The “Institutional Space” of Civil Society in China: The Legal Framework of Civil Society Organizations

Abstract

AbstractIn order to adequately understand civil society in China, it is necessary to examine the different types of organizations that comprise civil society and the transformation of the legal system in which civil society organizations (CSOs) exist in China today. This article first presents a summary of the roles and relative positions of each type of CSO in the ?institutional space? the Chinese government has allowed as it refers to the organizational ?map? of Chinese civil society. Second, it shows how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), with the aim of controlling and managing CSOs, established and maintained a strict control system from the formation of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949 until the end of the last century. Next, it further traces how the party-state, since becoming a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, has implemented systemic reforms regarding civil society in response to rapid changes in Chinese domestic society-yet one may interpret the series of legal reforms in recent years as a scheme for further incorporating civil society into the CCP's ruling system. It concludes by stressing the importance of keeping an eye on the ?institutional space? for the future development of civil society in China.