A Trojan Horse behind Chinese Walls? Problems and Prospects of U.S.-Sponsored "Rule of Law" Reform Projects in the People's Republic of China

Abstract

... These legal deficiencies, it is believed, threaten sustained and equitable economic development, the protection of individual rights, and the possibility for greater democratic political reform. ... One academic who had been working for some time with Chinese legal education issues commented, "I never really thought of my work as 'rule of law' work, though I definitely thought of it as legal reform I found myself sort of roped into this 'rule of law' focus. ... This is obviously not the vision of legal reform advocated by the Chinese government, and it is not what Beijing means when it articulates "rule of law" - or "a country ruled by law" - as a policy goal. ... This second mechanism concerns the transformation of "legal culture," especially the legal culture of judges, lawyers, and other professionals closely involved with the legal system. ... Hence, much of the Trojan Horse legal reform strategy stresses legal education and training of judges and lawyers, not only to improve their skills, but to change China's legal culture. ...