Talking Points, October 22 - November 6, 2008

Thirty years ago, Chinese leaders initiated the economic reforms that have enabled China to enjoy 9-10% average annual GDP growth rates, lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, erect dazzling skylines, and spend $43 billion to prepare for and host the Olympic Games. This week the Chinese government announced its latest reform: turning ownership of rural land over to individual rural Chinese.

In the early 20th century, Sun Yatsen and others argued that improving the livelihood of farmers required giving them title to land, giving them a stake in improving it and improving their social status. During the Chinese civil war, the Communists carried out land reform in areas under their control, redistributing land seized from the better off to those with or no land. This won the Party the gratitude of those receiving land, demonstrated the authority and ambition of the Party, and broke the economic base of the existing rural elite. The process was sometimes violent and was extended to all parts of the country after the Communist triumph in 1949. 

Individual ownership of agricultural land came to an end in the mid-1950s, as farmers were brought first into small cooperatives and then into larger collectives. The household responsibility system initiated in 1978 gave farmers the right to use and profit from assigned plots, but ownership remained with the collective. In the industrialization and building boom of recent decades, collectives have transferred land to companies and developers, often without providing reasonable compensation for the farmers displaced in the process. Farmer outrage over such transfers has frequently boiled over into large and sometimes violent demonstrations.

The mechanics and conditions of these land grants are not yet fully outlined, but many Chinese and foreign observers have lauded the plan. They and the government hope it will be an important step towards reducing the great disparity that exists between urban and rural Chinese in terms of incomes, resources, and life choices. Reducing those disparities are critical to increasing domestic consumption (essential for continuing China's economic growth) and lessening state-society tensions. It's a dramatic anniversary year initiative.

Those who missed Thomas Christensen's important address, "Shaping China's Choices: Some Recent Lessons for the Next U.S. Administration," at USC last week will be able to view it online at our website this Friday. The new issue of US-China Today will also be available on Friday. Nationalism, blogs, opinion polls, beauty trends, and sovereign wealth funds are some of the topics explored in the new issue.

Our "Election ’08 and the Challenge of China" documentary has won praise from educators and attention from bloggers. You can watch any of the segments at http://china.usc.edu/ShowArticle.aspx?articleID=1191.

The USC U.S.-China Institute invites proposals from postdoctoral scholars for 2009-2010. We invite applications from recent PhD recipients who specialize in U.S.-China relations, very broadly conceived, or on an issue in contemporary China that is likely to affect U.S.-China relations. Consideration will be given to applicants in all areas, but we are especially eager to encourage applications from scholars focusing on topics such as energy, the environment, investment, new media, film and television, soft power, migration, ethno-religious issues, and identity. Application details are available at: http://china.usc.edu/ShowArticle.aspx?articleID=1188. Next week the Institute will issue calls for research proposals from USC faculty and graduate students. 

On Friday, October 26, UCLA is hosting a conference exploring the changing legal climate in China. New laws regarding property, labor, and contracts will be among those discussed. In November, USCI will present talks by Victoria Tin-bor Hui (Notre Dame) and David Bachman (Washington). Hui will examine China’s past for clues as to potential policies toward other states and Bachman will explore how China’s rise affects American ties with China’s neighbors. For more information, please visit the calendar section of our website.

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