Central Government In Beijing Research Articles

The new coal champion of the world: The political economy of Chinese overseas development finance for coal-fired power plants

This study aims to explain why China has become a new coal champion of the world. From 2006 to 2019, our new data set shows that China has financed 14 percent of the newly installed coal fired power plants across 17 countries around the world. We deploy a ‘push and pull’ analytical model and combine both qualitative and quantitative analysis to examine the political economy of Chinese overseas finance for coal. Our analysis shows that the globalization of Chinese official development finance for coal-fired power is a function of both the pull by the demand from the 17 countries, which have turned to the Chinese policy banks for financial backing to build coal-fired power plants, and the push by the coal-fired power equipment manufacturing sector in China and the central government in Beijing, which have been confronted with a set of structural challenges following the 2007–2008 global financial crisis. Our findings carry some worrisome policy implications for the global effort to reduce CO2 emissions resulting from coal burning in the electric sector. Without changes on the demand side, and a profound re-alignment of forces within China, Chinese development finance for coal-fired power may prove relatively resilient.

Does Government Pay Attention to the Public? The Dynamics of Public Opinion and Government Attention in Posthandover Hong Kong

AbstractGovernment response to public opinion is essential to democratic theory and practice. However, previous research on the relationship between public opinion and government attention predominantly focuses on western societies. Little is known about such relationship in nonwestern or nondemocratic societies. Drawing upon time-series data of public opinion polls and government press releases, this study examines the dynamic relationships between public opinion and government attention in posthandover Hong Kong. The findings reveal that the responsiveness of the Hong Kong government to public opinion varies across issue domains and is constrained by the political power from the central government in Beijing.

The review of one country two systems of Hong Kong over two decades from the perspective of social development

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to study the development of one country two systems of Hong Kong over two decades and examine its challenges and prospect. One country two systems is pragmatic and compromise principle and social arrangement for Hong Kong under China sovereignty. It has served to resolve some issues related to the future of Hong Kong after the end of British Colonial rule since July 1, 1997. There are lessons to be learnt as the merits and flaws of the system have been identified in the study as perceived from the perspective of social development.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on quantitative methodology. Data of public opinion polls conducted by various local universities on the development of one country two systems of Hong Kong have been employed in the study. Based on the data obtained from the relevant survey, different aspects of social development of Hong Kong under one country two systems has been examined and explored. Data are current and up-to-date to reflect the social mood of Hong Kong people toward one country two systems over the years.FindingsThe challenges and prospect of one country two systems of Hong Kong over two decades since the change of sovereignty have been identified in this paper. Hong Kong has remained the moist free market and the third financial center in the world. However, the high degree of self-autonomy as stipulated in the Basic Law has been fading way. There is social discontent of Hong Kong people on social and political grounds and there are high sense of mistrust to both Hong Kong SAR (HKSAR) government and the Central government in Beijing. This will provide a guideline to the government for improving the situation.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is based on data obtained from various public opinion conducted by several local university on the development of one country two systems and how Hong Kong people feel about it. The data are current and up-to-date. However, there will be variation of findings as social mood and perception of Hong Kong people toward one country two systems may change due to the changes of social and political events. With these limitations, one needs to be careful while drawing the conclusion. Yet, the over trend of social development of Hong Kong can be seen.Practical implicationsThe study will provide an overall view and assessment of one country two systems of Hong Kong over two decades after the change of sovereignty since July 1, 1997. The findings and discussion of social mobility, quality of life, income disparity, social and political movement and ethnic identity and its changes in recent years of people in Hong Kong are rather revealing. It will provide a reality check and yardstick for people who are concerned about Hong Kong society and its people under China sovereignty.Social implicationsThe study and its findings will provide a useful guideline for people who are concerned about how Hong Kong people live under China sovereignty. Hong Kong to most of Hong Kong people is on longer a borrow place living under the borrowed time. The former British Colonial rule has been replaced by HKSAR government rule under China sovereignty. There is a high degree of mistrust toward both HKSAR government and the Central government in Beijing. People in Hong Kong keep fighting for democracy and high degree of self-autonomy. Hence, Hong Kong is still a free and open society under China sovereignty.Originality/valueThe paper contributes an original study on the development of one country two systems of Hong Kong under China sovereignty as perceived from the perspective of social development. There are important findings on social mobility, income disparity and issues of ethnic identity of Hong Kong people. The lessons of Hong Kong will provide an interesting case for people who care concerned about how people living in a former British colony has transformed the society into a thriving civil society under China sovereignty.

Co-opting Separatists: Social Welfare to Cross-Border Minorities in Xinjiang

Societal allocation of goods and resources as a means of co-opting potential challengers in authoritarian regimes has received widespread support in political science research. We find evidence for this argument in the case of social welfare spending in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Province (XUAR) region of China. Since the early 1990s Xinjiang has been the scene of interethnic clashes and religious and political conflict, creating challenges in this western area for the central government in Beijing. We use existing official Chinese data on county governments’ fiscal spending in Xinjiang from 1995 to 2003 to identify relationships between regional demographic composition and economic assistance. We find districts with cross-border ethnic and religious minorities located close to the border with neighboring states spend more on social welfare. We also find the 2001 US invasion of Afghanistan leads to an increase in social welfare spending in Muslim minority areas. These areas, we argue, receive more welfare due to the threat of separatism posed by cross-border minorities. The results shed light on the mechanisms of governance and co-optation in China and leadership concerns of challenges to regime stability in Xinjiang.

By All Means Necessary: How China's Resource Quest Is Changing the World, by Elizabeth C. Economy and Michael Levi; Winner Take All: China’s Race for Resources and What It Means for the World, by Dambisa Moyo

Reviewed by: Stefan Fergus, independent scholarA notable characteristic of China's astonishing economic development over the past few decades has been considerable growth in resource acquisition. China's strategies for meeting its resource needs have piqued the interest of journalists and academics alike.By All Means Necessary by Elizabeth Economy and Michael Levi, and Winner Take All by Dambisa Moyo address the issues and concerns that have been raised with varying degrees of success. Both books provide clear summaries of China's global search for resources--be they energy, mineral, or agricultural. Economy and Levi work methodically through the key issues. Moyo also offers accessible explanations of historical context, commodity markets, and theory. However, lack of detailed case studies weakens both accounts.The books come at the issue from opposing perspectives. Moyo issues a clarion call to world largely ill prepared for the challenges of resource scarcity and the evolving dynamics around China's central role (2). Economy and Levi argue that the pressure on the rest of the world not so urgent. If China continues on its present course, there are two possibilities: either the Chinese economy continue to grow apace, driving energy and minerals demand upward; or China's economy will falter, gutting demand across the board and returning the market to more natural state of competition (34). Neither book addresses all the ramifications of the scenarios it paints. And indeed, the West needs to recognize its own impact on the environment and adjust its energy policies, just as China does.Western media outlets often make alarmist claims about China's resource strategy. Economy and Levi attempt to debunk such claims and to calm fears of China's seemingly unquenchable thirst for resources. While mostly successful, their desire for balance creates contradictions. For example, some Western observers frequently worry that China's voracious appetite dramatically affect commodity prices. Both books point out that civilian understanding of commodities trading remains, in Moyo's words, blurry at best (2). Moyo does the most to address this misunderstanding with clear and concise primer. Economy and Levi assert that China's real impact on commodities markets is different, more varied, and often more broadly beneficial (36) than negative caricatures suggest. Unfortunately, they don't provide enough evidence to support this claim, offering instead an inconclusive, somewhat muddled explanation. They take as an example of market that has remained stable despite heavy Chinese involvement, ignoring entirely the 2005 China-precipitated copper crisis that saw prices skyrocket after Chinese State Reserve Bureau trader took massive, unsustainable market positions.This oversight symptomatic of shared problem. By trying to cover all aspects of China's strategy, neither book offers as much detail as it should and each suffers from paucity of in-depth case studies. Economy and Levi, both members of the influential think tank Council on Foreign Relations, should have had no difficulty including more-detailed examples to support their thesis.Governmental control over China's corporations and economy an area in which the authors disagree, and highlights flaw in Moyo's thesis. Economy and Levi note that variety of factors, including financial policies and government assistance for investors, as well as the obvious overlap between financial and political ambitions, can appear very much like coordinated strategy (53). Appearances can be deceiving. There ample evidence that discipline not as tight as Moyo claims. While strong links do exist between the central government in Beijing and management of state-owned enterprises, the physical and practical distance between them--not to mention other intervening actors--can lead to divergence between policy and action. …

The Law and Politics of Constitutional Reform and Democratization in Hong Kong

Since 1997, the former British colony of Hong Kong has practiced autonomy as Administrative (SAR) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) under constitutional arrangement known as One Country, Two Systems (OCTS). OCTS was first stipulated in the Sino-British Joint Declaration, treaty signed in 1984 whereby Britain agreed to return Hong Kong to China in 1997. The Hong Kong Basic Law enacted by the Chinese National People’s Congress (NPC) in 1990, often known as Hong Kong’s mini-constitution, constitutionalizes OCTS, grants to the Hong Kong SAR high degree of autonomy, and provides for the progressive democratization of Hong Kong. The political system that has existed in post-1997 has been described as semi-democracy. The Basic Law itself stipulates that the ultimate destination of the evolution of Hong Kong’s political system is the election of the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR by universal However, this is a democracy that might never come. An authoritarian regime which has pre-committed itself to democracy is an inherently unstable regime, because it will be taken to task to deliver. Since 2003, democracy movement has developed in Hong Kong that struggles for the speedy introduction of such universal In 2007, the Chinese government announced that such universal suffrage may be introduced in 2017. Since early 2013, public debate has unfolded in Hong Kong on what should be the electoral system for this purpose. Pro-democracy and activists were concerned that the electoral system, particularly the nomination process for candidates, would be such that only persons approved or considered acceptable by the Chinese government could stand as candidates, and that the election would not be conducted in accordance with international standards of democracy and universal They call this fake universal and they argue that China must grant Hong Kong universal suffrage. The debate on universal suffrage in Hong Kong entered new phase after 31 August 2014, when the NPC Standing Committee made Decision on electoral reforms in Hong Kong. The model for universal suffrage stipulated in the Decision was immediately condemned by the as failing to meet international standards on what constitutes genuine universal suffrage, and as imposing unreasonable restrictions on the right to stand as candidates in the election. They vowed to vote against the proposed model when it comes before the Legislative Council in 2015. Under the Basic Law, any constitutional reform such as the election of the Chief Executive by universal suffrage can only be introduced by two-thirds majority in the Hong Kong legislature, in which the pan-democrats currently occupy more than one-third of the seats. The struggle for the realization of universal suffrage in the election of the Chief Executive in Hong Kong in 2017 provides good case study of constitutional politics in sub-national political community exercising autonomy and seeking to introduce constitutional reform and democratization. It is also particularly interesting because Hong Kong is an SAR of China, the major Communist Party-ruled polity in the contemporary world, while the aspirations of Hong Kong’s democracy movement are towards Western-style liberal constitutional democracy. This paper seeks to tell this story of Hong Kong’s quest for democratization, focusing particularly on the law and politics of Hong Kong’s constitutional reform. It suggests that the struggle for universal suffrage in the election of the Chief Executive of the HKSAR in 2017 and the obstacles it has faced reveal the underlying tensions behind, and the contradictions inherent in, the concept and practice of One Country, Two Systems, particularly the conflict between the Communist Party-led socialist political system in mainland China and the aspirations towards Western-style liberal democracy on the part of and their supporters in Hong Kong. This paper consists of the following parts. Part I examines the constitutional and legal provisions governing Hong Kong’s political system and its development. Part II reviews briefly the movements towards democratization that have taken place since the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in 1997. Part III consider developments since early 2013, when social movement known as the Occupy campaign developed to struggle for the realization of genuine universal suffrage in the election of the Chief Executive of Hong Kong. The paper will focus particularly on the positions of the democracy activists in Hong Kong, as well as the stance of the Central Government in Beijing. Finally, Part IV will conclude by reflecting on the project of Hong Kong’s democratization under One Country, Two Systems in the light of the NPCSC Decision of 31 August 2014.

Public awareness and safeguarding traditional knowledge: challenges and conflicts in preserving and representing kārīz/kănérjĭng in Xinjiang, PR China

Strategies of stimulating public awareness and implementing measures to safeguard traditional knowledge of the water management techniques generally known under the terms qanāt or kārīz involve paths of imbedding the technique into the history of a given society. The present study approaches such strategies in the case of the underground water networks in the arid regions in Xinjiang, North Western China, known there under the terms kārīz or kănérjĭng. There is an on-going debate concerning the beginnings of the construction of kārīz in Xinjiang. A recent revival of this technique started with a movement of kārīz (re)construction in the 1950s–1960s. In recent decades the kārīz/kănérjĭng water network has suffered due to the expansion of deep well drilling. At the same time the issue has become an object of museum representation. The first museum, Turfan Kariz Paradise, opened its gates in 1992; the Karez Folk Custom Garden, with a more pronounced event and commercial character, was inaugurated in 2000. Both exhibitions are near Turfan. They both demonstrate the traditional construction and maintenance techniques, and stress the strong linkage between local society and the specific traditional water technology. This paper argues that preserving the kārīz/kănérjĭng in the area of Turfan has become a delicate instrument in the political balance involving local authorities, the provincial government in Urumuqi and the central government in Beijing.

Finance and the Northern Expedition: From the Northeast Asian Perspective, 1925–1928

AbstractThis paper looks at the problems faced by the Chinese silver-backed currencies in Manchuria during the period of Northern Expedition (1925–1928), the Chinese attempt to overcome these problems, and the reasons for its failure. Manchuria was a peculiar territory during the interwar period (1919–1939), where several currencies, backed by silver or gold, competed against one another. The Chinese silver banknote, first introduced at the turn of the twentieth century, was challenged by gold-backed Japanese yen issued by the Bank of Korea, and by the Russian ruble. This competition was set in the context of the struggle for political control over the area between China (the Qing Dynasty and its successor, the Chinese Republic), Russia (and its successor the Soviet Union), and the Japanese Empire, as well as the war between the southern Nationalists (Kuomintang) and the militarists (warlords) who controlled the Chinese central government in Beijing and Manchuria. This paper suggests that the difficult financial situation determined the course followed by the warlords, and that their failure was the result of the complex regional context, and the failures in their military strategy rather than of their fiscal policy.

Hybrid Politics and New Competitiveness: Hong Kong’s 2007 Chief Executive Election

In recounting Hong Kong's chief executive election in 2007, this paper charts the unexpected appearance of an “unauthorized” candidate and the occurrence of vibrant campaigning. Further, as electoral competitiveness increased, the liberal form of authoritarian rule that has characterized politics in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) began to change in ways that parallel the electoral authoritarianism practiced in Singapore. This paper argues that such change, if regularized and enhanced, may bring greater stability to the HKSAR’s politics, yielding greater legitimacy, popular compliance, and hence, new efficiencies in control. Even so, analysis of the chief executive election shows that this competitiveness was strongly resisted by the central government in Beijing.

The Political Cultures of Hong Kong and Mainland China: Democratisation, Patrimonialism and Pluralism in the 2007 Chief Executive Election

Democratisation in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is necessarily constrained by the trepidation of the central government in Beijing, which views radical political reform as a step towards an expansion of western influence upon both Hong Kong and mainland China. The political culture of Beijing constantly clashes with that of the pro-democracy Hong Kong people, who regard themselves as politically mature enough to enjoy the luxury of Western-style democracy. The collision between the two political cultures came to a head in December 2005, when the pro-democracy legislators rejected the political reform blueprint proposed by the Hong Kong government. However, the participation of the mainstream democrats in the 2007 Chief Executive election was a watershed in Hong Kong’s political development. It signaled an amalgamation of the mainland Chinese political culture, which emphasises patrimonialism and personnel control, and Hong Kong’s political conventions, which stress pluralistic competition, public accountability and transparency. The blend of patrimonialism and pluralism will continue to be a hallmark of the evolving Beijing-Hong Kong political relations in the years to come.

Data Collection and Economic Analysis in Contemporary China

The Economic Research Institute of the Shanghai Social Science Academy deals mainly with the study, research, and data collection of prices, costs, and profits of various goods produced in the Shanghai region. The research subjects or investigations (about 20-30 each year) are assigned by the central government in Beijing. The Economic Research Institute not only reports the results of its research but also submits to the policymaker in Beijing feasible suggestions to solve the regional economic problems. It has a complex task as a research institute. Each month (usually on the tenth of the month) the Economic Research Institute receives the data collected by the Shanghai Statistics Bureau, which sends its data before the tenth of the month directly to the central government by a special airplane. With the development of the computer, computerized data banks and data collection centers have been set up throughout the country. This makes the process easier and quicker than before.