Township Governance and Institutionalization in China

TOWNSHIP GOVERNANCE AND INSTITUTIONALIZATION IN CHINA 8478hc_9789814405911_tp.indd 1 12/8/13 5:45 PM Series on Contemporary China (ISSN: 1793-0847) Series Editors: Joseph Fewsmith (Boston University) Zheng Yongnian (East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore) Published* Vol. 23 Social Cohesion in Greater China: Challenges for Social Policy and Governance edited by Ka Ho Mok & Yeun-Wen Ku Vol. 24 China’s Reform in Global Perspective edited by John Wong & Zhiyue Bo Vol. 25 The Transition Study of Postsocialist China: An Ethnographic Study of a Model Community by Wing-Chung Ho Vol. 26 Looking North, Looking South: China, Taiwan, and the South Pacific edited by Anne-Marie Brady Vol. 27 China’s Industrial Development in the 21st Century edited by Mu Yang & Hong Yu Vol. 28 Cross-Taiwan Straits Relations Since 1979: Policy Adjustment and Institutional Change Across the Straits edited by Kevin G. Cai Vol. 29 The Transformation of Political Communication in China: From Propaganda to Hegemony by Xiaoling Zhang Vol. 30 The Great Urbanization of China edited by Ding Lu Vol. 31 Social Structure of Contemporary China edited by Xueyi Lu Vol. 32 East Asia: Developments and Challenges edited by Yongnian Zheng & Liang Fook Lye Vol. 33 China and East Asia: After the Wall Street Crisis edited by Peng Er Lam, Yaqing Qin & Mu Yang Vol. 34 The World Turned Upside Down: The Complex Partnership between China and Latin America by Alfredo Toro Hardy Vol. 35 Township Governance and Institutionalization in China by Shukai Zhao *To view the complete list of the published volumes in the series, please visit: http://www.worldscientific.com/series/scc Series on Contemporary China – Vol. 35 TOWNSHIP GOVERNANCE AND INSTITUTIONALIZATION IN CHINA Zhao Shukai Development Research Center of the State Council, China World Scientific NEW JERSEY • LONDON • SINGAPORE • BEIJING • SHANGHAI • HONG KONG • TAIPEI • CHENNAI 8478hc_9789814405911_tp.indd 2 12/8/13 5:45 PM Published by World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd. 5 Toh Tuck Link, Singapore 596224 USA office: 27 Warren Street, Suite 401-402, Hackensack, NJ 07601 UK office: 57 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9HE Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Zhao, Shukai. Township governance and institutionalization in China / Shukai Zhao. pages cm. -- (Series on contemporary China ; volume 35) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-9814405911 (hc) 1. Municipal government--China. 2. Political participation--China. 3. Local government--China. 4. Cities and towns--China. 5. China--Politics and government. I. Title. JS7357.A15Z433 2013 320.8'50951--dc23 2013028390 British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Copyright © 2014 by World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without written permission from the Publisher. For photocopying of material in this volume, please pay a copying fee through the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. In this case permission to photocopy is not required from the publisher. In-house Editor: Zheng Danjun Typeset by Stallion Press Email: [email protected] Printed in Singapore b1513 Township Governance and Institutionalization in China b1513_FM 12 Aug 2013 7:01 PM [Monday] Contents Introduction 1 Chapter 1 Progress of Township Governance Studies 20 Chapter 2 Organizational and Personnel Structure 84 Chapter 3 Fiscal Standing and Debt Crisis 116 Chapter 4 Power and Accountability 148 Chapter 5 Control Systems 177 Chapter 6 Public Services of Township Governments 208 Chapter 7 Township Government in Prospect 239 Chapter 8 Government Functions and Alienation of Institutions 263 Chapter 9 Institutionalization of Governments and Reforms 295 Bibliography 322 Postscript 333 Appendix I: Interview Outline of Town Leaders 336 Appendix II: Interview Outline of the Village Leaders 352 Index 371 v bb1513_FM.indd1513_FM.indd v 88/12/2013/12/2013 77:00:10:00:10 PPMM b1513 Township Governance and Institutionalization in China b1513_FM 12 Aug 2013 7:01 PM [Monday] This page intentionally left blank bb1513_FM.indd1513_FM.indd vvii 88/12/2013/12/2013 77:00:10:00:10 PPMM b1513 Township Governance and Institutionalization in China b1513_Introduction 12 Aug 2013 7:01 PM [Monday] Introduction This book is an empirical study of the grassroots government and governance in contemporary China. The author focuses on the township level among the three levels such as county, township and village, and the first 5 years of 21st century. The Chinese government abol- ished the agricultural tax in 2005 which tremendously influenced the daily activities and works of grassroots government. However, the author argues that the institutional environment and the behavior of grassroots government have not changed. Therefore, in the coming decades, this book and its arguments are of great importance for the Chinese government and its reform. 1. Background and Questions The township government, below the county level, is the lowest level of administrative apparatus of the state on the countryside. There are two reasons that the author picks township government as the research objective. On the one hand, the vast rural China is divided into numerous units of township as the indispensable entity to explore and study the issues of rural area. When the township government deals with the rural issues, its role is as a stakeholder rather than an outsider. Sometimes, the township government acts as a manager to respond and solve problems, but sometimes it is the problem. On the 1 bb1513_Introduction.indd1513_Introduction.indd 1 88/12/2013/12/2013 77:00:34:00:34 PPMM b1513 Township Governance and Institutionalization in China b1513_Introduction 12 Aug 2013 7:01 PM [Monday] 2 Township Governance and Institutionalization in China other hand, as the lowest administrative level of the state, the township government directly interacts with the society, and provides public services. It is clear that the township government adds a very crucial dimension in understanding and observing the state and society relationships in contemporary China. As an important part of political regime, the township government is not only the extension and miniature of Chinese government and political institution, but also represents the dynamics of rural development in China and the transforming state and society relationships. That is, the township government is too important to neglect when studying Chinese government and politics. This book studies the township government because of its unique position among the Chinese society, politics, and rural development. 1.1. Township government and “sannong issues” In the mid and late 1990s, unprecedented severe issues had occurred in rural China, and the officers of grassroots attributed these issues into three categories: “poverty of village, hardship of peasants’ life, and danger of agriculture” (Li, 2002). Meanwhile, the growth of agricultural production and rural economy was slow, peasants’ income Governmental Institution Central–Local Relationship Township Government Relationship between Upper and Lower Levels Embeddedness Peasants Interaction Rural Areas State–Society Agriculture Relationship Three Rural Issues Figure 1: Township Government Interconnected with all Issues. bb1513_Introduction.indd1513_Introduction.indd 2 88/12/2013/12/2013 77:00:34:00:34 PPMM b1513 Township Governance and Institutionalization in China b1513_Introduction 12 Aug 2013 7:01 PM [Monday] Introduction 3 was unable to increase, and the social development of villages was completely stagnant. The problems of education, culture, public health, and social security were severe, which reflected in the shortage of public services at the grassroots. Consequently, the peasants’ political trust in the grassroots government decreased, and conflicts between the peasants and grassroots government also grew to unprecedented levels. Though the central government acknowledged the top priority of agricultural and rural governance, in realty, propaganda rather than effective works were conducted. Especially in the late 1990s, the government was not only unable to solve the heavy finan- cial burden of the peasants and change the local harsh policies, but also discriminated the peasants in many policies and oppressed the immigration of the peasants. All these actions made the peasants’ life very tough. These phenomena drew the attention of domestic and international observers who started to study the issue of “governing crises” in China (Pei, 2002; Shirk, 2007). After the Party’s 16th National Congress in 2002, the central government adopted the solution of “sannong issues” as its priority. Its policy orientation was “to give but not to prey”, and the principle was “industry supports agriculture and city reciprocation to villages”. On the one hand, the government adopted several schemes to develop the agricultural production, medical improvement, and villagers’ education. On the other hand, abolition of agricultural taxes and subsidizing grain production increased the peasants’ income. It is clear that these policies have not only promoted the economic development of villages, but also boosted the coordinated development between economy and

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