Embedded Activism and Political Change in a Semiauthoritarian Context

Datos Bibliográficos

ID4895082
AutoresPeter Ho (0000-0002-2533-0183, Centre for Development Studies at the University of Groningen, The Netherlands., autor de correspondencia)
Año2007
Volumen21
Número2
Páginas187-209
Fecha de publicación2007-07-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaChina Information (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0920-203X • E-ISSN: 1741-590X
EditorialSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0920203x07079643
OpenAlexW2104700271
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas84
Referencias citadas39

This article provides a theoretical introduction to the other contributions in this special issue. The emergence of social movements is generally seen as an indicator of democratization. The article argues that such a view overlooks the nature of political change in China, which entails a more gradual transition. In this light, the collection of articles is organized around several questions. What does the limited political space imply for the development of a social movement in China? Is the possibility for a social movement a precondition for the development of civil society? What are the prospects for the emergence of a social movement in China, and how would it relate to international forces? These questions are explored by focusing on one of the most active areas of civil society in contemporary China: the environmental realm. The argument linking the articles in this special issue is that China's semiauthoritarian political setup in association with increased social spaces for civic action has created a milieu for embeddedness in social movement. Contrary to totalitarian control, the semiauthoritarian environment is restrictive, but paradoxically, it is also conducive to nationwide, voluntary collective action

Action (physics · Argument (complex analysis · China · Civil society · Collective action · Context (archaeology · Democracy · Democratization · Embeddedness · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Realm · Social change · Social movement · Social science · Sociology · China's Ethnic Minorities and Relations · China's Socioeconomic Reforms and Governance · Chinese history and philosophy · Law