In the crowded field of books studying contemporary China, it takes a bold writer to state, as Baogang Guo does in his study of how the Communist Party of China (CPC) articulates the legitimacy of its right to rule and how it exercises this right, that "this book breaks new grounds in several respects." He goes on to say that the discoveries in the book "will be an important contribution to the study of Chinese politics." These are brave claims, best left to others. Professor Guo's thesis is straightforward enough: that the key basis of the CPC's claim to legitimacy rests on a shift in the last three decades from an efficiency seeking policy, towards one now focussing on equity outcomes.
展开▼
