| ID | 165223 |
| Title Proper | Managing irregular petitions in China |
| Other Title Information | two types of social control strategy within the authoritarian regime |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Tsai, Wen-Hsuan ; Liao, Xingmiu ; Xingmiu Liao and Wen-Hsuan Tsai |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | This paper uses Province A and City T as case studies to explore the strategies used by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for managing citizens’ “irregular letters and visits” (irregular petitions) and the logic behind them. We believe that the local officials use both “hard” and “soft” measures to exercise control over these activities. The soft measures include persuasion and negotiation aimed at getting petitioners to abandon their irregular petitions. The hard measures involve the use of the coercive power of the state to compel the petitioners to return home. During important political meetings and holiday periods, both of which are popular times for petitioning, the CCP is more likely to take a hard approach to resolve serious problems and maintain stability. In normal times, it generally uses less costly soft tricks. These two social control strategies are utilized alternately by the CCP to maintain social stability and guarantee its regime survival. |
| `In' analytical Note | Journal of East Asian Studies Vol. 19, No.1; Mar 2019: p.1-18 |
| Journal Source | Journal of East Asian Studies Vol: 19 No 1 |
| Key Words | Irregular Petitions ; Social Stability Maintenance ; Political and Legal Affairs Commission ; Bureau of Letters and Visits ; Temporally Differentiated Response |