This study aims at understanding the influence on the role of cadres in the villagers' committee, while the township governments intervene in the process of election for the cadres of villagers' committee operated in the administrative division below ...
This study aims at understanding the influence on the role of cadres in the villagers' committee, while the township governments intervene in the process of election for the cadres of villagers' committee operated in the administrative division below the level of towns in the rural areas. The real meaning of election operated in the chinese rural areas is tried to understand in this study. In order to attain the aforementioned goal, this study looked into the whole process of election for the cadres of villager's committee, especially the competition among candidates.
As a general rule, the election is defined as not only the means of social choice which generates the collective conclusion for the all social members, but also the procedural means of choosing the representatives playing a certain role. Therefore the implied contract is made between the voters and the candidates for the support. To have the full-fledged election, the right of free and direct choice and secret voting must be guaranteed for the voters. At the same time, the unlimited competition also needs to be guaranteed for the candidates. For this reason, the government's intervention brings about the obstacles in the social interaction between the candidates and the voters, and distorts the implied contract between them. This is the very reason why this study is focused on the competition among the candidates in the process of election for the cadres of villagers' committee.
On this understanding, this study starts from the essential question why the township governments intervene in the election for the cadres of villagers' committee at first. The township governments should take disadvantages for the wages and the performance evaluations, when they are not able to accomplish their mission. To avoid those disadvantages, the cadres of villagers' committee need to cooperate to accomplish all sorts of mission. The relations between the township governments and the villagers' committee, however, became the relations as equals after carrying out the villagers' self-government. Therefore the township governments try to take the reins to make their puppets be elected as the cadres of villagers' committee. Under this circumstances, the township governments' intervention is brought about in the competition of the candidates for the cadres of villagers' committee.
Next, the way of township governments' intervention is examined in this study. To examine properly, the process of election for the cadres of villagers' committee is divided into 3 steps as the preparatory stage, election stage and post-election stage. The most general method of intervention of township governments is to control the scope of election pledges presented by the candidates. In other words, the township governments precensor the election pledges presented by the candidates if those are against higher governments or the policy of central government. In addition, the township governments try to minimize the candidates' contact with the voters, or even omit that process.
Finally, the change of cadres' mind before and after the election carried out under the township governments' intervention is also analyzed in this study. In a greater and less degree, the most candidates recognize what the problems are and what the voters need in their electoral district. But the tendency to minimize their role only for the economic development is found after being elected through the pre-censorship.
In conclusion, the elections operated in the chinese rural areas are controled to a certain extent, or even no electoral competition is often found. This causes the obscure relations between the candidates and the voters. In consequence, the successful candidates change their role according to the degree of township governments' pressure, the importance of the problems that they face with and the dissatisfaction of constituents.