Fudan-LSE Lecture Series No.24

THE SPEAKER

Yan Xiaojun is currently an associate professor in politics and public administration at the University of Hong Kong and Director of the Research Hub on Institutions of China. He obtained his Bachelor and Master of Law degrees from Peking University and an A.M. and Ph.D. in political science from Harvard University. He is a comparative political scientist with special expertise in the politics of China. His articles have appeared in Journal of Contemporary China, The China Quarterly, The China Journal, Democratization, Policy & Politics, Problems of Post Communism andThe China Review. Dr. Yan is recipient of the 2012 Gordon White Prize by The China Quarterly for his research on new entrepreneurial Party secretaries in rural China. His first book on Hong Kong politics is selected as one of the “Ten Best Chinese Books (non-fiction) Published in 2015” by Asia Weekly.He is recipient of HKU’s Outstanding Teaching Award (2013) and a board member of the National Association for Hong Kong & Macau Studies of China.

ABSTRACT

Today, with the fast modernization of the Chinese society, the state’s governing capacity hinges upon its institutional capability to prevent, monitor, process information on, and overcome real and potential challenges. Over the past several decades, the Chinese state has consistently stressed the critical importance of maintaining political stability for the overall development of China. Drawing upon intensive interviews and archival research, this talk looks into the social management system in W County in East China. By exploring the institutional configuration, work mechanisms, daily activities and operational principles of the county government in terms of keeping social and political stability, this talk seeks to gain insight into the PRC regime’s mythical operations of system maintenance and the ways in which the state exerts proper control over society.