Abstract
Among the economic reforms adopted by Beijing since the 1970s, the Chinese government has delegated some of its responsibilities to the provinces, particularly, those related to low-politics issues. Despite this experiment in power-sharing, the central government maintains dominance, with provinces appearing to act as agents or partners of the national government. This chapter examines the level and impact of this decentralization using Hainan’s role in the South China Sea as a case study. Hainan has in recent years exercised policies aimed at better administering contested territories in the maritime area, so the case study provides evidence of the degree of decision-making autonomy that Beijing gives to provincial authorities. The study finds that the imperative of high politics and Beijing’s heavy hand cast a shadow on the issues of low politics managed by Hainan authorities. Through dual-leadership administration, financial subsidies, and other means, the central government continues to enjoy dominance in decision-making in the province.
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Notes
- 1.
This presents one of the theoretical approaches in the IR literature; besides realism , there are liberalist and constructivist visions of the international system that may differ from the one presented in this chapter.
- 2.
According to the 1982 Constitution and the 1988 Decision of the National People’s Congress on the Establishment of Hainan Province, Haikou became an administrative center of the last established Chinese province (Hainan) and obtained control over Hainan Island and the islets, reefs, and sea areas of Paracel (Xisha), Spratly (Nansha) Islands, and the Macclesfield Bank (Zhongsha) (Decision of the National People’s Congress on the Establishment of Hainan Province of 1988, § 2).
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- 4.
Also through the analysis of linguistic differences, US scholars have come to the conclusion that Hainan actively endeavors to enforce China’s maritime claims in the SCS. See Murray and Hsu (2014).
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Daksueva, O., Lin, J.Jy. (2018). The Role of Provinces in Decision-Making Processes in China: The Case of Hainan Province. In: Spangler, J., Karalekas, D., Lopes de Souza, M. (eds) Enterprises, Localities, People, and Policy in the South China Sea . Critical Studies of the Asia-Pacific. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62828-8_4
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