Prospects for village self-governance in China

This article explores the changes in village self-governance in the reform period. If reflects ripen the potential of village self-governance to contribute towards a broader democratisation process in China, If begins by reviewing rural governance in the pre-perform period, drawing attention to the factors stimulating change, It then examines the newly emerging system of village self-governance, focussing on the village committees, village assemblies and village representative assemblies. How this new system is implemented forms the subject of the third section. Finally the article considers the potential contribution of village self-governance towards democratisation.