict from Mao Zedong to Xi Jinping.

As the CCP moves away from traditional Maoism it seeks to maintain its commanding role in political life despite a growing number of challenges to its claims of legitimacy. This book describes these challenges and explains how the CCP adapts to maintain its authority.

As the CCP moves away from traditional Maoism it seeks to maintain its commanding role in political life despite a growing number of challenges to its claims of legitimacy. This book describes these challenges and explains how the CCP adapts to maintain its authority.