| This issue is to interpret Local Council of Zhili province in the late Qing period and the beginnings days of Republic of China from the view of history and politics.It seeks to describe local politics of Zhili province in representative context,analyse the prerequisite of forming and the course of its evolution,summarize the influence, experience and lessons of political representative in modern Zhili province.This article's body is made up of eight parts: the preface, four chapters and the conclusion.In the preface,I shall mainly introduce the research tendency, analyze some concepts about Local Council and this article's design, the structure as well as the innovation spot.In the first ,second and third chapter,I shall chronologically describe the evolotion of the rise and fall of Local Council of Zhili province,outline its decay from the beginning and then to the tortuous history of ups and downs.The implementation of the New Policies fomented the political participation of gentry,Clifford Chance enlarged and expanded in the local political power.In this context, a new class-New Shenshang homeopathy formed.Politicization of New Shenshang impeled the Qing court to consider constitutionalism.Entrusted legal role of the Provincial Assembly was only a local deliberative body that didn't have the nature of Local Council.In practice, assemblymen grasped of the procedure of the initiative, accessed to a certain amount of legislative, administrative and financial oversight.The Provincial Assembly played actually a role of a "quasi-representative body".After Wuchang Uprising,some assemblymen sought independence,most placed hopes on Yuanshikai ,calling for him unity of South-North,a Republican.After the foundation of Republic of China,the Provincial Assembly of zhili was dismissed,the Provisional Provincial Council of Zhili formed.At this time,political participation were active.The Provisional Provincial Council presented striking political colour.Political strifes and clique conflicts were fierce.The evolutionary process of the Provisional Provincial Council indicated local political formation of Zhili Province.The First Provincial Council was prepared,founded and disbanded during the political strifes and clique conflicts.After the Provincial Council was revived in 1916,councilors'political motives mainly concentrated on the quest for survival of the Provincial Council and their own interests,clique conflicts changed into factional disputes.Around the foundation of the Second Provincial Council,Zhixi Warlord controled Zhili province.After this ,Zhixi,Fengxi,National Army controled Zhili one after another.The warlord regime strengthed military and administration power.The Second and Third Provincial Council gradually degenerated politically.The most councilors attached themselves to warlord and bureaucrat,were reduced to the status politician.The Provincial Council became megaphone and"rubber stamp",going to the representative of the negative.After losing the legality,the Provincial Council as a part of warlord regime was replaced with new party-military regime.Looking at the rise and fall of Local Council in Zhili, it was a tool of New Shenshang's political participation,had an significant impact on the local politics earlier,and later gradually grew into the megaphone for the warlords, a political tool of politicians;In the anti-imperialist patriotic movement,it had many patriotic act, but were somewhat conservative.In the end, with the worsening of warlordism,Local Council paralyzed,and went bankrupt.In the forth chapter,I shall mainly analyze elections of Local Council.Election resulting from West is different from traditional examation in China.Election is the base of political representative,important activity in the local politics from the Late Qing.The central government or Local Council itself layouted a relatively well-developed system of election norms.The election basically was a New Shenshang prerogative.The literally enacted electoral rules could not be implemented. The officials tried to control and monopolized eiections,New Shenshang campaigned for and dominated electionS. Owing to restricting the suffrage to a elite group ,elections of both the Provincial Assembly and the Provisional Provincial Counci embodyed mainly power distribution among the local authorities.Whether a candidate was elected or not hinged on his characteristic (standing, scholarly honor,property,local identity in piblic.),not on distinction of policy and platforms.Election campaign of the First Provincial Council escalated because of enlarged franchise.Under the influence of clique force,election irregularities were limited to a certain degree. Irregularities were brought into the open during election of the Second and the Third Provincial Council,elections were replaced basically with designation.Thus,New Shenshang could not elect their representative personage,fell into division.Electional politics got into dire straits.Owing to devoid of detachment and demoratic content,election was queried. Most constituents had not sense of participation,did not bother to vote. Local authorities and vile gentries manipulated elections unbridledly.In the fifth chapter,I shall mainly analyze formation of councilors,their political ideology and behaviour, their representiveness.Councilors were subject of local political representative.Local political representative was a participation essentially among elites.The councilors came from New Shenshang,act as role of the official and the gentry intermediary earlier,gave some play to political function.Later,councilors'enterprising spirit went downwards,personal integrity grew degeneration.In the end,most councilors catered to warlord and chief executive,were addicted to position and wealth,and degenerated into evil councilors and politicians.In the sixth chapter,I shall mainly analyze operation of Local Council.Firstly,I shall narrate the Local Council system design and actual operation;Secondly,I shall discuss the political activities through motions and bills;Thirdly,I shall describe internal and external relations of Local Council.On the one hand,deliberation of the motions and bills were the main contentof representative operation. Overall,the discipline of the Local Council was poor,low operational efficiency. Most motions could not be implemented. On the other hand, Local Council operated complexly between the relations of the internal and external. As pressures from strong executive and military,lack of profound social foundation, limited autonomy status of Local Council has been gradually lost,there was an endless strife. Both representative of public opinion and the provision of advisory functions being difficult to play, Local Council ultimately went bankrupt, accompanied with defeat of the Northern warlords regime.Conclusion: Local Council in Zhili arose in the late Qing, later was regarded as the accomplice of reactionary warlords, was terminated by the National Revolutionary Army.Studying its evolution, Local Council had both gains and losses. In essence, the Local Council was a platform that New Shenshang desired to realize its interests. In the Late Qing period and the beginnings days of Republic of China, it was also given the significance of public opinion, decision by the majority, oversight and check towards the power, of against tyranny. Also, the Local Council had drawn up many modern regulations and rules. In a certain period, on the suppression of corruption among officials it had played a role. It also promoted the local modernation drive. But it is undeniable that Local Council can not achieved notable success in maintaining basic social and political and socio-economic development. The problem is due to: Local Council is in a subsidiary position in the local political system, cann't realize constrainting and supervising the power of warlords and the bureaucratic; lacks the support of the forces of modernization; lacks corresponding constitutional democracy culture;lack of voters'supervision on councilors; most councilors became the politicians, the more serious deterioration, local councils became the place of factional disputes and political loot, and so on.In modern China,the value of the salvation of representative was exaggerated. This Pragmatism made representative quickly spurned by the people after suffering setbacks. |
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