Suchergebnisse

Zhang, Jiayu. ; Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2009. ; Includes bibliographical references (p. 136-147). ; Abstract also in Chinese. ; Abstract --- p.iiii ; Table of Contents --- p.viii ; List of Abbreviations --- p.ix ; List of Figures --- p.x ; List of Tables --- p.x ; Chapter Chapter I: --- Introduction --- p.1 ; Chapter 1. 1 --- What happened to China´ةs SRB? --- p.1 ; Chapter 1. 2 --- Women´ةs Human Rights as important Human Rights --- p.3 ; Chapter 1. 3 --- SRB and Women´ةs Rights --- p.6 ; Chapter 1. 4 --- Research Purpose and Methods --- p.7 ; Chapter 1. 5 --- Research Outline --- p.17 ; Chapter Chapter II. --- The Particular Features in China´ةs SRB --- p.20 ; Chapter 2. 1 --- The Regional Features in SRB --- p.20 ; Chapter 2. 2 --- The Ethnic Features in SRB --- p.23 ; Chapter 2. 3 --- The Features by Birth Order --- p.24 ; Chapter Chapter III. --- The Causes of Imbalanced SRB --- p.26 ; Chapter 3. 1 --- The Proximal Causes --- p.26 ; Chapter 3. 2 --- The Fundamental Cause --- p.31 ; What Encourage son preference in China? --- p.32 ; Chapter 3.2.1 --- Cultural and Historical Factors --- p.33 ; Chapter 3.2.2 --- Economic Factors --- p.38 ; Chapter 3.2.3 --- Law and policy as a Structural Factor --- p.40 ; Political Silence --- p.42 ; Economic Subordination --- p.43 ; Sexual Subordination --- p.48 ; Birth Control --- p.50 ; Chapter Chapter IV. --- The Consequences of Imbalanced SRB from a Human Rights Perspective --- p.58 ; Human Rights Violation against Women in the SRB Issues --- p.59 ; Chapter 4.1 --- Rights Violations Which Cause the Distorted SRB --- p.59 ; Chapter 4.2 --- Rights Violations for Which the Abnormal SRB is a Cause --- p.66 ; Chapter 4.2.1 --- Trafficking in Women --- p.70 ; Chapter 4.2.2 --- Sexual Crimes --- p.72 ; Chapter 4.2.3 --- Women´ةs Civil and Political Rights --- p.73 ; Chapter Chapter V. --- Women´ةs Human Rights Mechanism and Domestic Measures Adopted to Control Abnormal SRB --- p.76 ; Chapter 5.1 --- The International Human Rights Fundamental for ...

資本全球擴展至今已經令我們的時代傷痕累累,各種各樣的社會運動應運而生,試圖突破現局。香港近年幾起以空間為本位的社會運動都甚為引人注目,其中利東街社區運動可謂開風氣之先,草擬了香港首份民間規劃方案──啞鈴方案,此後受拆遷影響的社區除了選擇賠償和安置以外,還可以選擇集體抗爭爭取民間規劃。提出了香港首份民間規劃劃方案固然意義重大,不過利東街社區運動留給我們遠不止於此。本論文從頭梳理一遍利東街社區運動的經驗,由一九九八年土地發展公司正式宣佈重建利東街,至市區重建局接手後利東街街坊成立H15重建關注組、提出爭取賠償安置以外的訴求、及後草擬啞鈴方案爭取落實以人為本的規劃。雖然啞鈴方案最後不獲局方接受,無法落實,卻為社區所可以有的政治意義帶來豐富的內容。本論文透過整理利東街社區運動的經驗,歸納並提出社區在資本主義全球化下所能夠展現出來的政治意義。 ; The global expansion of capital has brought to our contemporaries wounds and scars, leading thereby to social movements of all types. In the recent years in Honk Kong, we have witnessed many social movements concerned with spatial issues, among them some are more eye-catching while some of them not. Lee Tung Street community movement, among all the spatially minded social movements, is one with exceptional importance. It has marked a new beginning for other community movements by proposing the first ever community-based redevelopment plan ──Dumbbell Proposal. Although the Dumbbell was rejected in the end despite untiring efforts from the Lee Tung Street community and supports from various public ranks, Lee Tung Street community movement has left us with an enriched concept of "community", which is filled with political meanings, and potentials to fight the hegemonic capitalist globality. This thesis will consolidate experiences in different stages of Lee Tung Street community movement, from the time when Land Development Company first announced the redevelopment project, to the period when the community organized themselves into a group called H15 concern group which launched the famous Dumbbell Proposal. From these events, I will extract and explain the political meanings of "community", which paves a way for alternatives in our globalized society. ; Detailed summary in vernacular field only. ; 陳倩玉. ; Parallel title from English abstract. ; Thesis (M.Phil.) Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2015. ; Includes bibliographical references (leaves 105-113). ; Abstracts in English and Chinese. ; Chen Qianyu.

農民工權益保障問題是影響中國社會轉型的重大問題。中國各級政府制定了一系列旨在保障農民工權益的法律法規和政策,但這些法律法規和政策在實踐卻未能發揮其應有作用,農民工的權益仍然被持續而普遍地的侵犯,無法獲得真正的保障。本研究針對農民工權益無法獲得真正保障的問題,基於文献省覧和個人經驗的反思而構建出"雙重分離的初步研究概念框架,即政策文本與政策實踐的分離和工人意識和工人實踐的分離。 ; 本研究發現,政策文本和政策實踐的分離通過政治問題社會化、社會問題法律化和法律問題權變化三種機制得以實現。首先,國家在解決農民工問題的具體政策方案上採取社會化的策略,將作為政治問題的農民工問題純粹當作社會問題來處理,刻意回避農民工在國家權力體系的中的地位問題。其次,國家通過官方工會的法律服務將作為社會問題的農民工權益保障問題處理為單純的法律問題;通過對勞工NGO的體制擠壓和對工人自主組建工會的打擊防止農民工權益保障問題的社會化和政治化。再次,地方當局在處理作為法律問題的農民工權益保障問題時,違反國家法律法規的規定,在不同情況下採取不同的處理方式,執行不同的標準,損害農民工的法定權益。工人意識與工人實踐的分離通過意識犬儒化和權益商品化得以實現。一方面,農民工表現出徹底不相信、認命不爭、知曉而不行動等帶有犬儒主義色彩的群體意識;另一方面,農民工將政策文本規定的權益視為一種可以"打折的商品,而非固有的不可侵犯的權益,並通常在議價過程中作出讓步。 ; 本研究基於研究發現提煉出一組分析國家在勞資關係中的角色的概念,即次標準、地方專制資本主義和安撫型國家,它們構成了從微觀到宏觀的較為系統的分析當代中國國家與工人關係的概念體系,為後續研究奠定了基礎。 ; The protection of the rights and interests of migrant workers is the major issue that affects China in the process of social transformation. The Chinese governments at all levels have promulgated a series of laws, regulations and policies, aiming to protect the migrant workers. But these laws, rules, and policies in practice have failed to perform their due role and function. The migrant workers' rights and interests are still constantly unable to get real protection. This study examined the problem of the inability of migrant workers in gaining real protection of their rights and interests. Based on the literature review and the reflection of personal experience, a provisional conceptual framework "Double Disjuncture was formulated for the study, which refers to the disjuncture between policy text and policy practice and the disjuncture between worker's consciousness and worker's practice. ; This study found that the disjuncture between policy text and policy practice is realized through three mechanisms: socialization of political issues, legalization of social issues, and contingency of legal issues. Firstly, the state took the strategy of socialization by using specific policies and programs to deal with the problems of migrant workers. The problem of migrant workers as a political matter was treated ...

"In 1898, Qing Dynasty emperor Guangxu ordered a series of reforms to correct the poltiical, economic, cultural, and educational weaknesses exposed by China's defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War. The "Hundred Days" reform has received a great deal of attention from historians who have focused on the well-known male reformers, but until now the Qing women reformers have received amost no consideration. In this book, literary historian Nanxiu Qian examines the late Qing reforms from the perspective of Xue Shaohui (1866-1911)--a leading woman writer who openly argued against male reformers' approach that subordinated women's issues to larger national concerns. Xue and her circle went beyond the inherited Confucian pattern, demanding equal political and educational rights with men in their quest for an ideal womanhood and an ideal social order"--Back cover

The design of this research is based on the liberal pluralism belief that there should be various forms of alternative media co-existing with mainstream media, and the society benefits from having alternatives. The concept of alternative media refers to media that are independent from the political and market power. They deal with alternative topics, which are not covered in their mainstream counterparts. One of the traditions of alternative media research is to examine their potential in the formation of subaltern public sphere. ; The core question of this research is to explore the usage of online alternative media, and the link between online alternative media and the ideal of subaltern public sphere, in terms of attitude towards difference, rational discussion and civic participation. Participatory observation, online survey and case studies were applied to find out the answers. ; First of all, it is found that the usage of online alternative media is influenced by a number of factors. In addition to the gratifications sought from media usage, a heterogeneous online community is more likely to accept online alternative media, while intense use of alternative media in turn contributes to more tolerance of difference in society. ; Secondly, this research examines the relationships between online alternative media and the elements of subaltern public sphere. As the research findings suggest, under high political and economic pressure, little space is left for mainstream public sphere, while subaltern public sphere is possible with the help of online alternative media. Non-hierarchically organized and depend on voluntary work, online alternative media partly escape from political and market pressure and become the birthplace of rational public opinions. Online alternative media contribute to democratic society as they generate public space for deliberation, and cultivate the culture of participation. ; Finally, the significance of heterogeneity is emphasized. Online alternative media develop a group of media ...

香港基進政治組織人民力量放棄以激進方式表達訴求,改以「快樂抗爭」作為政治策略以吸引大量群眾參與,並形成可觀的政治力量施予政府政治壓力。人民力量雖然以基進組織自居,何以取「快樂抗爭」作為它的政治策略呢?在此論文會仔細討論「快樂抗爭」如何以喜慶節日之感,讓與者用以直接抗爭為手法,承擔昂貴的政治成本來表達訴求,代之以輕鬆快之手段鼓動更多公眾參與。同一時間,縱使情緒搧動可以直接鼓動民眾與政治運動,然而情緒也有不智的一面。為了讓參與者宣洩他們的不滿,減低運動失控的情況,人民力量採納具有浄化作用的「快樂抗爭」作為它的抗爭手段。以下文章同時採用質性及質量硏究,以明情緒在社會運動中扮演的角色。 ; People Power, a radical group in Hong Kong, abandoned their disruptive approach, and adopted a new tactic of social movementjoyous resistancewhich attracted large numbers of participants. In this way, People Power became an influential political lever, exerting great pressure on the government. Why did this radical political party, People Power, abandon its stance of resistance through physical confrontation, and opt for a moderate approach, joyous resistance, to express their anger and voice their grievances at the government and at the group's antagonists? The shift in tactics has certainly been a successful one, attracting the attention of the public and helped a marginalized radical political party, People Power, to win three seats in 2012 Legislative Council Election. Although traditional theories of social movements have largely neglected the importance of emotion, the case of People Power shows that festive emotion can be an intangible resource to reduce the cost of participation when compared with confrontational tactics. The cathartic function of joyous resistance also reduces the potential for violence when People Power uses emotional appeals to mobilize the masses. In this thesis the concept of joyous resistance is introduced and the salient role of emotion in social movements is discussed, using case studies on People Power, the League of Social Democrats, the Democratic Party and the Civic Human Rights Front. Both quantitative and qualitative analysis will be conducted for the following thesis. ; Detailed summary in vernacular field only. ; Ng, Vitrierat. ; Thesis (Ph.D.) Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2014. ; Includes bibliographical references (leaves 207-215). ; Abstracts also in Chinese; appendixes ...

在全球基金總部要求擴大公民社會參與度的背景下,2006年4月,非政府組織聯合發起運動,反對中國全球基金國家協調委員會秘書處組織的兩名民間社會代表的選舉,要求增加參與權和改善選舉程式。本研究採用質性研究方法,對這場由非政府組織發起的政策倡導運動的發生原因、運動發起方的構成與真實力量、運動參與方在期間的互動過程與策略運用以及運動所能達成的成果展開分析,為社會運動理論在中國的適用與變化提供實證研究基礎上的探索,對非政府組織在中國環境下謀求組織發展及拓寬政治參與空間提出建議。 ; 本研究回顧了中國愛滋病問題的背景與現狀、西方社會運動研究理論體系與相關研究成果以及中國抗爭政治研究,採用動員結構與政治機會結構為核心的分析框架,發現: ; (1)在西方社會運動理論研究中沒有重要地位的傘狀組織關係在在CCM選舉運動動員結構中扮演了關鍵角色,增加了運動發起方的整體力量與合法性來源,並呈現出多層級傘狀組織結構。 ; (2)CCM選舉運動聯盟距離臨時性、適當制度化和去中心化的目標尚有距離,正在向理想的外部動員結構轉化,目前呈現出非政府組織聯盟與多層級傘狀組織相結合的動員結構。 ; (3)中國目前宏觀政治環境中存在倡導型運動的生存空間。通過一系列的策略選擇與運用,運動發起方可以發掘、詮釋、擴大政治機會,不斷營造運動發展空間,尤其是對國際因素的敏銳把握與利用,成功將運動不斷推進。 ; (4)政治機會結構四要素並不是平行發揮作用。在國家鎮壓能力基本穩定維持不變的情況下,政治體制內同盟者的存在對政治管道和政治精英體制穩定性發揮主導作用,進而對運動進程和結果帶來深遠影響。 ; 本研究提出了目前CCM選舉運動的動員結構特徵,以及運動發起方在對政治機會把握、利用過程中的優點與缺陷,並提議加入跨界拓展作為考察外部動員結構的分析視角,在政治機會結構四要素的分析中整合國際因素的影響,最後提出對非政府組織發展,國際項目管理和相關政策的建議。 ; Since Global Fund claimed for expanding public participation in civil society, in the April of 2006 NGOs made allies to launch a movement against the election organized by CCM Secretariat, requiring adding the right of participation and improving election procedures. With qualitative research method, this paper analyzes the reason, process and result including interactions and strategies among participants of this advocacy movement organized by NGOs, providing evidence-based study for employment and adaptation of the social movement theory in China; and makes suggestions for NGOs to expand organization development and political participation in the context of China. ; This study adopts mobilization structure and political opportunity structure in the theory of social movement as core theoretical framework based on reviewing the background and status quo of AIDS issue in China, the theory and relevant studies of social movement as well as studies on China contentious politics. Findings are as follows: ; 1.Umbrella organizations, which are of less emphasis in the western studies of social movement, play a key role in CCM election movement mobilization. It increases organizers' overall strength and legitimacy and ...

Leung, Ka Kuen. ; Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2008. ; Includes bibliographical references (leaves 167-180). ; Abstracts in English and Chinese. ; Chapter Chapter 1 - --- Introduction --- p.1 ; The Global Rise of Internet Independent Media --- p.1 ; Hong Kong - The Rise of Internet Activism --- p.4 ; Direction of the Study --- p.6 ; Structure of the Thesis --- p.9 ; Chapter Chapter 2 - --- Literature Review --- p.11 ; Radical Democracy Citizenship --- p.11 ; Citizens' Media as Political Space --- p.17 ; Transition from Radio to Internet Radio --- p.23 ; Chapter Chapter 3 - --- "Hong Kong Civil Society, Citizenship and Radio Industry" --- p.31 ; Hong Kong Civil Society and Citizenship --- p.31 ; The Political Inclination of Hong Kong Radio Broadcasting --- p.35 ; Chapter Chapter 4 - --- Research Design and Methods --- p.40 ; One-Case Design --- p.40 ; Research Questions --- p.41 ; Research Methods --- p.42 ; Chapter Chapter 5 - --- The Denial of Radio Broadcast Rights in Hong Kong --- p.48 ; Government Control of Broadcasting Policies --- p.49 ; Powerlessness of the Political Society --- p.51 ; Failed Promise of the Mainstream Media --- p.54 ; Chapter Chapter 6 - --- The Rise of PRHK as Political Struggle --- p.57 ; The Emergence of Internet Politics in 2003 --- p.58 ; Anti-Tung Solidarity: Continuation of People Power --- p.62 ; Internet Radio as Hot Property from 2003 to 2004 --- p.65 ; Action-Reaction: Internet Radio as Transitional Project --- p.68 ; Chapter Chapter 7 - --- PRHK as Radical Democratic Media Association --- p.72 ; PRHK as Participatory Citizens' Media --- p.72 ; PRHK as Self-managed Media Association --- p.84 ; Chapter Chapter 8 - --- PRHK as Radical Democratic Media Site --- p.98 ; Positioning of PRHK Media Operation --- p.98 ; Independent Internet Radio Programs --- p.113 ; Citizens Matter More Than the Platform --- p.123 ; Chapter Chapter 9 - --- Conclusion and Discussion --- p.129 ; Summary of Findings --- p.129 ; Broader Implications --- p.134 ; Limitations of the ...

本研究旨在探索台灣自一九九零年代末推行之母語復興運動及其影響。作為使用者為數最多的本土語言,閩南語一度沒落;隨著母語復興措施當中、鄉土語言教學政策的廣泛開展,閩南語自「方言」一逕躍升為台灣文化的象徵,更被從政者甚至政府利用作對外宣傳之用。 ; 作者通過語言人類學田野考察方法,試圖以閩南語作為案例,釐清及解讀以下幾點:(一)台灣民眾當今的語言選擇及使用狀況;(二)他們的語言態度,與其文化認同之對應關係;(三)語言在台灣族群認同政治所扮演的角色;(四)語言政治在各社會文化層面所引起之角力;(五)方言(或語言,如原住民語言)群之競爭,如何掀起語言及文化傳統之再造和復興,以圖合理化其族群作為台灣文化象徵的地位。 ; 研究結果顯示,雖然巴赫汀 (Bakhtin) 的「眾聲喧嘩」(heteroglossia) 理論在實務層面與台灣的多語、多元文化相呼應,但當地政府所提倡之文化多元論、以及各持份者之間的隱性競爭,若以布迪厄 (Bourdieu) 的文化複製理論和傅柯(Foucault) 的權力知識理論解讀,當更適切。總的來說,台灣的母語復興運動,乃一項與昔日保守政權的抗衡行為賦權,控制兼具的政治行動,更是多元政治文化的象徵。 ; This thesis looks into the government-led language revitalization campaign in Taiwan with special reference to the case of Hokkien, one of the "bensheng" (local) vernacular with Han Chinese roots, in terms of language rights, ethnogenesis, and cultural legitimacy. Tracing the rise and development of concepts such as cultural heritage, ethnic identity and democracy in the region, the focus is placed on the recent changes in Taiwan's language ideology and the intricate emergence of Hokkien as one of the "national" languages and symbols apart from the official language, i.e. Mandarin Chinese. ; Against the backdrop where contesting discourses on language and culture discourses co-exist and crossbreed with each other, there are a number of closely-related issues that this thesis examines in particular: (1) the ways in which language choices are made and perceived in various contexts; (2) implications of such language choices as related to one's cultural identities; (3) the role of language politics in self and group identification and ethnic classification in Taiwan; (4) the power dynamics in various socio-cultural spheres; and (5) the resulting competition of multiple speech groups in Taiwan for authenticity, legitimacy and superiority in the political arena by means of reconstruction and reinvention of ethnic languages and traditions. ; The findings reveal that despite the practical relevance of Bakhtin's theory of heteroglossia to Taiwan's current ethnogenesis against the backdrop of multilingualism and ...

Agriculture, Rural village and Peasants (ARP) represent the production structure, social structure and cultural structure (3S) of rural China for thousands of years in its trinity. To find the long roots of Chinese civilization and to feel the creativity, splendour, diversity and regionality of Chinese traditional culture, it must be in the countryside relating to the ARP. However, China's rural areas have been constantly challenged by political, economic, technological changes and other cultures interruption. Especially after decades of modernization and urbanization, the three structural relationships of rural traditional harmony are gradually being resolved. The originality of the rural tradition and the cultural accumulation it bears are facing extinction. For a nation whose culture has been passed down for thousands of years, this will be an irreparable and huge loss. Fortunately, in 2005 the central government put forward the slogan of "Beautiful Villages", emphasizing the need to build beautiful and livable villages for farmers. The government's authorities have issued a series of support policies for this purpose. The national standard for "Beautiful Villages" was introduced in 2015. It supports the village protection and development plans for the newly established list of traditional Chinese villages and supports the pilots of rescue protection in various places. It requires traditional villages to rely on historical and cultural resources reasonably to carry out various development models such as cultural creativity, popular science education and leisure tourism. From the macro-level of management, it is proposed that government-led, government-invested, unified planning, development, management, management and management rights should be unified. At the same time as the promotion of cultural relics protection and basic implementation, attention is paid to protecting the interests of the people and social benefits. Over the past years, all sectors of society, including some enterprises and institutions, have responded positively, forming various forms of practice in rural villages protection and development. For example "characteristic vernacular villages", "characteristic folk villages", "modern new villages", "historical ancient villages", etc. They mainly make some useful attempts to solve various problems faced by the countryside through the combination of rural tourism, leisure agriculture and ecological agriculture. However, most of these practices are based on direct input from external funds and management. Many of them fail to reach out to the current issues of the ARP, and unable to face the problems of a poor 3S relationship. Therefore, how to combine the protection of the "post-cultural heritage" of the countryside with the exploration of the new form of the ARP and reconstruction of the 3S relationship under the new historical conditions and opportunities has become the theoretical and practical issues of rural protection and development. To realize the goal of "Beautiful Villages", it is very necessary to take action at both levels of strategic thinking and practical approach. It is necessary to make forward-looking explorations and practices in accordance with the actual conditions of rural areas in different regions.

本項研究旨在探討近代中國男性知識分子性別與國族論述之間的互動關係,藉以突顯近年學者利用後殖民性別/國族理論模式解釋上述問題的盲點和不足之處。 ; 根據後殖民性別/國族理論的觀點,反殖民男性精英的性別與國族論述之間呈現出對立和矛盾,這成為了學者們以性別角度,批評近代中國國族主義的基調。然而,本研究要論證的正是這種後殖民性別/國族理論難以完全解釋近代中國歷史語境中的相關議題。 ; 本文第一章探討康有為的「男女平等」論述如何假借儒家傳統「聖人」的論述模式,開拓現代性別平等的論說空間;第二章分析金天翮在晚清國族主義脈絡下建構的「女權」論述,如何為當時女權主義者打開批判男權統治的論述場域;第三章闡述周作人五四時期的「女性」論述如何通過新性道德討論,以及批判父權意識型態,創建女性主體性的論述模式;第四章解析張競生的「女體」論述如何將女性情慾與國族論述連結起來,開創女性情慾自主論的空間。通過四位知識分子的思想分析,本文勾勒出晚清以迄五四這個歷史階段較突出的性別/國族論述模式,闡釋近代中國性別與國族論述之間的互動關係。 ; This research aims to explore the interactive relation between gender and nation in the discourse of the Modern Chinese intellectuals. Through details examination of the interactive discourse of gender and nation, this study seeks to demonstrate the inadequacy of the postcolonial critique of the nationalist bias on gender. ; According to the gender analyses of the post-colonialists, gender and nation appear to be placed in opposition and conflict with one another. It is from this perspective of gender that many Chinese study scholars advance their critique on Chinese nationalism. However what I want to argue in this thesis is that such application of the post-colonial critique on gender and nation is over-representation of the gender/nation discourse in the context of Modern China. ; In the first chapter of this thesis, I shall demonstrate how the discourse of Kang Youwei on "equality between men and women (「男女平等」)has revised the conception of the "Confucian sagefor the alignment with the modern discourse on equality of gender. In the second chapter, I shall how Chin Sung-ts'en's(「金天翮」) dissemination of the conception of" Women's Right(「女權」) has inspired the female elite to criticize the patriarchy in the context of the national discourse on Late Qing period. In the third chapter, I shall examine how Zhou Zuoren's(周作人) discourse on women (「女性」)has, through his participation in the construction of the "New Sexual Morality and his critique of the ideology of patriarchy, constructed the discursive foundation of female subjectivity during May Fourth period. And ...

Cheng Ying-shuet. ; Thesis submitted in: November 2003. ; Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2004. ; Includes bibliographical references (leaves [199]-[201]). ; Abstracts in English and Chinese. ; Abstract --- p.1 ; Acknowledgement --- p.ii ; Note for Transliteration --- p.ii ; Chapter Chapter 1 - --- Introduction --- p.1 ; Background of the Research --- p.1 ; Review of Literature --- p.11 ; Purposes of the Research --- p.18 ; The Field Sites --- p.23 ; Methodology --- p.26 ; Figures 1.1-110 --- p.34 ; Chapter Chapter 2 - --- The Lease of the New Territories --- p.42 ; The Establishment of the Heung Yee Kuk --- p.44 ; Map 21 --- p.50 ; Figures 21 --- p.51 ; Chapter Chapter 3 - --- Backgrounds of Po Toi 0 and Ping Shan --- p.52 ; Po Toi O Village in Sai Kung --- p.53 ; Chapter (A) --- Social Setting --- p.53 ; Chapter (B) --- Political Setting --- p.58 ; Ping Shan in Yuen Long --- p.64 ; Chapter (A) --- Social Setting --- p.65 ; Chapter (B) --- Political Setting --- p.67 ; Figures 3.1 -36 --- p.81 ; Map 31 --- p.86 ; Chapter Chapter 4 - --- The Composition of Villages and Its Members --- p.87 ; The Situation in Po Toi O Village in Sai Kung --- p.89 ; Chapter (A) --- Marriage Between Indigenous and Non-indigenous Villagers --- p.92 ; Chapter (B) --- Economic Benefits Tying Up Villagers --- p.98 ; Chapter (C) --- Cultural Activities Banging Villagers Together --- p.106 ; The Situation of Ping Shan in Yuen Long --- p.114 ; Chapter (A) --- "Indigenous Identity Separating ""Insiders"" and ""Outsiders""" --- p.115 ; Chapter (B) --- Solidarity in Ancestor Worship --- p.122 ; Po Toi O and Ping Shan As Communities without Visible Boundary --- p.127 ; Chapter Chapter 5 - --- "The Interpretations of ""Traditional Rights´ح" --- p.131 ; Rural Affairs in the New Territories --- p.132 ; Chapter (A) --- Rural Committees and Village Representative System --- p.134 ; The Contradicting Roles of Village Representatives --- p.143 ; Chapter (A) --- The Conflicts in Po Toi O Village of Sai Kung --- p.144 ; Chapter (B) ...

The study of Chinese labour politics has returned to the centre of scholarly interest as China has increasingly become involved in global production and trade. As the incidence of labour dispute and workers' strikes continued to soar, ubiquitous cases of labour rights abuse have been widely reported by international media and academics. The literature of Marxist international political economy has long predicted the insurgency of the Chinese working class resulting from rising inequality, global capital movement and labour division. In contrast, traditional Chinese labour studies are inconclusive as to whether the Chinese working class has gained enough class consciousness to become a cohesive agent for social and political change. This research examines how rising economic, social and political inequalities have impacted on the Chinese working class's agency. The research shifts the focus from top-down structural analysis to workers' agency itself, with an emphasis on their cognitive strength. The research was undertaken via a two-case comparative study of the Chinese working class in four megacities and four smaller cities. Data came mostly from statistics and field interviews. This two-case comparative study concludes that, overall, the Chinese working class had a weak behavioural strength, as manifested by inconsistent wildcat-style strikes, which had no clear political strategies. This research also concludes that the working class's cognitive agency is weak and conservative, as manifested by a weak class identification, their poor understanding of democracy, their low willingness to participate in collective action, and their weak sense of class solidarity. I argue that inequalities and capital movement do not have a simple and unidirectional relationship with the working class's collective agency. On the one hand, inequalities and capital movement can arouse the working class's behavioural strength quickly. On the other hand, workers' cognitive strength is more inert and does not correspond neatly to these two factors. The research findings show that the megacities are more economically developed, with higher inequalities, but with considerably weaker and more conservative working class agency; whereas the smaller cities are less economically developed, with lower inequalities, but with less weak and conservative working class agency. The addition of cognitive strength as a new dimension of working class study provides a pluralist analytical framework for the study of Chinese labour. The new Chinese working class are better educated and more individualised with three main characteristics - occupation-based, precarious, and conservative - which distinguish them from the older generations of workers who had a clear group identification, such as the SOE workers in the 1990s, and the rural migrant workers in the 2000s. These theoretical and empirical findings open up possibilities of new strategies for effective labour organisation that should be considered by labour NGOs, civil society and the government. These players not only need to manage the working class action carefully, but also need to better understand the workers' complex cognitive situations.