Bounded Trials Archives - understand-culture

Suspended for a Trial

Article 16 of China’s Legislation Law, as amended in 2023, lets the National People’s Congress and its Standing Committee authorize “the temporary adjustment or temporary suspension” of parts of a law “within a specified period and scope.” If practice proves it feasible, the law is to be revised. If not yet, the authorization can be extended, “or the relevant provisions of the law restored.”

On February 27, 2015, the Standing Committee used the same kind of power for rural land reform. It authorized the State Council to adjust or suspend provisions of the Land Administration Law and the Urban Real Estate Administration Law in 33 pilot counties, cities and districts, at first until the end of 2017.

Small Orders, Fast Returns

The online fashion seller Shein works with a model called xiaodan kuaifan, small orders and fast returns. Beijing News reported that a new style is first made in a batch of usually 100 to 200 pieces. If it sells well, more are ordered at once.

The news site Jiemian reports that a first order takes only half a month to produce.

Special Economic Zones

On August 26, 1980, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress approved four special economic zones: Shenzhen, Zhuhai and Shantou in Guangdong, and Xiamen in Fujian. Official accounts describe them as the vanguard of reform and opening, the first to go ahead and its “experimental zones.”

From One Province to the Nation

In early 1980, the Anhui Party committee backed the household contracting begun in villages such as Xiaogang. That spring, Wan Li, who had supported it in Anhui, moved to Beijing as vice premier. A fierce debate followed, in Anhui and across China, and some said that contracting land to households was not the socialist road.

From 1982 to 1984, the Central Committee’s “No. 1 Document” confirmed household contracting three years in a row as a socialist form of responsibility. According to official data, almost all production teams had adopted it by 1984. Grain output rose from 609.5 billion jin in 1978 to 814.6 billion jin in 1984.

The Property Tax That Stayed a Pilot

On January 28, 2011, Shanghai began to tax some private homes. Chongqing started a property tax pilot the same month.

Ten years later, in January 2021, the China Securities Journal reported that the pilot cities were still only Shanghai and Chongqing, and that there was no sign yet of a property tax for the whole country.

A pilot can also remain a pilot.

River Chiefs

In May 2007, a large bloom of blue-green algae spread on Lake Tai, and residents of Wuxi rushed to buy bottled water. In August, Wuxi issued trial rules with water quality targets for its rivers and lakes. People’s Daily later reported that this is regarded as the origin of the river chief system (hezhang zhi), which makes the leading Party and government officials of each level responsible for each river.

Changxing County in Zhejiang had already set up river chiefs in 2003. In December 2016, the Central Committee and the State Council ordered the system for the whole country.

Seven Carbon Markets

In October 2011, seven provinces and cities, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Chongqing, Guangdong, Hubei and Shenzhen, started local pilots for trading carbon emission rights.

On July 16, 2021, national carbon emission trading started at the Shanghai Environment and Energy Exchange.

Rural Cooperative Medical Scheme

In October 2002, the Central Committee and the State Council decided to strengthen health work in the countryside. In 2003, the provinces began to pilot a new rural cooperative medical scheme, xin nonghe. At first, each member paid 10 yuan and the government added 10.

By 2008, the scheme covered basically the whole countryside.

The Vocabulary of Trials

试点 A trial point. Work done first on a small scale to gain experience before it is spread. Also the place where the trial runs.

以点带面 To let the point lead the surface. A breakthrough at a key point drives progress in the whole.

In 2024, People’s Daily wrote: “A pilot is a test field that grows seedlings into a forest, not a potted plant that looks bright and pretty but is worth nothing when transplanted.” In 2015, it had noted a problem: “Some places are very successful in the pilot, but when it is spread, it meets obstacles and cannot be pushed forward.”

The Southern Tour

From January 18 to February 21, 1992, Deng Xiaoping, then 88, toured Wuchang, Shenzhen, Zhuhai and Shanghai. “Reform and opening must be bolder and dare to experiment,” he said. “Once we see clearly, we should boldly try and boldly break through.”

“Without upholding socialism, without reform and opening, without developing the economy and improving the people’s lives, there is only a dead end.”