Civil-Military Relations

Abstract

The professed principle governing civil-military relations in the People’s Republic of China has always been that ‘ the Party commands the gun’, but the reality of these relations has been much more varied and complex. Although the basic framework of civil control of the military has been maintained throughout the history of the regime, its effectiveness has been uneven. Over the years the People’s Liberation Army has moved across the entire spectrum of roles assumed by armies in politics - from political quiescence to political ascendancy, and then back again, though not to the starting point. As a result of these changes, the balance of power between the Party and the PLA has shifted sharply several times. The purpose of this chapter is to examine the changes in the role of the military and their effect on civil-military relations in the People’s Republic.¹

The first part of this chapter is based on a paper which I delivered at a conference on ‘The Analysis of Power and Policy in the PRC Since 1949’ which was held in Saarbrücken, Germany on 22–27 August, 1982. I would like to thank the Truman Research Institute of the Hebrew University for support and Pamela Lubell for research assistance.