International Journal of China Studies 

About: International Journal of China Studies is an academic journal. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): China & Population. It has an ISSN identifier of 2180-3250. Over the lifetime, 123 publications have been published receiving 708 citations.

China's New Role in Africa

Abstract: (ProQuest: ... denotes non-US-ASCII text omitted.)Ian Taylor, China's New Role in Africa, Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc., 2010, 227 pp.The rise of China and its unprecedented involvement in Africa in the new millennium has resulted in both doubts and speculations. As the whole world is gearing up for securing resources, the ever closer bilateral relations between China and Africa has been subjected to careful scrutiny worldwide. Vastly different conclusions have been drawn by politicians, policy-makers, as well as scholars. China, as a result, has been depicted as partner, economic competitor, and colonizer respectively. With the outstand- ing disagreements and controversy, there is an obvious need for further examination of China's involvement in Africa. Taylor's book meets this need by offering a systematic analysis of China's Africa policy which covers almost all major aspects of China's Africa policy that have stirred up international controversy, ranging from oil diplomacy, manufactured products, human rights, to arms sale and peace keeping. The book has well-demonstrated strength in the following areas.First of all, there has been outstanding conceptual clarification. By challenging the existing misconception and confusion about key concepts such as "China" and "Africa" upfront in the book, the author lays a solid conceptual foundation for the research and clarified quite an array of misunderstandings developed out of stereotyped images or over-generalization. Frequently, China and Africa have been approached without being questioned conceptually. The over-simplification of concepts has made depth of research difficult to achieve. When researchers talk about China and Africa as a matter of fact, a wealth of nuanced information gets lost in the process, which in turn, results in misleading interpretations and conclusions that produces more confusion and policy anxiety rather than constructive outcomes. Neither China nor Africa is a unitary actor. Knowing which China and Africa we are talking about, is therefore, both imperative and crucial to improve existing knowledge of the bilateral relations between China and Africa.Additionally, by conducting extensive interviews, field studies, as well as archival research, the book has challenged the existing frameworks of understanding regarding the China-Africa Relations via a constructivist perspective. Particularly, it shatters the colonizer-friend dichotomy that both has over-simplified the situation and exaggerated the anxiety felt by the world about China's involvement in Africa. …

The Management of Foreigners in China: Changes to the Migration Law and Regulations during the Late HuWen and Early XiLi Eras and Their Potential Effects

Abstract: Several substantial changes and amendments to the migration law of the People's Republic of China (PRC) have been introduced during the late Hu-Wen and early Xi-Li eras. The major objective of this article is to discuss whether the new provisions will generally change non-Chinese foreigners' livelihoods and opportunities for working and residing in the country. This paper analyses policy documents and reports, scholarly literature on the management of foreigners in China, and national and international media reports. We conclude that while there has been a rhetorical shiftfrom a focus on strictly managing and controlling foreigners in China to attracting and promoting their inflow since the Hu-Wen era, new measures benefitting foreigners primarily target the so-called foreign talents. At the same time, greater emphasis is placed on monitoring and controlling other groups of foreigners and on reducing the "three illegalities" (illegal entry, illegal employment, and illegal stay). The new regulations that were released under the new leadership of Xi-Li during the summer of 2013 account for continuity since the Hu Wen era. The recent population census indicated that the number of foreigners in China is insignificant compared to the country's total population. However, the recent changes have made clear that the current PRC regime does not intend to increase the number of foreigners substantially and approaches its foreign population cautiously.Keywords: migration law, African migration, illegal migration, international migration, leadership changeJEL Classification: F22, J15, J61, K31(ProQuest: ... denotes non-US-ASCII text omitted.)1. IntroductionEach generation of Chinese leaders since the opening reforms had acted deliberately in revealing the direction that reforms would take during its legislative period (cf. Callahan 201 3). Cautious and long-term preparations ensured a smooth leadership transition during the last turnover from the generation of leaders under Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao to the new regime led by Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang. Maintaining political, social and economic stability during this period is deemed of the highest importance for preventing socio-political unrest, maintaining steady economic growth, and maintaining one-party rule. Therefore, we can only surmise possible paths that will be pursued by the new leadership. Yet, Xi and Li joined the nine-member Politburo Standing Committee during the 1 7th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party in 2007, and have been groomed as the heirs and deputies of Hu and Wen; for this reason, Xiao (201 3) expects continuity of policy rather than change.Nevertheless, the management of foreigners in the People's Republic of China (PRC) has developed through the amendments and revisions in entry and exit administration law announced and partly implemented around the time of the leadership change during the late Hu-Wen era and the early Xi-Li era. The main objective of this article is to discuss the expected effects of the recent migration law changes. Will the management of foreigners change, and if so, to what extent? What are the implications for foreigners' livelihoods and opportunities to work and reside in the country? In this paper, we focus on non-Chinese foreigners who live in or seek to live in mainland China (that is, not including the Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions). Therefore, we examine a narrower portion of China's migration law than is commonly considered in scholarly literature, which usually includes outflows of Chinese citizens for the purposes of tourism, visiting relatives, studying abroad, employment, or permanent residence and their return as well as the Haiwai Huaren (Chinese overseas) (e.g. Liang and Morooka, 2008; Zhu et al., 2008; Liu, 2009, 2011 ).Attracted by China's unprecedented economic boom and its resulting opportunities and demands, an increasing number of foreigners from diverse places have flown into the country, particularly in the aftermath of China's WTO accession. …

China Orders the World: Normative Soft Power and Foreign Policy

Abstract: (ProQuest: denotes non-US-ASCII text omitted)AW Callahan and E Barabantseva (eds), China Orders the World: Normative SoftPower and Foreign Policy, Washington, DC: Woodrow Wilson Press, 2011, 280 pp + xivThis is a very rich opus which presents us with a complex discussion of the relationship between China's historical ideas and China's foreign policy The book comes out during the time of China taking a high profile in international affairs President Hu's "Harmonious World" pronouncements, and the Beijing-championed economic initiatives come from a different understanding of the world by China's foreign policy elite, which goes beyond merely being a status quo power, and implicitly challenge the Western-led international order Therefore to understand China and its intentions, we must first look inside the country, and understand how China sees itself and the world, which is precisely what the book engages in Based on a panel "Tradition and Modernity in China's Foreign Policy", which was a part of the launch conference for the British Inter-University China Centre, the edited volume features a collection of eight essays written by both Chinese and Western scholars who engage in Chinese philosophy and international relations According to Callahan, one of the editors, the book strives to explain China's intellectual debates in the search for a post- Western world order and to raise new questions about a topic that is growing in importanceThe edited volume is thematically divided into three parts The first part shows the richness of international relations theorizing in China and features three Chinese scholars invoking distinct Chinese conceptual themes to think about the world In the second and the third parts, Western scholars analyze how the past and present are put together in Chinese discussions of domestic and international politicsThe first section of the book is perhaps the most interesting and innovative, and crosses the boundaries between philosophy and international relations Zhao, Qin and Yan are not only distinguished scholars but also part of the policy-making elite in China, which makes their ideas even more pertinent In their respective chapters, Zhao discusses the traditional Chinese concept of world governance, the "All under the Heaven" (tianxia ), Qin ponders the possibility of a Chinese school of international relations theory, and Yan tries to explain the thought of the ancient Chinese philosopher Xunzi from the perspective of international relations Particularly intriguing is Zhao's essay in Chapter 2, where he argues that tianxia would provide a better alternative to the current anarchic international system, which is, according to him, not capable of solving global issues efficiently Zhao's approach is also interesting from the methodology aspect; he shifts the attention to the international system, where only the solution to the world's problems can be found Nevertheless, while Zhao discusses the nature of tianxia in detail, he is silent about how can it be achieved …

The Dynamics of Mainstream and Internet Alternative Media in Hong Kong: A Case Study of the Umbrella Movement +

Abstract: (ProQuest: ... denotes non-US-ASCII text omitted.)1. IntroductionExisting literatures recognise that the Chinese government has been attempting to control Hong Kong media through inducing media self-censorship since the 1997 handover, which is seen as a threat to press freedom (Lee and Lin, 2006; Ma, 2007). A survey in 2014 showed that 49.1 per cent of citizens believed the Hong Kong media practised self-censorship (HKUPOP, 2014a) and 56.7 per cent believed the media had reservations about criticising the Chinese government (HKUPOP, 2014b). The problem of media self-censorship is especially evident in relation to politically sensitive news topics. These include Taiwan independence, commemoration of the Tiananmen incident, and the legal status of the Falun Gong in Hong Kong, because they either directly or indirectly challenge the legitimacy and authority of Beijing (Lee and Chan, 2009). Thus, media treatments of these topics are also what most academics and commentators make reference to when evaluating media self-censorship (Cheung, 2003; Fung, 2007). Given this situation, a series of academic works have found that most mainstream media organisations tend to avoid these sensitive matters or use alternative means (inviting external commentaries or employing foreign media reports) to handle these issues in order not to provoke the Chinese leaders (Lee, 2000; 2007).Since September 2014, the Umbrella Movement has become another politically sensitive topic. It used blocking of main roads as a protest strategy, urging the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPCSC) to retract the framework of the Chief Executive Election method in 2017, and calling for more democracy in Hong Kong. In local eyes, the movement was mainly led by university and secondary school students to fight for a Chief Executive Election without "unreasonable political screening". However, in Beijing's assessment, this movement was a challenge to its authority. Some argued this campaign was a "colour revolution", funded by Western governments, in an attempt to overthrow the Chinese regime in Hong Kong. A number of pro-China media even declared this movement is in fact fighting for "the independence of Hong Kong". It is under this circumstance that news of the Umbrella Movement was intentionally filtered or blocked on the mainland. So, how have mainstream and Internet alternative media in Hong Kong responded to this politically sensitive topic?By examining the case study of the Umbrella Movement, this article argues that most mainstream media organisations took an anti-movement stance and continuously practised self-censorship whereas an increasing number of Hong Kong people criticised their performance and paid more attention to the Internet alternative media, mostly offering pro-movement information. Thus, the circulation of Internet news expanded alarmingly during the movement.2. Theoretical Review: The Dynamics of Mainstream and Internet Alternative MediaIn the field of media studies, the dynamic between mainstream and Internet alternative media has developed into an important theoretical perspective. By definition, "Internet alternative media" refers to media organisations with their own news reporting team (e.g. editors and journalists) and news reports which mainly rely on the Internet (e.g. Facebook or webpage, etc.) for message delivery (Morone, 2013) while "mainstream media" refers to the traditional media organisations (e.g. TV, newspaper and radio, etc.) that capture the attention of the majority of society and hold the symbolic power to present and define "social reality" (Couldry, 2000). With the Internet having become popular in recent decades, the production and distribution cost for operating alternative media organisations has decreased, thus facilitating people's participation in coproduction of alternative media content and reaching a wide audience. More importantly, Internet alternative media provide more options to audience instead of only relying on traditional media (Bennett and Iyengar, 2008). …

The Impact of ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement on ASEAN's Manufacturing Industry

Abstract: In November 2002 at the ministerial meeting, ASEAN and China signed an agreement to form a free trade area (FTA) by the year 2010. There was an estimation that both regions would gain from FTA deals. However, the rapid growth of China since the early 1990s does not warrant the estimation and positive expectation of the FTA deal. Prior to November 2002, substantial amount of trade and investment in the region had diverted to China. China's relatively lower cost of production compared to ASEAN members has decreased the export competitiveness of ASEAN. The strong competition between the regions in the international commodity market and productive foreign capital has produced great stress to ASEAN economies. The main reason for the economic stress is largely attributed to the structure of production and exports of ASEAN and China. Both regions engage in similar sectors of commodities production and exports. There is the factor of homogeneity in production and exports in the regions. In a group of countries or regions which have a similar structure of production of commodity and exports, theoretically only countries which have the lowest cost of production will gain in trading. The diversion of trade and investment of ASEAN to China is real. These diversions have explicitly affected the terms-of-trade of ASEAN's economies, and have eventually reduced exports income. This paper believes that the ASEAN-China FTA does not promise a total gain to members of ASEAN. This paper does not deny that there are members of ASEAN which may receive a positive economic impact from the FTA but the question is how much will they gain. This paper will explore the impact of the ASEAN-China FTA on ASEAN's trade and will provide some ideas as to how competitive members of ASEAN are relative to China.Keywords: economic integration, intra-industry trade, comparative advantage, China, ASEANJEL classification: F10, F13, F14, F19, O591. ASEAN-CHINA FTA: A Brief ReviewThe idea to establish a free trade area between ASEAN and China was mooted with the consensus of developing ASEAN+3 at Manila in 1998. Zhu Rongji, the Prime Minister of the People's Republic of China (henceforth China), had raised again the idea of an ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) during the ASEAN+3 meeting in Singapore in November 2000, and at the ASEANChina Economic Cooperation Meeting in August 2001 (Buszynski, 2001). The proposal was promoted by Singapore although the other ASEAN members were quite reluctant: they favoured a bigger FTA called the East Asian FTA (EAFTA) that would include China, Japan and South Korea. However, at that point, Japan and South Korea were not ready for this (the formation of the EAFTA). ASEAN and China in principle agreed to form a solid economic cooperation in the form of such an agreement. On 4th November 2002, 10 members of ASEAN and China reached an agreement to build the ACFTA (ASEAN-China Free Trade Area) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Both regions signed the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Co-operation. The formal agreement was based on a decision made by ASEAN members and China in 2001 at the Annual ASEAN Summit held in Bandar Seri Bagawan, Brunei. The agreement set the elements and basis for negotiations towards the realization of an ASEAN-China Free Trade Area by 2010 for the 6 main ASEAN members (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, and Brunei) and by 2015 for the 4 new ASEAN members (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam).Under the Agreement Framework on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation (CEC), tariffreduction or elimination or liberalizing trade in goods falls under Article 3 of Trade in Goods. The reduction or elimination of tariffs on listed products was to be gradually implemented. Tariffreduction under the FTA agreement was based on applied MFN rates as of 1st July 2003. In the case of ASEAN members which were not members of WTO, tariffreduction was based on MFN rates applied by China. …