Graeme Lang

Migration and the “Second Wife” in South China: Toward Cross-Border Polygyny1

Rapid industrialization in southern China has brought together two types of migrants: young women from towns and villages seeking work and upward mobility and affluent men from Hong Kong sojourning in the coastal provinces to supervise or service export-oriented industries. The result is that many married Hong Kong men who cross the border regularly on business have taken “second wives” or mistresses in China. We analyze this phenomenon using government statistics, selected court cases, and personal interviews. We show that the emergence of the “second wife” phenomenon among migrants in southern China is consistent with recent studies on the causes of polygyny, and we make some predictions about the likelihood of this type of polygyny among migrants.

Anti-incinerator campaigns and the evolution of protest politics in China

As China rapidly urbanises, many cities are building incinerators to try to reduce the growing pressure of rising volumes of municipal waste on landfills. Incinerator projects have provoked NIMBY protests in many countries, but China is an authoritarian one-party state with a demonstrated readiness to suppress protests which challenge government projects. However, some of these protest campaigns have led to cancellation or indefinite postponement of government-supported projects at particular sites. We review three recent campaigns against incinerators – in Beijing, Guangzhou, and Wujiang – explain the successful outcomes of each campaign, and then place these conflicts within the spectrum of environmental protest-politics in China. Finally, we consider whether these outcomes contribute to ‘ecological modernisation’ in the management of municipal waste.

China's impact on forests in Southeast Asia

Abstract Many developed countries have gained control of their forest-exploiting industries through advanced regulatory regimes. But stricter regulation usually displaces forest exploitation into developing countries with weaker regulatory regimes. The most important current example is the shift of forest exploitation for the Chinese market from China into Southeast Asia following the logging ban in China in 1998. In this article we describe and document the impact in Southeast Asia: rapidly increasing, unsustainable, and often illegal production and export for the Chinese market. We also note the growth in exports of furniture and plywood from China to the EU, UK, and elsewhere using imported and often illegally harvested timber from Southeast Asia. It is argued that it will be very difficult to interrupt the continuing deforestation in Southeast Asia because: (i) the profits from exporting forest products from Southeast Asia to the China market and the profits for Chinese firms which use these forest products to produce plywood and furniture for export to developed countries are substantial; and (ii) there is a lack of political will at all levels to interrupt these chains of trade and flows of profit.

A Tale of Two Eco-Cities: Experimentation under Hierarchy in Shanghai and Tianjin

Two ambitious ‘new city’ projects were launched in China during the past 15 years—the ‘Dongtan eco-city’ project in Shanghai and the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City project in Tianjin. Both have received much international publicity and attention. However, the Dongtan project has stalled, and will evidently not be revived, while the Tianjin project continues, albeit with more moderate goals. We analyse the two cases, using the concept of ‘experimentation under hierarchy’ to show why one project is proceeding, while the other has failed. The key factors were strong international inputs of expertise and funds in the Tianjin project, along with crucial support from the central government, both of which were lacking in the Dongtan project.

Food Security for China's Cities

Urban food supply will be a key issue for cities in the coming decades, and cities will increasingly turn to their own hinterlands for some types of food. Many of Chinas cities are better placed to do so than comparably sized cities in developed countries, although some inland cities will fare better than wealthy, export-dependent coastal cities. However, rapid urbanization is putting increasing pressure on previously agricultural districts around these cities. We illustrate using data on local food supplies in Chengdu, Nanjing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, and draw some conclusions about planning for food security in China.

Temple Construction and the Revival of Popular Religion in Jinhua

This article examines a case of temple construction that was initiated by officials and cadres rather than by locals. The temple construction and religious revival are analyzed in the light of complex dynamics between the cadres at the United Front, provincial office, municipal government, township office, and religious bureau, as well as between these cadres and the locals—the intellectuals, village elders, religious specialists, and villagers. For the cadres and officials, the temple was intended as local heritage to attract tourists and ultimately to boost the local economy. However, the temple did not draw sufficient visitors as planned, whether foreign or local. On the other hand, the popularity of the deity associated with the temple took off. We suggest that whether the villagers identify culturally with the temple and lend it their support is crucial in determining its success. The fate of the temple will hence depend ultimately on the ability of the management committee to mobilize and involve local networks in the temples activities.

Attitudes of Chinese Elderly People towards Death: Practical Implications for Social Workers

The proportion of elderly people among the Chinese populations of East Asia is growing rapidly, and social workers are increasingly involved in services to these elderly folk. But attitudes of the Chinese elderly towards death have received almost no attention. This exploratory study documents the attitudes of some Chinese elderly people with different religious beliefs towards death and dying. Religious belief was found to have little impact on death anxiety. Chinese elderly people mainly fear the dying process and becoming an unwanted burden to care-givers. However, they are more willing to talk about and prepare for death than is generally recognized.

De-industrialization and the ‘disappeared workers’

Hong Kong has undergone a remarkable process of a complete cycle of industrialization and de-industrialization within the lifetime of one generation of workers. This paper explores the impact of this swift economic progress and examines the adjustment problems and difficulties experienced by workers displaced from their jobs in a rapidly de-industrializing society. It addresses the issue of what has become of these displaced workers. It was found that, while a proportion of the displaced workers were able to find alternative employment in the expanding services industries, many became discouraged workers who joined the ranks of the hidden unemployed, partly as a result of discrimination which compounded their problem and further hindered their search for work and employment. The data show that many of these people eventually (in)voluntarily withdrew completely from the labour market. Suggestions have been made regarding the role which can be played by the government in particular to ease the transition of displaced workers into other employment positions.

Green Politics in China: Environmental Governance and State-Society Relations

currency reserves, total export volumes and energy consumption and the like. Another problem is his fixated mind set on China’s rise which denies the reader a linear timeline to fully grasp the meaning of China’s recent economic march. This produces an unfair comparison between China and the US. China’s rise is recent; its current phase of industrial take-off started no earlier than the 1990s and ended by 2010. The US, in contrast, embarked on an economic “take-off” by 1870 and moved from “take-off” to a high production and consumption phase by 1913. China’s recent rise, propelled by 1.4 billion people, compared to 40 million in 1870 in the US, is set to be more dramatic and transformative in the years to come. Shambaugh has definitely missed this historical and demographic insight. The way Shambaugh has presented and analysed information in the book sees him take contradictory positions – he admits where China maintains a lead but is quick to dismiss the influence China’s lead produces. For example, by quoting Robert Dahl and Joseph S. Nye’s definitions of power as the capacity to determine and condition the outcomes of events and actions, Shambaugh dismisses China as a global power as Beijing fails to influence any other nations or global developments, though he mentions some limited areas like global trade transactions, energy and commodity markets, cyber hacking, etc., where Chinese influence is felt (p. 8). Then he indicates that the 2011 Asia “pivot” by the US was a response to China’s assertive foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific region (p. 77). This clearly speaks of China’s capacity to condition US policy outcomes to a large extent. Again, he rejects China’s global influence as a “hollow hype” but at the end writes that: “Since China’s opening to the world in 1978, the world has changed China – and now China is beginning to change the world” (p. 317). It is important to avoid such contradictions. The major strengths of the book, despite these shortcomings, are its extensive analysis of Chinese power in its entirety, and the frequent use of original Chinese references to countenance the main arguments. It is recommended for students of Chinese foreign policy and the interested public who watch China’s rise seriously.

China's environmental challenges

Chinese cinema and religion. Joy Kooi-Chin Tong (Chapter 11) examines how religious ethics of Christian overseas Chinese entrepreneurs affects their moral decisions and business practices in China. Gustav K. K. Yeung (Chapter 16) deals with similar issues in examining how a Hong Kong upstairs church negotiates boundaries with the commercial market in producing sacred space. Overall, this edited volume is a very informative and timely contribution to the study of contemporary Chinese Christianities. It coversmajor geographic areas (including urban–rural differences) and its material ranges from second-hand and survey data to structured interviews and ethnographic data. The academic and religious backgrounds of the contributors are diverse enough to provide a balanced view. From these essays, the reader does get a sense of “enchantedmodernity” asdescribedbyMadsen in thefirst chapter.Anyonewho is interested in religious diversity in China, the state–religion relationship, and the development of Chinese Christianity will find the volume helpful. If I have one minor complaint, it is that there is no clear internal connection to the chapters within each part of the book. The biggest contribution of the chapters lies in the original materials they present, rather than in their conclusions; these materials are indeed valuable for students of Chinese Christianities.