Carl Minzner on Dawn of the Counter-Reform Era

I am really happy to have as part of the occasional Sinocism book series an excerpt from Carl Minzner’s new book End of an Era: How China’s Authoritarian Revival is Undermining its Rise (Oxford University Press, 2018).

Carl is a Professor of Law at Fordham University (bio) and an expert in Chinese law and governance. He started working on this incredibly timely book long before the Communist Party of China announced the New Era of Xi Jinping.

The following excerpt is adapted from Chapter 3, “Internal Decay and Social Unrest.”   Footnotes have been removed.

By Carl Minzner

… With China facing spreading decay inside the Party itself, and new forms of social activism emerging outside, Xi Jinping ascended to power in 2012.  He was convinced of the fierce need to act. Xi has since shaken the Party to its core with a tough anti-corruption campaign, while dramatically recentralizing political power in himself and a few trusted aides. He has also launched the most severe domestic crackdown on dis…