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The Path of Chinese Privatisation: a case study of village enterprises in southern Jiagnsu
Author(s) -
Chen Chihjou Jay
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
corporate governance: an international review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.866
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1467-8683
pISSN - 0964-8410
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8683.2005.00404.x
Subject(s) - administration (probate law) , competition (biology) , business , property rights , economic growth , market economy , economics , political science , law , ecology , biology
This paper uses an in‐depth case study in southern Jiangsu to document the last wave of privatisation of Chinese rural enterprises, showing that throughout the economic reforms, particularly at the village level, local cadres and corporate leaders dominated the publicly owned enterprises, from which they benefited disproportionately. It was these same local institutions based on village cadres’ social networks that controlled the entire process of privatisation, leaving nothing to the free market or open competition. Those who positioned themselves in the village administration and enterprises are the same group of specific families and individuals who run the private corporations today. It goes without saying that workers and ordinary villagers have been disenfranchised in this property rights transformation.