Social Sciences in China (Chinese Edition)

No.5, 2020

 

The Conversion of Logic in the Modernization of National Governance

(Abstract)

 

Xia Zhiqiang

 

The modernization of national governance embodies the process of modern state construction. The success or failure of national governance depends on the institutional logic and effectiveness of national governance. National governance in modern Western countries is dominated by market logic, and has made outstanding achievements in protecting individual rights and increasing material wealth, but is now faced with the crisis of decreasing governance efficiency. After the First Opium War (1840-1842), it was hard to achieve the transformation of governance in China due to the severe limitations presented by the logic of the traditional orientation towards power. Since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, and especially since reform and opening up in 1978, national governance in China has gradually changed from orientation towards power to orientation towards rights, and hence has achieved remarkable results. In view of the new changes, the modernization of national governance in China in the new era needs to face the double test of traditional factors and the international situation. Therefore, core issues in the transformation of national governance should be analyzed in an open system perspective, so that the logic of national governance is really pinned on the orientation towards rights. In contemporary China, the first priority of the modernization of national governance is to adhere to CPC leadership. Starting from practical problems and objective needs, the modernization of national governance should be committing to a people-centered approach, establish and consolidate a basis for the effectiveness of modern national governance and to improve the efficiency of national governance by carrying out governance on the basis of civil rights, forging a consensus on governance through constitutional governance, creating governance dynamics through cooperative action, and providing governance support through public virtues.