Civil Society in China

The Legal Framework from Ancient Times to the "New Reform Era"

Karla W. Simon

Includes historical content links to the developments of the current "new reform era"
Comparison charts in the appendix provide easy access to the ways in which current three regulations (1998/2004) differ from earlier ones from 1988/1989
Analysis of the proposed charity law and the enacted local charity fund raising regulations helps to provide a link to what will be the next big legislative development in this area
Extensive discussion of how comparative materials might be used to assist in reform efforts

Civil Society in China

The Legal Framework from Ancient Times to the "New Reform Era"

Karla W. Simon

Description

This is the definitive book on the legal and fiscal framework for civil society organizations (CSOs) in China from earliest times to the present day. Civil Society in China traces the ways in which laws and regulations have shaped civil society over the 5,000 years of China's history and looks at ways in which social and economic history have affected the legal changes that have occurred over the millennia.

This book provides an historical and current analysis of the legal framework for civil society and citizen participation in China, focusing not merely on legal analysis, but also on the ways in which the legal framework influenced and was influenced in turn by social and economic developments. The principal emphasis is on ways in which the Chinese people - as opposed to high-ranking officials or cadres -- have been able to play a part in the social and economic development of China through the associations in which they participate.

Civil Society in China sums up this rather complex journey through Chinese legal, social, and political history by assessing the ways in which social, economic, and legal system reforms in today's China are bound to have an impact on civil society. The changes that have occurred in China's civil society since the late 1980's and, most especially, since the late 1990's, are nothing short of remarkable. This volume is an essential guide for lawyers and scholars seeking an in depth understanding of social life in China written by one of its leading experts.

Civil Society in China

The Legal Framework from Ancient Times to the "New Reform Era"

Karla W. Simon

Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1
The Tradition of Law in Imperial China

Chapter 2
Dynastic Overview

Chapter 3
Charity and Associational Life in Early Imperial China

Chapter 4
Charity and Associational Life in Late Imperial China

Chapter 5
Law, Charity, and Associational Life during the Short Half-Century (1911-1949)

Chapter 6
Revolution and its Aftermath

Chapter 7
The Roles of Other Organizations after the Revolution and the Effect of the Cultural Revolution on the Party and Civil Society

Chapter 8
Emerging from Chaos: The Impact of the Deng Xiaoping Regime
on Social Organizations and Foundations

Chapter 9
The Impact of the Deng Xiaoping Regime on Various Other Types of Organizations and CSO Funding

Chapter 10
Making More Space: Reforms from 1990 to 2010

Chapter 11
Rules and Regulations for Other Secular Organizations and New Roles for Some

Chapter 12
Resource Issues for CSOs

Chapter 13
The Legal Framework for Religious Organizations -- Evolution after Reform and Opening Up

Chapter 14
2011-- the Remarkable Year

Chapter 15
Comparative Developments

Conclusion

Acknowledgements

Appendices

Civil Society in China

The Legal Framework from Ancient Times to the "New Reform Era"

Karla W. Simon

Author Information

Karla W. Simon is Professor of Law at the Columbus School of Law, Catholic University of America. She is Co-Director with Dr. Frederick Ahearn of the Center for International Social Development, also at CUA. Professor Simon was previously a member of the faculties of the law schools at Seton Hall University and the University of San Diego, and she served as a visiting professor at the University of California at Los Angeles, Peking University, the University of Bologna, and Central European University. She received her JD from Duke University School of Law and her LLM from NYU. Her previous books include Outsourcing Social Services to Civil Society Organizations in China and Around the World (with Wang, Salamon & Irish 2009), Charity Law and Social Policy (with O'Halloran and McGregor-Lowndes 2008), and Guidelines for Laws Affecting Civic Organizations (with Irish and Kushen 2004).

Civil Society in China

The Legal Framework from Ancient Times to the "New Reform Era"

Karla W. Simon

Reviews and Awards

"Simon's deeply researched work dispels the myth that China lacks a history of civic participation and details the re-emergence of a vibrant civil society albeit under the constraints of a wary central government." --Prof. June Teufel Dreyer, University of Miami (Political Science)

"Karla Simon's book fills an important gap in our understanding of civil society in China, and is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the historical and legal context of current developments in China's civil society." --Shawn Shieh, Director and Editor of China Development Brief (English)

"The most important book for legal studies on NPO in China." --Prof. Ge Yunsong,University of Peking (Beijing) Law School

"An important book for scholars, policymakers, and practitioners seeking to understand the legal underpinnings of the development of civil society in China." --Benjamin L. Liebman, Robert L. Lieff Professor of Law, Director, Center for Chinese Legal Studies, Columbia Law School

"Chinese civil society has grown dramatically over the past thirty years. But state attitudes remain deeply conflicted - welcoming the assistance of civil society in addressing pressing social problems, but instinctively fearing the emergence of truly independent organizations. This work, by one of the most prominent American experts on comparative civil society law, helps readers navigate the complicated (and evolving) regulatory web governing civil society in China today." --Carl Minzner, Associate Professor of Law, Fordham Law School

"Meets a long-felt need for a detailed empirical study linking the emergence of associational life with the evolution of civil law in China from imperial times to the present day. The link is clear enough in the People's Republic, as Simon shows through attention to changing rules and regulations governing civil society. Her wider contribution is to show that this has always been the case." --John Fitzgerald, Truby and Florence Williams Chair in Social Investment and Philanthropy Swinburne University, Melbourne

"Karla Simon's book provides insights into civil society in China that are rare for a Westerner to perceive." -- Pei Bin, Senior Program Officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Beijing

"Karla Simon's clearly written, meticulously researched book admirably fills the pressing need for a comprehensive overview of philanthropy and civil society in China. There have been historical studies of philanthropic and associational activity in China during its long history prior to 1949 and many studies of philanthropy and civil society in China during the reform period (1980s to the present). But there has never been a study that has bridged the gap." -- Shawn Shieh, director and editor, China Development Brief

"[Karla Simon's] impressive study surveys the recent history of "community social organizations," provides detailed analysis of the laws and regulations that apply to such organization, and examines Party policies toward them, pointing out the contradictions." --Stanley Lubman, Wall Street Journal

"Karla Simon's book has made highly commendable contributions to the field by providing a comprehensive and insightful analysis of the legal framework of China's civil society. The author successfully supported her thesis that China's social and economic histories have affected the legal changes related to China's civil society. Not only is this book a must-read for those scholars who study China's civil society, but it should also be an assigned text for graduate students and policymakers who want to understand the history, laws, government, and politics of China." --Sheng Ding, Journal of Chinese Political Science