A Path for Chinese Civil Society

Over the years Professors Jianxing Yu, Jun Zhou, and Hua Jiang have written, singly or together, some of the most detailed and careful investigations of industrial associations in the city of Wenzhou, known for its private, entrepreneurial economy. Now they have combined forces to write this comprehensive and fascinating account of the rise and role of industrial associations in Wenzhou. This book is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the current state of state-society relations in China. -- Joseph Fewsmith, Boston University This book adds fresh material to the discussion on the development of a specific 'Chinese' civil society taking business associations in Wenzhou as a case study. In defining civil society the authors differ from the 'western' concept of the emerging of autonomous social spheres confronting the state. Civil society is rather defined as the emergence of a public sphere beyond the party-state which nevertheless takes places in the shadow of state hierarchy, exhibiting strong interweavings with the state. Undoubtly, developments such as in Wenzhou may be forerunners but other areas are following and learning rapidly. It is surely a welcomed phenomenon that Chinese scholars increasingly present their research findings in English thus enhancing discourses among civil society researchers across cultures and political systems. The book shows convincingly: there is not only one distinct pattern of civil society existing across the world but rather multiple patterns coined by very different cultural, social and political conditions. -- Thomas Heberer, Institute for East Asian Studies, University Duisburg-Essen