Introduction -- Protests as challenges to authoritarian regimes -- Conflict management in China -- Opportunity for collective action in China -- Social protests in China -- Applying coercion -- Understanding contention and stability in China -- Conclusion.
Summary:
"China has witnessed numerous incidents of social protests over the past three decades. Protests create uncertainty for authoritarian governments, and the Chinese government has created, strengthened, and coordinated multiple dispute-resolution institutions to manage social conflicts and protests. Accommodating the aggrieved prevents the accumulation of grievances in society, but concessions require resources. As the frequency and scale of collective action are closely tied to the political opportunity for action, the Chinese government has also contained collective action by shaping the political opportunity available to the aggrieved. This study shows that when the Chinese central government prioritizes social control, as it has under Xi Jinping's leadership, it signals its preference and that it will tolerate local governments' use of coercion. As a result, the central and local governments create an environment that is not conducive to the mobilization of collective action. Although reactive collective actions have still occurred in China, large-scale occurrences have been uncommon in recent years"-- Provided by publisher.
Series:
Elements in politics and society in East Asia, 2632-735X
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.