Taxation without Representation in Contemporary Rural China (Cambridge Modern China Series)

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1、ThispageintentionallyleftblankTaxationwithoutRepresentationinContemporaryRuralChinaThefinancialburdensimposedonpeasantshavebecomeamajorsourceofdiscontentintheChinesecountrysideandaworrisomesourceofpoliticalandsocialinstabilityfortheChinesegovernment.Throughoutthe1990sandintothene

2、wcentury,muchofruralChinahasbeeninastateofcrisisastensionhasgrownbetweenthepeasantmassesandthestate.Farmerswhobitterlyresentedthetaxburdenbeganincreasinglytoprotest(sometimesviolently)againstunpredictableandopen-endedfinancialexactionsbypredatorylocalgovernments.Localruralofficial

3、s,inturn,aredrivenbyintensepressuretodevelopandmodernizeinordertocatchupwiththemorehighlydevelopedcoastalareas.BernsteinandL¨ushowhowandwhyChina’sdevelopmentalprogramsledtocon-tentious,complicatedrelationshipsbetweenpeasantsandthecentralandlocalgovern-ments.Theydiscussthereasons

4、whypeasantsingrain-growing“agriculturalChina”havebenefitedfarlessduringthereformerathanthoseintheindustrializingcoastalareas.Theyexaminetheformsandsourcesofheavy,informaltaxationandshedlightonhowpeasantsdefendtheirinterestsbyadoptingstrategiesofcollectiveresistance(bothpeacefulan

5、dviolent).Theauthorsalsoexplainwhythecentralgovernment,althoughoftensidingwiththepeasants,hasnotbeenabletosolvetheburdenproblembyinstitut-ingasound,reliablefinancialsysteminthecountryside.Theregimehas,tosomeextent,soughttoempowerpeasantstodefendtheirinterests–informingthemaboutta

6、xrules,expandingthelegalsystem,andinstitutingvillageelections–buttheseattemptshavenotyetgeneratedenoughpowerfrom“below”tocounterpowerfullocalgovernments.ThecasestudiesfeaturedhereofferrareinsightintoChinesepoliticallifeinthecountryside.Thisisthefirstin-depthEnglishstudyoftheprobl

7、emofaggressivetaxationbylocalgovernmentsincontemporaryChinaanditssocialandpoliticalimplications.BernsteinandL¨uhelpexplainhowthishasplayedalargeroleindefiningtherelationshipbetweenthestateandpeasantsinthereformperiod.TheiranalysisaddstothelargerdebateoverwhetherChina’sgrowingstre

8、ngthcouldposeathreattoothercountries,orwhetherC