China in the Beginning of the 21St Century

Series: Chińskie Drogi This publication was supported by the Jagiellonian University Centre for Chinese Language and Culture “Confucius Institute in Krakow” Reviewer Professor Hubert Królikowski, PhD Cover design Ewa Skrzypiec Photo on the cover: Joanna Wardęga © Copyright by Ewa Trojnar, Łukasz Gacek & Jagiellonian University Press First edition, Kraków 2014 All rights reserved No part of this book may be reprinted or utilised in any form or by any electronic, me- chanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writ- ing from the publishers. ISBN 978-83-233-3590-0 www.wuj.pl Jagiellonian University Press Offi ce: ul. Michałowskiego 9/2, 31-126 Kraków Phone: 12-631-18-81, 12-631-18-82, Fax: 12-631-18-83 Distribution: Phone: 12-631-01-97, Fax: 12-631-01-98 Cell Phone: +48-506-006-674, e-mail: [email protected] Bank: PEKAO SA, IBAN PL 80 1240 4722 1111 0000 4856 3325 Contents Acknowledgements ........................................................................................ 7 Preface ............................................................................................................ 9 Chapter One Natalia Ożegalska-Łukasik Dagongmei in the Context of Rural-urban Migration Processes in Contemporary China ............................................................................ 13 Chapter Two Agnieszka Szajna-Węgrzyn The Linguistic Features of Chinese Internet Language ................................ 25 Chapter Three Michał Witek Chinese Contemporary Art: Between Market and Freedom ......................... 35 Chapter Four Janusz Bąbel The Modernization of the People’s Liberation Army since 1978 ................... 49 Chapter Five Paweł Bieńkowski The Reduced Role of the People’s Liberation Army in the Political Succession to Deng Xiaoping and to Jiang Zemin: Chinese Style Civilian-Military Relations in the Making ............................................... 63 Chapter Six Tobiasz Targosz Chinese Involvement in Southeast Asia on the Example of Myanmar ......... 77 Chapter Seven Anna Kotfi s China’s Energy Policy towards Central Asia and Russia ............................... 87 5 Contents Chapter Eight Karol Bronicki Sino-Japanese Dispute over the Seabed Oil and Gas Resources in the East China Sea ................................................................................ 97 Chapter Nine Jacek Budziaszek China’s Territorial Disputes in the South China Sea ..................................... 111 Chapter Ten Paulina Opacka The Way to Hong Kong Handover and its Implications ............................... 121 6 Acknowledgements Our special thanks go to all the authors of this book for their patience and diligence, as it took time to fi nalize the project. We hope this experience was constructive, as your professional careers have just recently started. Both the conference, held in 2010, and the publishing process would have not been concluded without the support from the Confucius Insti- tute in Kraków. Preface China at the beginning of the 21st century intrigues many researchers around the world. No diff erent was the enthusiasm widely shared among the participants of the students’ conference China at the Beginning of the 21st Century organized by the Institute of Middle and Far East Studies of Jagiellonian University in Kraków in April 2010. Two days of sessions gathered many observers; moreover, a lively and collaborative working environment was created. Research enthusiasm and inquisitive attitude of presenters and discussants observed during the conference inspired us to go beyond the university walls and put this publication together. The problems discussed within this volume provide the readers with a background of most vital issues in modern China. They are related to the challenges of the Chinese society and state’s international skir- mishes. While the fi rst articles provide the insight into social change, creating tremendous opportunities, and no less signifi cant threats for the country’s future development, the others look further and beyond bor- ders to focus our attention on security issues. Each article is separately concluded by the author’s fi ndings, which is highly admirable, since the authors are young, but promising adepts in the fi eld. At the same time, being open for criticism, the authors invite us to take a long hard look at China’s modern challenges. The book opens with a chapter written by Natalia Ożegalska-Łukasik. While referring to rapid economic development of China and reforms initiated by Deng Xiaoping she presents a problem of internal migration on the example of the dagongmei, a well-known Chinese term in international academia and media describing young female workers in China. The author not only tries to convince the readers of the signifi cance of this phenomenon, but also of its contribution to China’s modernization. An even more vibrant impact of the social change could be observed online, proves Agnieszka Szajna-Węgrzyn in Chapter Two. She touches the issue of unique Internet communication in Chinese and analyses 9 Preface its forms and features. Her fi ndings indicate that the Chinese society is deeply infl uenced by a variety of factors among which the predominance of English usage is only lesser to the Mandarin and Chinese dialects. No- ticeably, communication is rooted in sociocultural context, but portrays the users as fi rmly linked to the world wide web. In Chapter Three, Michał Witek, assess position and role of Chinese contemporary art. In order to unravel its intricacy, he provides the readers with a good review of its origins. He points out Chinese economic development as a milestone of art market, which has also been profoundly analyzed. In Chapter Fourth Janusz Bąbel presented the reforms of the Chinese military structures from 1978 when Deng Xiaoping’s ‘open policy’ was initiated. The author analyzed these problems relating them to the chang- ing military doctrine. In his opinion the modernization of the army with the use of advanced technologies could create new purposes in Chinese foreign policy, and could take new initiatives not only in the close neigh- borhood of the Middle Kingdoms. A similar topic was also taken up in the next chapter. Its author, Paweł Bieńkowski, underlined that nowadays a gradual decrease of the role of the People’s Liberation Army Chinese after the Maoist period can be observed. He also presented a very interesting issue of military and national-party connections. In Chapter Six, Tobiasz Targosz described the issue of China’s involvement in neighboring Myanmar. The author notices the practical dimension of this cooperation, pointing at the concentration of Chinese interests in the economical issues. Myanmar is a strategic partner of China, especially in the energy fi eld. In Beijing’s plans Myanmar is also treated as a bridge linking China with other countries of Southern Asia and South- East Asia. The topic of China’s energy security was also taken up by Anna Kotfi s in Chapter Seven. The analysis was concentrated on Russia and Central- Asian countries. Low reserves of crude oil and natural gas force China to seek new markets abroad. Russia, with its large-scale resources, becomes a desired partner. Chinese activity in Central Asia is being determined through geopolitical elements, as well as the possibility of satisfying energy needs. The next chapters by Karol Bronicki and Jacek Budziaszek concentrate on the Chinese territorial disputes. The fi rst refers to Chinese-Japanese confl ict in the East China Sea. The second describes the unsolved disputes in the South China Sea. In both chapters the authors emphasized the strategic dimension of rivalry. The importance of these territories was highlighted in the economic, transport, as well as fi shery meaning. They 10 Preface also underlined their potential in the energy fi eld, because of its oil and gas reserves. In the last chapter Paulina Opacka described the event connected with the takeover of Hong Kong by China in 1997 and its results. The author presented the process of negotiations between China and Great Britain, as well as principles, with Deng Xiaoping’s famous formula ‘one country, two systems,’ which allowed the incorporation of Hong Kong into the motherland. These ten chapters not only sum up the research interests of the afore- mentioned students’ conference, but, above all, emphasize the images of emerging issues in China at the beginning of the 21st century. One should not also forget that these pictures have been painted by fasci- nation with China, and the wide range of subjects covered by the issue depicts it greatly. Łukasz Gacek Ewa Trojnar Chapter One Natalia Ożegalska-Łukasik Dagongmei in the Context of Rural-urban Migration Processes in Contemporary China Since the late 1970s, the Chinese state has assumed a leading role in economic development. Deng Xiaoping took measures that boosted economic growth just when he lost faith in the Maoist model of central planning and collectivization, as well as realized that in terms of economic development China was considerably behind both new Asian Tigers (South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore) and Western capitalists. Rapid economic growth has legitimized the strategy of export-oriented industrialization, pursued through the open-door policy: export-processing, special economic zones, and incentives for foreign in- vestors. Chinese scholars agreed to this kind strategy,

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