The democratization of China

The events of 1989, culminating in the massacre in Beijing, highlight the extent to which democratic ideals have taken root in China. The future of democracy in a country undergoing great economic and social change is unclear and many argue that established Western democratic systems will simply bring about instability in China. In The Democratization of China, Baogang He traces and evaluates the political discourse of democracy in contemporary China, identifying the three main competing models of democratization that dominate current Chinese intellectual trends: populist, paternalistic and liberal. Analysing the political implications of these models, the author considers how the theories may be put into practice in order to develop an appropriately Chinese, liberal conception of democracy.