Sovereignty,+Authority,+and+Power


 * Legitimacy -** Where the power of the government comes from MNK

Right now the legitimacy of the Chinese government comes from the Chinese Constitution. MNK


 * Performance legitimacy**: derived from the state’s production of desired goals, such as economic growth, prosperity, and modernization


 * Legal/institutional legitimacy**: derived from the rule of law and procedures to decide between conflicting interests (for example, the National People’s Congress and elections); also includes an efficient, competent, uncorrupted bureaucracy


 * Charismatic legitimacy**: derived from the charisma of a leader. Mao provided this kind of legitimacy, but none of his successors have.


 * Societal legitimacy**: derived from semi-autonomous organizations that mediate between the state and the people. This could be “civil society”, or it could be local/provincial authorities granted autonomy by the central government. This kind of legitimacy works in several ways: (1) autonomy can promote productivity, thereby leading to increased performance legitimacy; (2) it enables the party leadership to shift some responsibility to these organizations, thereby reducing the center’s share of responsibility; (3) such organizations can be a kind of “indirect control mechanism” that mediates between the state and private enterprise; (4) the creation of a public sphere for discussion and debate, which shows the people that the state can tolerate some level of dissent.


 * Ideological legitimacy**: derived from the people’s belief in an ideology espoused by the state (for example, Maoism-Marxism-Leninism or nationalism). However, on this point, He states, “Yet official ideology aims less to persuade people to believe in the value of Communism than to control people’s political behaviour” (p. 194). In other words, the content of the ideology is largely irrelevant; the point is just that everybody thinks the same way. The ideology could be “Bananas give long life” and as long as the people didn’t question it, the state’s goal would be achieved.

Human rights legitimacy: derived from the state’s protection or provision of human rights. Note that the Chinese state may give more priority to the “right to subsistence” and the “right to development” than the rights to security and liberty commonly invoked in Western critiques of China. This implies that human rights legitimacy is a kind of performance legitimacy. Also note that this kind of legitimacy may have a different meaning in an international audience than a domestic audience, again because the West tends to prioritize rights differently than Chinese citizens.
 * Coercion legitimacy**: derived from the state’s ability to use force to control society. In a sense, this is a kind of “might makes right”; a good state is a strong, powerful state that can suppress any challenges to its authority.

Baogang He, The Democratization of China (London: Routledge, 1996). AS

Three different types of administrative units: MNK The Constitution of the People's Republic of China can be found here: [] MNK
 * 23 provices and 4 municipalities - no autonomous power, but their people's Congress and committees can adopt local regulation, but they can't go against the Constitition
 * five national autonomous areas (eg. Inner Mongolia, Guangx Zhuang, etc.) - established for the "strengthening socialist relations of equality, unity, and mutual assistance among the people of all nationalities"; enjoy more autonomous power than the ordinary provinces
 * Special Admistrative regions called Hong Kong and Macau - established to maintain the prosperity and stability of those areas in the light of their history and realities while still achieving national unity and territorial integrity

The Constitution proclaims China to be a socialist state that is under a democratic dictatorship. This means that there is an alliance of the working classes which includes the workers and the peasants. It also emphasizes that the socialist law is the regulator of political behavior. The Constitution also states that the people enjoy freedom of speech, press, assembly, association, procession, and demonstration. This is not what we in China though. The Chinese government imposes many laws that restrict many of these freedoms. The Constitution explicitly states that Taiwan is part of the People’s Republic of China. The Constitution also encourages foreign trade. MNK

Wood says that in the ancient days of China, the legitimacy came from the mandate of heaven. The emperors believed that they were given power by God to govern the people.Today the Politburo is the source of legitimacy in China. MNK

Current Events for legitimacy: []

Han Chinese Ethnic Majority
Han Chinese make up about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China. In recent history, there has been conflict between the Han Chinese majority ethnic group and other minority ethnic groups such as the Tibetans and Uyghurs.

In September 2009, thousands of ethnic-Han Chinese took to the streets of Urumqi, the capital city of China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, to protest against the government's failure to halt violence by members of the Uyghur ethnic group. Interracial tensions in the city have turned into hostility towards the region's ladership. Wang Lequan, the Communist Party chief of Xinjiang, has done little to deflect public anger and that the government has not done enough to keep them informed. The inter-ethnic conflict presents a problem to societal legitimacy but the state has attempted to use force (coercion legitimacy) by introducing riot police in order to control its citizens. [|Two months after a bloodbath, inter-ethnic relations remain on a short fuse] (PL)

Geographic Setting
China has the largest population of any country and its land surface is the third largest, after Russia and Canada. Some of its important geographical features include: access to oceans, geographical/climate splits between north and south, and mountain ranges, deserts, and oceans that separate China from other countries. The vast majority of the population live in urban ares in the east, with many cities located along rivers and in coastal areas. Large stretches of mountains and deserts make the western and northern parts of the country less habitable and thus less desirable to live in. The state's desire for economic growth and security for energy supplies is an example of performance legitimacy. [|The West’s recession spurs China’s hunt for energy supplies in its own backyard] (PL)

Collectivism
With collectivism, the good of the community is valued above that of the individual.

Hu Jintao promised favorable policies to support and accelerate the development of its old revolutionary bases and ideas during a two-day trip to Longyan City for the Spring Festival, or Chinese New Year. People in the old revolutionary bases made great sacrifice and contribution to the victory of China's revolution cause and founding of a new China. Relating to collectivism, Hu expressed hope that the villagers would continue to uphold the spirits of hard work and plain living so as to create a better life with their own hands. This is an example of societal and performance legitimacy as it explains Hu Jintao and China's desire for economic and social prosperity in the modern world. [|Hu urges development in revolutionary bases] (PL)

Nationalism
Chinese nationalism refers to the refers to cultural and political theories, movements and beliefs that assert the idea of a unified country of China. [|Making room for a new superpower should not be confused with giving way to it] (PL)

All-around Development
All-around development is the idea that development should not be just about industry but also on agriculture, providing equal emphasis on both. The state's desire for economic growth is an example of performance legitimacy. [|China’s share of world markets increased during the recession. It will keep rising] (PL)

1. __Dynastic Rule__: Until the 19th century, dynastic cycles were the source of political and economic change in China. The political culture inherited from these centuries of dynastic rule focuses on the Confucian values of order, harmony, and hierarchy, as well as a value of scholarship for establishing superiority. The rulers used the Mandate of Heaven to maintain control over the population. The Mandate of Heaven was the idea that the emperor was favored by the heavens to rule over China. The idea of the Mandate of Heaven was created by Chinese philosopher Mencius, during the period of Warring States, just before the unification of China by the Qin dynasty in 221 BC. []
 * Historical/Political Trends (SM) **

2. __Resistance to imperialism__: During the 19th century, China’s strong cultural identity led to the development a strong sense of nationalism, as well as several attempts by imperialist nations to exploit their natural resources and people. These attempts by foreign powers to take advantage of them have led China to be cautious in working with capitalist countries today. Beginning with Britain in the early 1800’s, several countries used their superior military technology to force China in to signing a series of unequal treaties. These treaties led to the creation of spheres of influence, in which specific countries were guaranteed trading privileges in specific areas of China []

3. __Maoism__: Influenced by Marx and Lenin, believed in the power of the peasant rather than a party vanguard, centered philosophy on these values: a. Collectivism: The well-being of the community is valued above that of the individual. This suited peasant-based communities, but most scholars learned toward individualism. b. Struggle and Activism: Encouraged people to actively pursue the values of socialism c. Mass line: Believed in a line of communications from party leaders all the way down to peasants, teaching and listening on everyone’s part. d. Egalitarianism: Hierarchy had been a vital part of Chinese society prior to 1949, and Mao’s belief in an egalitarian society completely eliminated it. e. Self-Reliance: Encouraged people to rely on their own talents to contribute to their communities rather than wait for the elite to give them directions.

Maoism encouraged a “People's War”, a revolutionary struggle by the majority over the exploiting classes and the state structures they had put in place. Maoism differed from European Marxism in that it focused on the agrarian countryside instead of the industrial urban forces, which is referred to as agrarian socialism. []

1. __Deng Xiaoping Theory__: Followed Deng's pragmatist belief that “it doesn't matter whether a cat is white or black, as long as it catches mice.” He did not concern himself over whether a policy was capitalist or socialist as long as it improved the economy. This policy led to a turnaround of China's economy through socialist planning and capitalist free market trade.

The goals of the theory were the “Four Modernizations”, which were: a. Agriculture b. Industry c. Technology d. Defense

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