Sixty years of the People's Republic: local perspectives on the evolution of the state in China

Although the People's Republic of China turns 60 in 2009, popular and to some extent academic perceptions of its political system remain over-determined by the experience of its first 30 years. The socio-economic impact of the policies of the last three decades is well recognised but not the context in which these have occurred. In particular, there is a tendency to differentiate sharply between dramatic economic growth and its consequences and the lack of political change. While it is clearly the case that the Chinese Communist Party remains in power it is equally as obvious that economic reform has had and been accompanied by major political change. Studies on the state in transition at local levels certainly suggest that change has been significant. Moreover, these local studies also indicate the need to further conceptualise understanding of the state in China. The state idea is rather too general a concept and too blunt an instrument for analysis compared to research that considers the state's values and ideology, the social base of political power, the structures and processes of the political system, the authoritative decision-makers, bureaucracy and administration, and the state's international interactions.