William Hurst @wjhurst Twitter profile

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

I've been studying various aspects of #protest & contentious #politics in #China for 25 years. What's happening now is novel, interesting, & potentially quite important. But we need to be careful about drawing conclusions or making predictions. A🧵: 1/22 @CamGeopolitics @NCUSCR

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

4 years

Without official action by @NorthwesternU , I will offer an in-person independent study (on any topic of their choosing) to any graduate student of @PoliSciatNU who holds an F-1 visa and needs such a class to remain legally in the United States. Please email me if you need this.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

Along with most other scholars of my generation, I've been studying political #economy in #China for more than 25 years. What's happening there is not so simple as 'party's over'. For a little context and analysis, here is a brief 🧵: 1/25 #Politics @CamGeopolitics @NCUSCR

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

What's happened in the past 24 hours is novel in that protesters have appeared on the streets in multiple cities with apparent knowledge of what is happening in other parts of the country. They're all mobilising around #Covid , but this is refracted through distinct lenses. 10/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Since 1989, we've seen 5 main strands/repertoires of contention in China: 1) labour protest 2) rural protest 3) student protest 4) urban governance protest 5) systematic political dissent Each of these has usually been disaggregated locally and separated from the others. 2/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

If things fizzle - or even if the strands/repertoires become disentangled - all will return to the somewhat uneasy quotidian of a few weeks ago. If not, this could prove a critical juncture. But not one that will be easy to read in real time or with a happy ending. 22/22 (END)

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

By taking up slogans and frames of generalised dissent, as well as at least implicitly signally solidarity with workers' and students' mobilisation, these crowds are crossing a boundary and helping merge four of the five strands/repertoires outlined above. 14/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Finally, we've seen a few sensations incidents of generalised dissent (e.g. 四通桥), but in the past 24 hours crowds in at least one or two cities have appeared overtly calling for #XiJingping to leave office and for the #CCP to lose power. 12/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

If we look at this lacklustre response through the lens of experiences across #Indonesia & SE Asia, it might suggest the lurking presence of at least tacit elite allies. Such a factor would substantially complicate the picture. 17/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

But, if we assume no elite backers, the most likely scenario I can see is that the protests fizzle out (as most such movements do in most countries). Having erupted spontaneously in a short period, they will fade away without reaching any climax or denouement. 18/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

What is also very interesting, though, is that the state response last night was not nearly as harsh, repressive, or even coordinated as we might have predicted. 16/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Workers in Zhengzhou and elsewhere are engaged in labour protests, but with #ZeroCovid as a kind of frame for their grievances. Students across dozens of campuses, similarly are mounting familiar kinds of protest, but also framed around Covid. 11/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

The protesters in these crowds don't look to be either workers or students. They appear to have mobilised first around #Covid & urban governance issues - in particular, in reaction to the fire and failed response in Urumqi two days ago. But they've morphed beyond that. 13/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

This is what makes the current moment especially interesting and possibly important and dangerous. But the trajectory from here is not certain. I can see at least three possible ways forward, in declining order of likelihood & increasing order of importance/danger... 15/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

A third and much less likely option would be concessions or systemic change. This could range from a relaxation of some #ZeroCovid measures to genuine political opening of some sort. I very much do not think this is in the cards, and would peg probability as extremely low. 21/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Labour politics has seen millions of laid-off (xiagang) SOE workers take to the streets, as well as many hundreds of thousands of their counterparts among migrant workers in export-processing manufacturing industries. 3/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

A second possibility is some form of comprehensive & decisive repression. This could take the form of a coordinated and possibly quite violent crackdown (as in 1989) or it could be slower-motion and at least somewhat less bloody (as in HK in 2019-2020). 19/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Most demanded workplace protections, union rights, or welfare benefits. But they didn't usually link up cross-regionally or seek common cause with rural residents, students, or others. One significant exception was the so-called Jasic Incident and its aftermath in 2018... 4/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Generalised political dissent is very rare in its expression, but we've seen it from time to time, as in the Charter 08 movement & other manifestations. Usually repressed quickly and harshly, its impact has mostly been confined to a small set of cosmopolitan intellectuals. 8/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Rural protests have tended to revolve around payment for grain (IOU Crisis), "peasant burdens" (农民负担), provision of essential public goods, or corruption/malfeasance by local officials. These often have significant impact locally, but seldom beyond. 5/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Either form of repression would be extremely costly for the state, however (both in fiscal and reputational terms). It would not be undertaken lightly, as it would also raise the stakes. It's thus a decidedly second-best option and not as likely as the protests fizzling. 20/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Aside from these, we've also seen ethnic/minority protest (e.g. among Uyghurs or Tibetans), but this has had very limited resonance across the wider population. It's also been extremely harshly repressed, especially since about 2013. 9/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Student protests have been rarer, but usually either about campus issues or general and philosophical in nature. Occasionally, as in the Jasic Incident, they can be in solidarity with workers, villagers, or others. But they've been largely less significant since June 4. 6/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Many have also noted the prevalence of protests around urban governance and the provision of basic public goods and services - from neighbourhood services to environmental protection, even education and healthcare. These also have tended to be local and specific in nature. 7/22

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

Thank you @PoliSciatNU for a great 8 years, on this my official last day! Delighted to get started (officially) tomorrow at @Dept_of_POLIS !

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

26 days

This should be said loudly and repeatedly! Political science will die if it continues much further down the path of obsessing over methodological minutiae & persnickety nitpicking over causal inference - all centred on analysis of more & trivial questions no one cares about...

Gerardo L. Munck

@GerardoMunck

27 days

Some wise advice by Theda Skocpol about scholarship.👇 From Skocpol’s 2017 interview with Eric Schickler:

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

4 years

@polisciprofhi Something like "take your time early on & don't think about comprehensive exams until you're in at least your third year". That's backwards. Students should jump through the hoops of coursework & exams expeditiously, but slow down later with their fieldwork & dissertations.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

#XiJinping 's trip to #Russia is not bold or radical, but conservative. #China is not aiming to do what some media reports imply. A short 🧵: 1/11 #Politics @CambridgeFames @NCUSCR

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

Yiran Fan, Ph.D. student ‘beloved by all who knew him,’ 1990-2021

Campus community mourns loss of exceptional scholar and kind friend

news.uchicago.edu

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

2 years

I've said for many years that the single most important book in English on Chinese politics is Franz Schurmann's "Ideology and Organization in Communist China". I still stand by that advice.

Sabina Knight 桑稟华

@SabinaKnight1

2 years

@BryanVanNorden @DanielleWenner @DavidLSmith_Iam @Katja_Thieme @AjaanMark @Webwight @JustinSkirry @SangBina @hughmarlowe2 @EKKnappenberger @Skye_Cleary Quote tweet an image of a great book. Do not explain. Nominate at least six others. Nominating @yuenyuenang @DavidGAtwill @jayjamescarter @dianafutweets @GeZhaoguang @hillmg1 @LetaHong @wjhurst @iandenisjohnson @limlouisa @JimMillward @PM_Thornton @jwassers @isabellamweber

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Not just theory, also empirics! Original data collection, fieldwork, and deep area studies knowledge & contributions are also being undervalued (probably even more than theory). If we don't know anything, it's hard to come up with interesting Ideas...

Blandness, Bathos, or Brashness? Choosing Pathways to Validity and Relevance for Chinese Politics...

The study of Chinese politics and society has reached a crossroads. A year ago I called for scholars to eschew exclusive focus on the current ‘methods arms race’ and engage in more cross-national...

madeinchinajournal.com

Gerardo L. Munck

@GerardoMunck

1 year

The diet of social scientists is tilted heavily toward methods (for empirical research) relative to theory. As a result, few cultivate the theoretical imagination and our disciplines are comparatively theory-poor. Am I wrong? If not, what can be done to bring theory back in?

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

The situation in China today is thus not a surprise or a suddenly erupting crisis. Rather, it's the result of a long slow burn and a confluence of many factors. The bottom line, though, is a fundamental dilemma: short-term remedy versus long-term structural shift. 18/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

Indeed, by 2011, multiple sources indicate that Chinese local governments were deriving at least 70% of their revenue from land use transfers, real estate transfer taxes, & the like. Other data indicated that upwards of 60% of Chinese household wealth was in real estate. 10/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

China experienced rapid economic growth in the 1980s, but with declining government revenue, high inflation, and significant political/social upheaval. Growth was driven mainly by expansion of non-plan activities ('growing out of the plan'). All this changed in 1994. 2/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

8 months

Very surprised this isn't getting more coverage in Western media. Very odd and definitely out of character. Potentially also concerning, though impossible to tell as yet (could well be just the flu). #China #BRICSSummit2023 #Politics @CamGeopolitics

No explanation as Xi Jinping unexpectedly skips his speech at Brics forum

Chinese commerce minister delivers the address instead; Xi had arrived in South Africa on Monday evening and met with the country’s president earlier on Tuesday.

www.scmp.com

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

Still, China famously averted recession in 2008/9. It did this by adopting a policy of truly impressive levels of demand stimulus in the form of government spending, grants, and policy-directed lending. 7/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

6 months

Whatever other faults we find, I think it's obvious that the government has accomplished something truly amazing in turning around Beijing air quality. I was there earlier this month & even the "bad" days were still closer to @KennedyCSIS 's photo than what was typical years ago.

Scott Kennedy

@KennedyCSIS

6 months

Clear, crisp day in Beijing.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

But any really big macro-level change will be slower in coming & harder to see in real-time. 25/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

For an excellent explanation of what's been going on with the #protests in #China , this video from @DrJaneHayward at @lauchinainst is one of the best resources around:

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

Yes! Every PhD student thinking about dissertation topics absolutely needs to put this quote up on their wall and then read and meditate briefly on it at least ten times each day:

George Lawson

@GeorgeLawsonIR

3 years

Theda Skocpol: “Recognize that a good enough answer to an important question, important both substantively in the field and in the real world, has more value than a definite answer to a trivial question.” Amen to that. More here:

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

In 1994, China's government enacted both fiscal and monetary reform. Fiscal reform centralised revenues, balanced Beijing's budget, but left local governments with tons of unfunded mandates. 3/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

60% of household wealth in real estate is really high. The comparable figure in the US from around 2005 or 2006 (height of its bubble) was 30%. And this was more than a decade ago. 11/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

The problem has long been that more government spending and loose lending only make the bubbles worse, crowd out consumption, and don't especially promote the most productive investment or foster sufficient innovation for across-the-board upgrading. 14/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

All this lending staved off recession, but it seriously undermined the banks that the Chinese government had spend much of the period from roughly 1995-2005 trying desperately (and ultimately successfully) to recapitalise and stabilise). 8/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

5 months

All points on the slide are absolutely correct. But they're also what many of us have been saying for 20 years. I don't think China's leaders are ignorant of any of this. Rather they either don't know how to implement them or perceive insurmountable political risks to doing so

Bert Hofman（郝福满）

@berthofmanecon

5 months

Professor Christine Wong calls for a major fiscal reform in China at the ⁦ @ANUCrawford ⁩ China Update Conference.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

The next 15 years saw a tremendous boom, driven by FDI & exports, & focused in 'export-processing manufacturing'. This drove GDP growth rates of 10% or more, but also led to sharp and widespread social dislocation (not least among the tens of millions losing jobs in SOEs). 5/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

The only way to fix things immediately would be massive injection of central government cash. This could backstop and clear bad debts in the real estate sector, bail out insolvent shadow banks, boost aggregate demand and forestall economic slow-down, etc. 19/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

2 years

@LauraK_Nelson Too much pressure-->too many crap submission-->too much reviewer fatigue and bad reviews-->less good published work-->students wasting too much time and not actually learning anything....

Manu Chao - Promiscuity (Official Audio)

Manu Chao - Promiscuity (Official Audio)Subscribe to Manu Chao’s channel : https://manuchao.lnk.to/ytsubSubscribe to Manu Chao’s official playlist : https://...

www.youtube.com

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

I had a lot of fun thinking back over ‘Seeing Like a State” and its influence on thinking across the discipline. Hope the article makes for similarly enjoyable reading! #politics #polisciresearch #PoliSci #development

Polity, journal of political science

@PolityalsBeruf

3 years

What was missed in the early interpretations of James C. Scott’s "instant classic" Seeing Like a State? Check out @wjhurst article on Scott’s classic work available here:

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

Ultimately, inflection points and critical junctures can only be clearly spotted in hindsight. But, what we're seeing in China is not the start of something new and probably not the very end of an unwinding of export-led growth that began 15 years ago. 23/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

Massive new spending and/or lending now would make those asset price bubbles even worse. It would continue to crowd out consumption and more productive investments. And it would make it more difficult & costly down the road (maybe even prohibitively so) to do this again. 21/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

Monetary reform, inter alia, made the RMB at least somewhat convertible for the first time. This opened the floodgates for foreign direct investment (FDI) and greatly facilitated growth in Chinese exports. 4/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

Around the same time (2010 or so), the Chinese government also began speaking publicly about the need to: 1) increase consumption; 2) upgrade to higher value-added sectors; 3) improve aggregate return on investment; and 4) rein in the bubbles, especially in real estate. 12/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

The export-led boom ended abruptly in 2008 with the world financial crisis. Exports declined very sharply in that year and in 2009 and many sectors never recovered. Millions of jobs were lost and the process of offshoring lower value-added production accelerated. 6/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

2 months

Just finished watching "The Long Season" (漫长的季节). Recommend it very highly. A bit long at 12 episodes and I was not 100% taken with every one of the plot threads. But, it was definitely among the best TV dramas I've seen in any language for quite some years.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

This was the genesis of the 'Made in China 2025' programme (about upgrading and increasing consumption), the 'One Belt, One Road' Initiative (about seeking higher investment returns, as well as extending soft power), and other major policies. 13/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

But lack of continued spending and lending could seriously destabilise the economy, even to the point of provoking a crisis. We saw a similar moment of real dilemmas and difficulties in 2015. We're seeing essentially something similar now. But Covid also intervened. 15/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

4 years

I’m creating a list on Indonesian Studies. Please consider subscribing if you’re interested in #Indonesia . Also, if you have or know of an account I should add, please don’t hesitate to message me. Thanks! @wjhurst /Indonesian-Studies

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

12 days

Very sad news. Lowell was on my committee, co-authored an article with me, and on several occasions treated me & numerous other grad students to home-made ice cream at his house. He will be sorely missed in Berkeley, China, and around the world.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

@APSAtweets Who wrote this? How do they find it reasonable to suggest that "both sides" need to do better? The only 'two sides" here are the side of law and democracy and the side of fascism and barbarism. Which side is APSA on???

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

Received an invitation from my university's provost to some torpid "conversation on the art of saying 'no'". The only reaction that popped into my head was, "thank you, no". I bet the organizers never dreamed their event would be so successful before it even happened!

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

The trade wars beginning around 2017 have also persisted, drawing in countries beyond the US & prompting tighter & broader restrictions, e.g. like those linked to the #CHIPS Act. China wants very much to re-engage economically, but it isn't so easy & gains have been slow. 17/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

Sadly lost in the shuffle is China's re-engagement (at least economically and socially) with the rest of the world. This won't happen if the Chinese economy is in decline (or crisis) and won't be prioritised if its government opts of massive new stimulus. 22/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

During the pandemic, China's central government response ensured that local government budgets were not directly at immediate risk, but #ZeroCovid also effectively killed consumption for more than 2 1/2 years and made international trade and investment dramatically harder. 16/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

I've been looking at #labor politics and the market in #urban #China for more than 20 years. Cities' fiscal difficulties and the travails of older, laid-off, or less educated workers are nothing new. I wrote about these in my 2009 book. E.g.: 1/9

The Chinese Worker after Socialism

Cambridge Core - Asian Studies - The Chinese Worker after Socialism

www.cambridge.org

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

Combined with Hu Jintao's crack down from 2006 on excessive/illicit local taxes and fees, the lending helped drive rapid inflation of serious asset price bubbles, especially in real estate and housing. 9/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

It could also continue promoting the growth of important new higher value-added sectors, from green tech & EVs, to AI and e-commerce. But this would come at very significant cost to longer-term structural goals. 20/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

@JaneFerguson5 Thank you for your consistently outstanding reporting on the vitally important issues & events unfolding in Afghanistan under extremely challenging & dangerous conditions! Crises like these are when we need journalists the most & the world owes you a tremendous debt of gratitude.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

#Indonesia enacted a new Criminal Code toaday & there's been lots of commentary about historical precedent and earlier codes going back to the era of #Dutch #Colonialism . Read this (esp. pp.68-86) for my take on & explanation of this history: #Law

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

We'll likely see serious debate (or at least evidence that it's happening behind the scenes) and possibly a meaningful shift in at least short-term economic policy in China over the coming days and weeks. 24/25

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

As so many wring hands and talk of ‘backsliding’, it’s worth noting from a different perspective that a former president’s arraignment on criminal charges marks a milestone for American democratisation. One reached by Taiwan and South Korea a decade or two ago.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

2 years

New Job Opportunity! Come join us in Cambridge as assistant professor of Chinese Politics: #China #Politics

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

4 years

I have created a twitter list focused on Chinese Studies. Please consider subscribing if you are interested in #China . Also, if you have or know of an account that you think I should add to the list, please do not hesitate to message me with it. Thanks! @wjhurst /Chinese-Studies

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

5 months

Extremely sad news. I coedited a book with Professor Li nearly 20 years ago. That was in part the result of him being willing to take time out in summer to meet with a random PhD student who cold called him and then arrived 30 minutes late. There were never many like him.

Dali L. Yang

@Dali_Yang

5 months

Mourning Professor Li Qiang, formerly Dean of Social Sciences at Qinghua University and a pioneer in rebuilding sociology and social sciences more generally in China and especially Qinghua. He was 73.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Very excited for my first visit to @durham_uni ! @CambridgeFames @CamGeopolitics

Centre for Contemporary Chinese Studies

@durham_cccs

1 year

📅save the date! The first installment of the CCCS public lecture series this year will be on Monday 23 Jan: Prof @wjhurst @Dept_of_POLIS will give a talk on land politics and trajectories of political change in Asia. All welcome! @Durham_SGIA

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

4 years

Academic journal publishing is an exploitative oligopoly of for-profit, mostly corporate, presses. Considering reviewers and most editors aren't paid and production costs are very low, journal content should ideally all be open access. If not, subscriptions should be very cheap.

Times Higher Education

@timeshighered

4 years

UK universities will cancel journal subscriptions unless publishers reduce their prices to reflect financial pressures amid the pandemic, three organisations representing librarians and higher education managers have warned.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

99% of this post is obvious (or should be) to anyone who works (or has colleagues who work) across different parts of the world. But it’s vitally important for all scholars to understand the issues in play & to do their best to work against the problem:

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

It's a mistake to say #China is 'abandoning #ZeroCovid in response to recent #protests '. More likely, vaccination drive for elderly was long planned to start on 1 December to get ready for #chinesenewyear . Other measures have long ebbed and flowed.

Fears of deadly infection surge as China abandons zero-Covid policy

Dramatic U-turn following widespread unrest leaves country ill-prepared for Omicron

www.theguardian.com

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

2 years

Video of my discussion with the incredibly insightful @fravel earlier this week about #China ’s upcoming Party Congress: #politics @CambridgeFames @Dept_of_POLIS @NCUSCR @CamGeopolitics @MITPoliSci

Predictions for the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist...

The National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party is an event that takes place every five years. The next Party Congress is planned to commence on the 16t...

www.youtube.com

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

9 months

I have not yet read the full (paywalled) WSJ article. But even just the headline implies a couple of things I'd at least partially disagree with: 1) China has not experienced a '40year boom' and 2) It's not suddenly all over For more, see:

Brad Setser

@Brad_Setser

9 months

Superb summary of China's current policy predicament from @Lingling_Wei and @yifanxie -- Captures both the current moment, and set of decisions over the last twenty years that created today's unbalanced Chinese economy. 1/

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

2 years

It’s time for those of us studying #politics in #China to stop chasing empty promises from other parts of the discipline and start innovating and doing better work on our own terms:

Treating What Ails the Study of Chinese Politics | Made in China Journal

For almost as long as political science has existed as a discipline, the study of Chinese politics has been afflicted with a chronic disease. Depending on one’s perspective, this malady’s manifesta...

madeinchinajournal.com

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

2 years

Postdoc Opportunity! Please spread the word to any PhD students nearing completion in relevant areas of Politics, History, Area Studies, etc: #Politics #History

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

It will be a difficult dance for China simultaneously to prevent Russia's defeat, avoid overtly supporting Russia militarily, reassure Ukraine of its neutrality, impress its domestic and friendly international audiences, & steer clear of further agitating the US & others. 11/END

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

4 months

Western media are way over hyping the #China angle of today's elections in #Taiwan . In cross-Strait terms, if Lai wins, not much changes. If Hou wins, Taiwan will look for closer links and Mainland will be friendlier. If Ko wins, bets are off and Taiwan will have other issues.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

庆祝牛年！万事如意！

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

7 years

@NPR But not California? This seems odd, unless CA is pursuing a separate strategy or just late to join the suit(s)...

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Many are now proclaiming #China #reopen from #covid as of the lifting of #quarantine for international arrivals set for 8 January. Not so fast. This is a most welcome first step....but (a short thread 🧵): 1. PCR nonsense/theatre remains 1/4 @CamGeopolitics @NCUSCR

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

庆祝新春工作顺利身体健康天伦平安恭喜发财万事如意兔年快乐！

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

25 days

Launching a new #youtubechannel , "Politics Explained"! Trailer will go live at Midnight UK Time! Please Subscribe (more videos to follow soon):

Politics Explained

Short explainers and occasional longer discussion of current political, economic, and social issues. Regional focus mainly on East and Southeast Asia, but some attention further afield as well....

www.youtube.com

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Truly amazing! Even more so that it was not quickly repressed. Similar reports (though with less video) from Lanzhou, Urumqi, and Beijing University campus....

Victor Shih

@vshih2

1 year

Yes and that is just shocking

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

11 months

Very sad. People like me won't get to learn from the important work of Chinese colleagues. Those colleagues, in turn, will get even less of the credit and international recognition they deserve. Lose-Lose proposition, if ever I've seen one... @CamGeopolitics @CambridgeFames

Donald Clarke

@donaldcclarke

11 months

More evidence (if it were needed) that China's security state is going totally bonkers: I tried downloading Wang Zhiqiang's "中国法律史叙事中的“判例”" ("Precedent" in the Narrative of Chinese Legal History) yesterday from CNKI and got the message below.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

4 months

I've been saying for a while: If there is any risk of #China intervening with ground forces anywhere in the near future, it is in certain regions of #Myanmar . Most interlocutors don't take me seriously. But then we see news like this: @CamGeopolitics

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

2 years

Thrilled to see my book, “Ruling Before the #Law : the #Politics of Legal Regimes in #China and #Indonesia ”, pass 9000 downloads and 17000 views! #polisciresearch

Ruling before the Law

Cambridge Core - Comparative Politics - Ruling before the Law

www.cambridge.org

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

Exactly as I’ve predicted. I don’t think #China is likely to relax all restrictions until after the ’Two Meetings’ (两会) in March 2023. #Politics #COVID19

WSJ News Exclusive | China to Keep Covid-19 Border Restrictions for Another Year

Beijing is concerned about variants as it stages the Winter Olympics and a power transition, people familiar with the matter say.

www.wsj.com

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Sad to learn of Jiang Zemin’s death. I do not think it’s likely to provide the kind of touchstone for contention or #protest as did Hu Yaobang’s death in April 1989, in part because many young people inChina will not know much of that history. 1/2

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

Delighted to be interviewed on Newshour today!

BBC World Service

@bbcworldservice

1 year

The fact that protests are happening at all in China "is certainly significant" says @wjhurst

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

3 years

Got an invitation (from a university administrator) to a seriously underwhelming event titled: "Academic Overwhelm: is there an Alternative?" Of course there is! Stop with the pointless events already.

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

1 year

China is not seeking to supplant the #UnitedStates or assume some mantle of global leadership or peacebrokerage. Rather, it just wants to make sure the war in #Ukraine ️ trends toward some kind of equilibrium that does not amount to #Russia losing. 2/11

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William Hurst

@wjhurst

4 years

A more frequent occurrence (and very often about this kind of NIMBY-ism) than many outside of China realize:

Dali L. Yang

@Dali_Yang

4 years

NIMBY protests and crackdown in Guangdong

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