Rule of Law: State and Society

Author: Xia Yong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-11-01
Features: The book discusses the connotations of legal system and rule of law, promotes the flourishing of legal studies, advances the rule of law, the relationship between legal system and democracy, as well as the reform of Chinese law after joining the WTO, the legal safeguards for the Western Development Strategy, and other related content. In contemporary China, "rule of law" is a political concept with a specific context, just as "governing the state by law" was advocated by Guan Zhong in ancient times. It is also a governance strategy that guides social and political life. From the perspective of the state and society, correctly understanding the origin, connotation, process, and effects of the rule of law is indispensable for researching and advancing the rule of law. The nine chapters of this book are all centered around the theoretical and practical issues of the ruling party's approach to the rule of law.
Chapter 1 "Legal System and Rule of Law" and Chapter 3 "Market Economy and Democracy, Legal System" were written between 1992 and 1993 and can be considered early texts that made a significant distinction between "legal system" and "rule of law," as well as provided positive explanations on the principles of the rule of law, the relationship between the market economy and the legal system, and other related issues. Chapter 2 "Flourishing Legal Studies and Advancing the Rule of Law" is a recently written piece that primarily outlines some theoretical and practical challenges in continuing to advance the rule of law from an academic research perspective after the 16th National Congress of the Communist Party of China. Chapters 4, 5, 6, and 7 study China's legal reforms after joining the WTO, the legal safeguards for the Western Development Strategy, the rule of law in grassroots areas of Tibet, and the legal issues surrounding the fight against the SARS epidemic from the perspective of the rule of law. Chapter 8, through reviewing works by journalists, focuses on discussing the relationship between the public and the rule of law, as well as the relationship between the media and the judiciary. Among these, Chapters 2, 4, 6, 7, and 8 have not been published yet. The three chapters that have been published underwent minor adjustments during the editing process.