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With more than one billion people, China represents both an ocean of economic opportunity and a frustrating backwater of continuing brutal political repression. What are the prospects for democratic evolution in a nation with one of the world's poorest human rights records? How have other nations responded to China since the recent, dramatic opening of its economic system-and how should they respond in the future? These are some of the most important questions confronting both the United States and the international community. On democracy, human rights, and the move to integrate China into the international economy; on Mao Zedong's regime and the reform since his death; and on the Taiwan experiment and Hong Kong's reintegration with China, Nathan offers an accessible introduction to the intricate web of contemporary Chinese politics and China's changing place in the global system.

The ongoing suppression of journals, and obstacles faced by non-governmental research organizations, attest to the enduring challenges for creating alternative sources for discussing China's reform and transition. This book looks at research institutes and journals in China and the dilemmas of transition by chronicling the tensions between the need to create an "autonomous space" for policy making and the problems created by such activities. The "non-governmental fever" of the 1980s and the development of research organizations and journals claiming to be non-governmental - to avoid political oversight and claim an arena independent of party-state influence - raise a fundamental question about how a political system characterized by bureaucratic rigidity, poor information flows, and a politicized policy-making environment generates ideas for reform, while at the same time controlling the direction of debate and discussion. This book is built on extensive personal interviews with former members of Zhao Ziyang's "brain trust," the Chinese Economic System Reform Research Institute (SRI), and on the wealth of material on reform to emerge in the last five years. It addresses a void in our knowledge of this dynamic decade of reform by recounting the story of the SRI in the voice of its members and placing it in the context of elite politics as well as in the context of the institute as a catalyst for opening issues of reform and post-communist transitions. Those associated with the institute are known as the "young reformers" and represent a generational cohort whose activities greatly impacted China's reform process. The publications, research organizations, and policy making environment of the 1980s and post-Tiananmen era are essential for examining the larger question of China's transition from socialism.

This volume looks at research institutes and journals in China and the dilemmas of transition by chronicling the tensions between the need to create an "autonomous space" for policy making and the problems created by such activities.

Leading experts on China offer their enlightening analysis on one of the most crucial and complex questions facing the future of international politics. Moving toward open markets and international trade has brought extraordinary economic success to China, yet its leadership still maintains an authoritarian grip over its massive population. From repressing political movements to controlling internet traffic, China’s undemocratic policies present an attractive model for other authoritarian regimes. But can China continue its growth without political reform? In Will China Democratize?, Andrew J. Nathan, Larry Diamond, and Marc F. Plattner present valuable analysis for anyone wondering if, when or how China might evolve politically. Since the Journal of Democracy’s very first issue in January 1990, which featured articles reflecting on the then-recent Tiananmen Square massacre, the Journal has regularly published articles about China and its politics. By bringing together the wide spectrum of views that have appeared in the Journal’s pages—from contributors including Fang Lizhi, Perry Link, Michel Oksenberg, Minxin Pei, Henry S. Rowen, and Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo— Will China Democratize? provides a clear view of the complex forces driving change in China’s regime and society.

While Americans are generally aware of China's ambitions as a global economic and military superpower, few understand just how deeply and assertively that country has already sought to influence American society. As the authors of this volume write, it is time for a wake-up call. In documenting the extent of Beijing's expanding influence operations inside the United States, they aim to raise awareness of China's efforts to penetrate and sway a range of American institutions: state and local governments, academic institutions, think tanks, media, and businesses. And they highlight other aspects of the propagandistic “discourse war” waged by the Chinese government and Communist Party leaders that are less expected and more alarming, such as their view of Chinese Americans as members of a worldwide Chinese diaspora that owes undefined allegiance to the so-called Motherland.Featuring ideas and policy proposals from leading China specialists, China's Influence and American Interests argues that a successful future relationship requires a rebalancing toward greater transparency, reciprocity, and fairness. Throughout, the authors also strongly state the importance of avoiding casting aspersions on Chinese and on Chinese Americans, who constitute a vital portion of American society. But if the United States is to fare well in this increasingly adversarial relationship with China, Americans must have a far better sense of that country's ambitions and methods than they do now.