Autonomy by Law: The Only Direction of Institutional Development of Villagers’ Autonomy in China

Based on Investigations to the Experience of Some Rural Areas

¹ Law School, Zhejiang University of Finance and Economics, 310018 Hangzhou Zhejiang, China
² School of Management, Zhejiang University, 310058 Hangzhou Zhejiang, China

^a Corresponding author: rmao@zju.edu.cn

Abstract

The villagers’ autonomy in China, which started from the 1980s, has been limited by the social, especially the political and legal, conditions. Only a partial realization was eventually realized amid the inevitable influence from the central power. As the experience of some rural Chinese areas demonstrates, autonomy by law is the only direction of institutional development of villagers’ autonomy. However, in the current environment of historical habits, legal practice, mental thoughts, economic and social mortality, and politics, the villagers’ autonomy is more easily prone to the power rather than laws. To facilitate autonomy by law, the following strategies thus bear particular importance: (1) improve the legislation system to pave the way for the rule of law; (2) change rural governments’ attitude towards villagers’ autonomy and replace the intrusion by the macro direction; (3) abandon redundant government regulations to guarantee autonomy; (4) establish the system of legal remedy as a legal protection.