Contemporary China Township - Village Relations

There have been great changes in the administrative system and style at the basiclevel in China's countryside since the 1980s. In the administrative system at the basiclevel co-exist two independent carriers of power at different level: townshipgovernment representing the country and villagers' committee representing villagers'right of autonomy in the basic community. According to "The Organic Law ofVillagers' Committee of the People's Republic of China", township, as thegovernment at basic level in a country, has the legal right to administrate; villagers'committee, as an organ of autonomy, enjoys local autonomy. A series of written lawshas granted villagers' committee autonomy, and sets administrative space fortownship government and villagers' committee. According to these laws, therelationship of township government and villagers' committee is no longer therelationship of supervisor and subordinator but rather of those who are to direct andwho are to be directed and helped. But ever since "autonomy of villages", there hasbeen ongoing heated discussion on whether the villagers' committee is "directed" or"led" by the township government. In practice, there are many conflicts anddifficulties in the relation between the village committee and township government.Often there are cases that the two powers violate each other's legal rights for a lack ofclear line between them. This has seriously affected the township government'seffective administration and the development of villagers' autonomy, which in turnaffects the stability of the countryside. Especially since the mid and late 1990s, theconfronting aspect in the two township government and villagers' committee hasshown up. It is often reported that some peasants gathered to smash and snatch in thetownship government and the township government officials arm themselves fully tocollect various taxes and fees in villages. In the discussion and academic researchabout the reform in the countryside, well focused topics are "relationship betweenofficials and the masses", "social stability" and "peasants' burden". The adjustment oftownship and village is not only an urgent problem in the work at the basic level inthe countryside, but also the most important problem for the democratic reform ofpolitical system. Through a study of the history and reality of the relationship betweenthe village and the township, this thesis is meant to give some advice on the reform ofadministrative system at the basic level so as to contribute to the modernization of theadministrative system in the countryside. 4The writer thinks that since the villagers' autonomy, there have been greatchanges in the village and townships. In different areas, this relation is different,changing and imbalanced. In most places, the relationship between the township andvillage is obviously the one of supervisor and subordinator, of ordering and beingordered---far from the relationship of "directing and being directed" The imbalance of the relationship is shown in the countryside, but the problem liesin the macro system. Generally, the conflicts between the township government andvillagers' committee derive from the present administrative system, the financialsystem, the relationship between the party and government, and the system ofvillagers' autonomy. The suppressive administrative system is the source of theimbalance. As a developing country, China, driven by the intense internationalcompetition and the desire for modernization, has chosen the strategy of catching upand overtaking. And this strategy is usually supported by suppressive administrativesystem. As the basic organ in the administrative system, township government isbound to carry out all the goals, plans and tasks set by the party and the centralgovernment. Faced with thousands of peasants who lead their own lives, it is quitenational for township government to take a...