Democracy in China

Ci offers shrewd insights into the contradictions in the party's ideology, the mentality of China's middle class, and the various ways the party sustains its legitimacy.--Andrew J. Nathan Foreign Affairs (03/01/2020) An elaborate but cogent argument about how the CCP will only overcome its illegitimacy, along with other tears in the national fabric, by choosing to usher in political democracy.--Martin Witte Asian Review of Books (02/16/2020) Jiwei Ci's ambitious book is intended as a practical political argument, addressed as a citizen of China to the incumbent leadership of its governing Communist Party. It is a work of intense seriousness, real intellectual scruple, and, under current circumstances, great political courage.--John Dunn, author of Breaking Democracy's Spell Jiwei Ci's account of the prospects of Chinese democracy is stimulating, deeply researched, and humanely argued. A passionate argument in favor of a more democratic China, it engages seriously with the question of what a Chinese, rather than abstract, democracy might look like, making original and nuanced arguments about how a party-state might genuinely pluralize. His reflections on Hong Kong are particularly thoughtful in light of the current turmoil. A powerful contribution to one of the most acute debates in geopolitics today.--Rana Mitter, author of Forgotten Ally A complex, fascinating book that will have a major impact not only for readers interested in China, but also for anyone working on authoritarian transitions and democratic theory. I find Ci's prudential rather than normative argument on the need for democracy in China persuasive, if one thinks in terms of the Chinese Communist Party moving in a more democratic direction.--Tony Saich, author of Governance and Politics of China