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Chinese Discourse on Constitutionalism and Its Impact on Reforms

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Abstract

The concept of constitutionalism (xianzheng) appeared in China in the late Qing dynasty as a banner of the political reform. It was banned during the Mao era but reappeared when the reform-oriented leaders revised the constitution in 1982. Since the 1990s, it has become a key term used in the liberal discourse. This paper addresses the following research questions: What is the current debate on constitutionalism? Why is the Chinese leadership under Xi Jinping so resistant towards constitutionalism? What are the prospects of constitutionalism in China? What are the impacts of intellectual discourse on constitutionalism for China and how will it contribute to China’s political transformation in the twenty-first century?

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Notes

  1. Before the late 1990s, when discussing the role of law in China, Chinese authorities often used the phrase “rule by law” (依法制国), in 1997 the 15th Party Congress changed the term to “governing the country according to law” (yifazhiguo依法治国).

  2. Other topics include the Tiananmen Square protest, Liu Xiaobo, multi-party system, and separation of powers.

  3. Zhang Qianfan, “Without Constitutional Government, Reform Is Only Empty Talk,” quoted in Joseph Fewsmith, “Debating Constitutional Government,” China Leadership Monitor, no. 42, Hoover Institution, Fall 2013.

  4. “Charter 08,” available at http://www.2008xianzhang.info/chinese.htm, English translation: Perry Link, “China’s Charter 08, New York Review of Books, January 15, 2009.

  5. Tienchi Martin-Liao, “The Old Man and His Magazine,” available at http://www.sampsoniaway.org/fearless-ink/2016/08/26/the-old-man-and-his-magazine/.

  6. David Dodwell, “Good governance, as China argues, trumps democracy,” available at

    http://www.scmp.com/business/article/1896811/good-governance-china-argues-trumps-democracy.

  7. “Chinese President Calls for Preservation of Chinese Culture,” Global Times, September 25, 2014, available at http://gbtimes.com/china/chinese-president-calls-preservation-chinese-culture.

  8. Data comes from World Bank website, available at http://info.worldbank.org/governance/wgi/index.aspx#reports, accessed on January 21, 2017.

  9. Xinhua Net Beijing, “Xi Jinping, Emphasizes on Law-Based Governance, Administration, and Execution for China’s Development,” available at http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2013-02/24/c_114782088.htm.

  10. Ironically, China banned a new book by prominent historian Qin Hui on constitutional democracy just a day before Beijing celebrated Constitution Day in 2015.

  11. Article 3, Constitution of the People Republic of China.

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  1. Department of Political Science, Merrimack College, North Andover, MA, 01845, USA

    H. Li

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Li, H. Chinese Discourse on Constitutionalism and Its Impact on Reforms. J OF CHIN POLIT SCI 22, 407–427 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11366-017-9496-5

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