Chugoku no Tochi Seiji: Chuo no Seisaku to Chiho Seifu [China’s Land Politics: State Land Policy and the Local Government]

Abstract

commendable that the author restrained himself to mapping out the direction and the range of choices available for the hypothetical reforms, thus setting up further research questions without falling into any of the above-mentioned traps. The research method developed throughout the book falls under the “orthodox positivist” category. The greatest accomplishment of the book is that it comprehensively and with a great skill depicts the patterns of coexistence between the new socio-economic elite and the CCP, fully revealing the underlying mechanisms behind the Chinese political drama. Further, given the quality of the book, it is no wonder that it was awarded the 34th Institute of Developing Economies (IDE) “Developing Countries Research Encouragement Award”, thus making Dr Suzuki’s “Zhongnanhai Study Group” comrades proud and jubilant. Having discussed at length the scholarly contributions of Dr Suzuki’s monograph, I would like to conclude by reiterating that the book is a milestone achievement of the “Zhongnanhai Study” in Japan, and as such fully deserves to be publicized outside Japan (both in China and in the Anglosphere), with its crisp and lucid style particularly well-suited to the high demands of the leading English language journals.