The Future of China’s Legal System

A ChinaFile Presents Transcript

In early August, Beijing held show trials of four legal activists—a disheartening turn for those optimistic about legal reform in China. What are the prospects for the development of the rule of law in China under Communist Party Secretary Xi Jinping? How do law and politics intersect in Chinese life? Has China’s legal system become more resilient, predictable, and/or independent since Xi assumed leadership in late 2012?

China-Led Development Bank Careful to Cooperate with Critics

AIIB Determined to Avoid Mistakes and ‘Reputational Damage’ in First Projects

The Asian Infrastructure Development Bank (AIIB) unveiled its initial batch of projects at its first annual meeting in Beijing in June, giving the go-ahead to investments totaling U.S.$509 million (3.4 billion yuan) and providing an important yardstick to assess the bank’s first six months.

The AIIB has swiftly been taking shape since China’s President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang announced its formation less than three years ago. Its mission, they said, was “to promote interconnectivity and economic integration in the region.”

Neysun A. Mahboubi

Neysun A. Mahboubi is Director of the Penn Project on the Future of U.S.-China Relations at the University of Pennsylvania, where he teaches various courses related to Chinese history, law, and policy, and hosts the China Studies podcast. He is also a Non-Resident Senior Fellow with the Asia Program at the Foreign Policy Research Institute. Previously, he was a Research Scholar of Penn’s Center for the Study of Contemporary China, where he remains affiliated. His primary academic interests are in the areas of administrative law, comparative law, and Chinese law, and his current writing focuses on the development of modern Chinese administrative law. He frequently comments on Chinese law and policy developments and U.S.-China relations for various media outlets. He has taught also at Princeton University’s School of Public & International Affairs, the University of Connecticut School of Law, and Yale Law School.

Is Big Data Increasing Beijing’s Capacity for Control?

A ChinaFile Conversation

China’s authoritarian government is using big data to develop credit scoring systems, and is urging data-sharing between companies and governments, putting ordinary Chinese squarely in the digital spotlight. How should Chinese netizens and global citizens concerned about privacy react?