Mining conflict and rent-seeking in China: A mixed method analysis of cases of illegality

Abstract

Research on mining conflict frequently approaches the subject either through in-depth case-studies or numerical analyses of the frequency of disputes. Yet, a more comprehensive understanding of mining conflict could be achieved through mixed methods, whereby qualitative and quantitative approaches are combined. To substantiate this, the article focuses on China, one of the world's largest mineral producers, while using an approach that couples qualitative assessment of case-studies with a quantitative analysis of legal cases through the Conflict Analysis Model (CAM). The study is based on a data-set containing 204 case-studies on mining conflicts. The CAM established: (1) over half of the cases stem from unlicensed mining, partly due to villages’ discretionary power over land, which enables them to grant mining rights while surpassing competent authorities; (2) a decline in the number of cases since the early 2010s, likely attributable to the government's crackdown on artisanal mining. The qualitative case-study approach ascertained that mining conflicts are not a straightforward, mono-dimensional matter of state versus society but consist of multi-layered networks between government, companies, and farmers, pitting different levels of government and society against each other. These networks are driven by, what can be termed, the “economics of rent-seeking.”