DYNAMICS OF POPULAR NATIONALISM IN CHINA’S JAPAN POLICY IN POST-COLD WAR ERA By GUO YU A thesis submitted to the University of Birmingham for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Political Science and International Studies School of Government and Society College of Social Sciences The University of Birmingham May 2012 University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. ABSTRACT The principal aim of this thesis is to seek answers to the two core research questions: how has popular nationalism been instrumental in China’s Japan policy vis-à-vis its domestic politics since the end of the Cold War? And, how and to what extent has the Chinese government managed popular nationalism in foreign and domestic policy practices? Using Japan as an empirical subject, this thesis explores and investigates the complex interactive relations between popular nationalism, in particular emotions and sentiment, and foreign policy and domestic politics in post-Cold War China. The work takes a constructivist view, which popular nationalism, foreign policy and domestic politics are seen as mutually constituted. Taking two recent diplomatic frictions between China and Japan as case studies, the thesis critically examines the mutually constitutive effects of popular nationalism on China’s Japan policy in respect to its domestic politics. In addition, the work’s pioneering studies on the new ‘inward outcry’ syndrome in Chinese nationalism further highlights the mutual constitutive relations among popular nationalism, foreign policy and domestic politics. This thesis argues that the popular nationalism plays a dynamic role in shaping China’s Japan policy. On the one hand, popular nationalism may instrumentalise to serve China’s domestic and international objectives. On the other hand, popular nationalism has to be delicately managed in order to maintain social stability, amicable relations with Japan, and increasingly, China’s international image and reputation. To Mum and Dad: Guardians, Friends and My Eternal Love ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, my heartfelt thanks to my supervisor, Dr. Julie Gilson, whose devoted guidance, unyielding support, and sound advice at every step of my research, made this process an intellectually stimulating experience for me. I am deeply grateful for her professional and dedicated supervision. I also owe my genuine gratitude to Associate Professor Caroline Hughes, for her invaluable comments and advice that helped me paving out a correct path at the early stage of the project. Likewise, I am indebted to many other staff members and fellow PhDs in the POLSIS at the University of Birmingham. They create such an inspirational and motivating environment in which I feel honoured to have studied over the years. My thanks also go to the supporting staff at the department, who, over the course of my education, have always promptly dealt however small matters with a big smile, from room booking to toner replacing. My fieldwork in China would not have been possible without the patience and generosity of the intellectuals and analysts that I interviewed. Special gratitude offers to friends Dr. Jiagang Chen and Dr. Xiangning Wu, for helping me to organize and liaison with the interviewees in Beijing. I am especially grateful and appreciated for the immense understanding and moral support that my partner Lu, a fellow PhD herself, has constantly offered at my side throughout this “roller coaster” journey, making the lows more bearable and the highs more enjoyable. Finally, needless to say, this thesis would not have been possible without unparalleled support and great encouragement from my family. My beloved parents not only have made this work possible by generously sponsoring me with their hard-earned money, they also have been a constant source of joy and strength throughout this demanding research process. Therefore, above all, my biggest thank you goes to mum and dad, to whom this thesis is dedicated. Table of Contents Abbreviations ................................................................................................................. viii Notes on Chinese and Japanese Names .....................................................................xi Introduction........................................................................................................................1 Objectives, Questions and Definitions ................................................................................ 3 Theoretical Assumption .......................................................................................................... 7 Empirical Scope and Contributions ..................................................................................... 8 Research Design and Thesis Structure .............................................................................11 Chapter One: Nationalism and Foreign Policy—A Dialectical Paradigm..... 14 1.1 Nationalism: identity of a nation/state?................................................................15 1.1.1 Nationalism Unpacked ........................................................................................................16 1.1.2 ‘Who Are We?’-the Case of Post-Socialist States ......................................................22 1.2 Foreign Policy Analysis (FPA)...................................................................................29 1.2.1 Definition......................................................................................................................30 1.2.2 FPA Framework......................................................................................................................31 1.2.3 Level of Analysis.....................................................................................................................34 1.2.4 Domestic Politics and Foreign Policy............................................................................38 1.2.5 Action, Reaction and Interaction ....................................................................................43 1.2.6 Culture and Foreign Policy ................................................................................................47 1.3 ToWards A Constructivist Approach.......................................................................52 1.4 Interpretive Methods...................................................................................................60 1.5 Research Methodology................................................................................................64 1.6 Summary ..........................................................................................................................67 Chapter TWo: Chinese Nationalism – from Elites to Grassroots ..................... 69 2.1 Origins of Chinese Nationalism ....................................................................................70 2.2 State-led Nationalism and the Communist Party ...................................................73 2.3 The Rise of Popular Nationalism after 1989............................................................80 2.3.1 “Culture Fever” and Popular Nationalist Critique ...................................................82 2.3.2 Power of the Internet and the Rise of Cyber Nationalism ...................................90 2.3.3 The Pride/Humiliation Complex in Chinese Nationalism....................................95 2.3.4 The Pride/Humiliation Complex at Work...................................................................98 2.4 Summary........................................................................................................................... 101 Chapter Three: China and Japan – Near Yet So Far ...........................................103 3.1 General Introductory Literature............................................................................... 105 3.2 Issue Specific Literature .............................................................................................. 110 3.3 Ups and Downs................................................................................................................ 114 3.4 A Sensitive Matter?........................................................................................................ 125 3.4.1 Media: Nationalism Sells .................................................................................................126 3.4.2 The Internet: A Thermometer for Public Opinion................................................129 3.4.3 Public Opinion: Unpopular Japan ................................................................................134 3.5 Summary........................................................................................................................... 135 Chapter Four: The 2005 Anti-Japanese Protest .................................................137 4.1 Background...................................................................................................................... 138 4.2 The Anti-Japanese