On Authoritarian Political Representation in Contemporary China
Both in the Party Charter and in the State Constitution, the Chinese Communist Party claims to represent the Chinese people. Instead of treating this claim as mere rhetoric made by the party for propaganda purposes, this article demonstrates that it indicates a rather significant transition in the p...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Cogitatio
2019-09-01
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| Series: | Politics and Governance |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cogitatiopress.com/politicsandgovernance/article/view/2119 |
| _version_ | 1828446073597722624 |
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| author | Demin Duan |
| author_facet | Demin Duan |
| author_sort | Demin Duan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Both in the Party Charter and in the State Constitution, the Chinese Communist Party claims to represent the Chinese people. Instead of treating this claim as mere rhetoric made by the party for propaganda purposes, this article demonstrates that it indicates a rather significant transition in the party’s understanding of its relationship with the people. Particularly, roughly about two decades into the Open and Reform policy initiated under the leadership of Deng Xiaoping, the party made a strategic choice in imagining itself as the representative of the people instead of the revolutionary vanguard. This change in the language was very remarkable in the post-1949 Chinese history, in the sense that the party no longer considers itself as the facilitator of proletariat revolution, but as the authoritarian representative in the political community. If representation means “re-presentation”, as in bringing something absent present, this appears to be what the party tries to do. By embodying the nation, the party tries to represent both the rich and the poor, acting as the arbiter of forever present discords and conflicts within the society. Clearly, this representation has nothing to do with what people usually call “democratic” representation. But considering that representation and democracy are conceptually rooted in very different sources, exploring “authoritarian representation” in contemporary China would enable us to better understand both China and democratic representation. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T22:05:51Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6060afd6ae19413eb32c7b04f6b33178 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2183-2463 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T22:05:51Z |
| publishDate | 2019-09-01 |
| publisher | Cogitatio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Politics and Governance |
| spelling | doaj.art-6060afd6ae19413eb32c7b04f6b331782022-12-22T01:31:44ZengCogitatioPolitics and Governance2183-24632019-09-017319920710.17645/pag.v7i3.21191156On Authoritarian Political Representation in Contemporary ChinaDemin Duan0School of Government, Peking University, ChinaBoth in the Party Charter and in the State Constitution, the Chinese Communist Party claims to represent the Chinese people. Instead of treating this claim as mere rhetoric made by the party for propaganda purposes, this article demonstrates that it indicates a rather significant transition in the party’s understanding of its relationship with the people. Particularly, roughly about two decades into the Open and Reform policy initiated under the leadership of Deng Xiaoping, the party made a strategic choice in imagining itself as the representative of the people instead of the revolutionary vanguard. This change in the language was very remarkable in the post-1949 Chinese history, in the sense that the party no longer considers itself as the facilitator of proletariat revolution, but as the authoritarian representative in the political community. If representation means “re-presentation”, as in bringing something absent present, this appears to be what the party tries to do. By embodying the nation, the party tries to represent both the rich and the poor, acting as the arbiter of forever present discords and conflicts within the society. Clearly, this representation has nothing to do with what people usually call “democratic” representation. But considering that representation and democracy are conceptually rooted in very different sources, exploring “authoritarian representation” in contemporary China would enable us to better understand both China and democratic representation.https://www.cogitatiopress.com/politicsandgovernance/article/view/2119authoritarian politicsauthorityChinaChinese Communist Partydeliberationdemocracyrepresentation |
| spellingShingle | Demin Duan On Authoritarian Political Representation in Contemporary China Politics and Governance authoritarian politics authority China Chinese Communist Party deliberation democracy representation |
| title | On Authoritarian Political Representation in Contemporary China |
| title_full | On Authoritarian Political Representation in Contemporary China |
| title_fullStr | On Authoritarian Political Representation in Contemporary China |
| title_full_unstemmed | On Authoritarian Political Representation in Contemporary China |
| title_short | On Authoritarian Political Representation in Contemporary China |
| title_sort | on authoritarian political representation in contemporary china |
| topic | authoritarian politics authority China Chinese Communist Party deliberation democracy representation |
| url | https://www.cogitatiopress.com/politicsandgovernance/article/view/2119 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT deminduan onauthoritarianpoliticalrepresentationincontemporarychina |