Which city is the administrative center of China. Provinces of China? All provinces on the map of China are here!!! Administrative regions with special status
China, being largest country in Asia, with the world's largest population (as of the beginning of 2018 - 1.39 billion people), has a rather complex administrative division. China is famous for its ancient culture, which has thousands of years of roots and great story. It was the Chinese who first invented paper and ink, the printing press and gunpowder, silk and porcelain. The main language is Mandarin and the main religions are Buddhism, Christianity, Taoism and Islam. In 1949, when the Communists defeated the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party), the country became known as the People's Republic of China.
The current form of administrative-territorial division of China is a three-tier system dividing the state into provinces, municipalities with direct central government and autonomous regions. The country's constitution allows the government, by its decision, to create special administrative regions.
Both provinces and autonomous regions are made up of prefectures, districts, counties, and cities. Settlements, ethnic communities and small towns fall under the jurisdiction of counties and autonomous regions.
Municipalities under centralized administration big cities, consist of districts and districts.
The PRC comprises twenty-three provinces, five autonomous regions, four centralized municipalities, and two special administrative regions.
The subjects of administrative-territorial division and economic zones of China, being subordinate to the central authority, have at the same time great autonomy in terms of economic policy.
Features of the formation of provinces
The provincial government is the next level of leadership after the central level in the hierarchy of power of the administrative-territorial division of China.
The boundaries of most of these territorial entities (Anhui, Gansu, Hainan, Guangdong, Hebei, Guizhou, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Jiangsu, Henan, Liaoning, Qinghai, Hunan, Shaanxi, Jiangxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Fujian, Hubei, Yunnan and Zhejiang ) were identified back in the era of ancient dynasties and formed on the basis of cultural and geographical features. They are governed by a provincial committee headed by a secretary who is personally in charge of the province.
Municipalities
Municipalities are departments of government of the largest cities, independent of the leadership of the province, and in the administrative division of China, they are equal to their provincial counterparts.
The municipalities include metropolitan areas such as Beijing, Chongqing, Shanghai and Tianjin. Their jurisdiction includes the entire territory of the city with the surrounding rural areas. The mayor here has the highest authority, while at the same time performing the duties of deputy secretary of the Communist Party, being a member of (the country's highest legislative body).
Autonomous regions of China
Another important link in the administrative division of China is the autonomous regions. They are usually formed along cultural lines and have a higher population of a certain ethnic group compared to other areas of China (Guangxi, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia and Tibet). Autonomous regions are similar to provinces in that they also have their own governing body while enjoying greater legislative power.
Special Administrative Regions
In the administrative division of China, the Special Administrative Regions, unlike other first-level administrative divisions, consist of separate Chinese territories: Hong Kong and Macau. These regions fall under the authority of the central government, although they are located outside the mainland. They are granted a higher level of autonomy with their own governments, multi-party legislatures, currencies, immigration policies and legal system. This phenomenon, quite unique in world practice, is called the “one China, two systems” principle.
Controversial claims over Taiwan
Located southeast of the Chinese mainland, opposite Fujian Province, Taiwan is surrounded by Pacific Ocean in the east and the Taiwan Strait in the west. It includes the islands of Taiwan, Penghu and 80 other small neighboring islands and islets. In 1981, China (in this context unsuccessfully offered Taiwan (the official name of the country is the Republic of China) reunification as a special administrative region (following the example of Hong Kong and Macau) in order to recognize the PRC as the only representative of the Middle Kingdom in relations with other countries. This confusion in the names appeared in 1949, after the civil war mentioned above, and since that time two Chinas have been side by side.
In the PRC, when speaking of Taiwan, it is forbidden to use its official name, and therefore the definition of "Chinese Taipei" is used. However, supporters of an independent Taiwan do not agree with this, believing that the label "Taiwan, China" is offensive to their country, although at the same time there are many supporters of reunification.
47. Administrative-territorial division of China
As in most other countries of the world, the administrative-territorial division in China is multi-stage. Its first stage is formed by provinces, autonomous regions and cities of central subordination, the second - by districts (there are more than 200 of them), the third - by counties (over 2000) and the fourth - by volosts. But the basis of the entire ATD system of the country is formed by the first step (Fig. 91).
Grid provinces China has developed historically and has not undergone major changes during the existence of the PRC. There are 23 provinces in the country (including Taiwan). Almost all of them are characterized by large size and area, and population.
The province of Qinghai in the western part of the country occupies an area of 720,000 km 2 , that is, it is much larger in area than the Ukraine or the FRG and Great Britain combined. The provinces of Sichuan, Gan-su, Heilongjiang are larger than any country in foreign Europe, with the exception of France and Spain. Even more striking are the comparative figures for the population. Thus, the provinces of Henan, Shandong and Sichuan in terms of population (respectively 97 million, 92 million and 87 million people) surpass Germany, the largest country in foreign Europe in terms of population. And in the provinces of Hebei, Jiangsu, Anhui, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, the population is larger than in Great Britain or France.
autonomous regions there are five in China, and all of them were created during the period of the existence of the PRC with the aim of equalizing the rights with the Chinese (Han) of the population of other nationalities, which lives mainly in the western part of the country, occupying almost 2/3 of the territory of China. These are autonomous regions: Inner Mongolia with a significant Mongolian population; Xinjiang Uyghur, where the Uighurs live; Ningxia Hui, inhabited by the Hui people; Tibetan, a significant part of the population of which are Tibetans; Guangxi Zhuang, where the Zhuang live along with the Chinese.
In terms of territory, some of these autonomous regions are even larger than the provinces. For example, the Xinjiang Uygur region occupies 1600 thousand km 2, which is comparable to the sub-region of Western Europe, and the Tibet region (1200 thousand km 2) is quite comparable to the sub-region of Northern Europe. But in terms of population, the autonomous regions are inferior to most provinces in China.
Four stand out as well. cities of central subordination. This is the capital of the country Beijing, the largest city, industrial center and seaport of China, Shanghai, one of the largest cities of Tianjin and Chongqing, recently separated from the province of Sichuan. It must be added to this that last years A new gradation has appeared in the ATD system of China - special administrative regions. At the end of 1997, this status was given to the former British possession of Hong Kong, reunited with the PRC, which became the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. And at the end of 1999, the same thing happened with the former Portuguese possession of Macau (now Macao).
Rice. 91. Administrative-territorial division of China
48. Demographic problems in China
Usually, works devoted to the population of China begin with the phrase that the PRC is the most populous country in Asia and the whole world. And indeed, population problems leave an imprint on all aspects of Chinese society. Especially big influence has a demographic factor. And this applies not only to our era, but in fact to the entire millennia-old Chinese civilization.
The history of population registration in China dates back to ancient times. The first population counts were carried out during the Zhou and Han dynasties in the first millennium BC. Demographers believe that by the beginning of this era, the population of China was 60-70 million people. During the Middle Ages, the population of the country grew in accordance with the traditional type of its reproduction (high birth rate and high death rate). This growth was negatively affected by wars, conquests, and epidemics. So by the beginning of the XVIII century. the total population rose only to 100-120 million people. In the next century and a half, it grew much faster and in 1850 amounted to 430 million people. But then this growth again slowed down sharply, and primarily because of the Taiping uprising, during which about 50 million people died. In 1949, the country's population was 540 million people.
Since the founding of the PRC in 1949, five nationwide population censuses have been conducted in the country. The first of them (1953) showed that it had already grown to 583 million people, the second (1964) that it had increased to 695 million people. According to the third census, conducted in 1982, China's population was 1,008 million. The fourth census in July 1990 already gave a result of 1134 million people, and the fifth census in November 2000 - 1261 million people, and in 2008 China already had 1330 million inhabitants. This means that during the existence of the PRC, the population of the country increased by 2.4 times. Today, China accounts for 19.9% of all inhabitants of our planet.
It must be borne in mind that the population of China would grow even faster if it were not for the state demographic policy, aimed at "repaying" the high birth rate. In the first years after the formation of the People's Republic of China, such a policy was still absent, since the increase in the population was then considered as one of the sources of the growth of the country's welfare. However, already in the second half of the 1950s. as a result of a noticeable decrease in the mortality rate while maintaining a high birth rate, more and more difficulties began to arise in providing a rapidly growing population with vital resources, basic types of food and consumer goods. The results of the 1953 census also made a considerable impression on the entire Chinese society. They helped to realize that the solution of the country's socio-economic problems is impossible without the organization of family planning and birth control measures.
Demographic policy measures, which were legislatively approved by the 1978 constitution and the 1980 family planning law, first consisted of conducting mass propaganda, distributing birth control means, officially allowing abortion and sterilization, etc. Then they were supplemented by much more stringent administrative, economic and legal regulations. Thus, the marriage age was raised (up to 20 for women and up to 22 for men), various incentive benefits were established and, conversely, “punishment” measures were introduced. Since 1981, the State Committee for Fertility Planning has existed in the country.
The main goal of population policy in China is the transition from a large family to a one-child or at least two-child family. Therefore, it is carried out under the mottos: "One child in the family", "One married couple - one child", "People without brothers and sisters", etc. Sometimes the motto is formulated in a milder form: "Two children - good, three - too many, having four children is a mistake.” Another motto of population policy is: "Later, less often, less." It means stimulating later marriages, with at least three or four years between two births, so that each couple has no more than two children.
With the implementation of population policy, a complex system of both encouraging and prohibitive measures was developed aimed at reducing birth rates and natural population growth. Those married couples who accept the obligation to limit themselves to one child receive a special certificate of members of a one-child family. It entitles you to a wide range of benefits – salary increases, monthly allowances, free medical care, benefits when placing a child in a nursery, and Kindergarten, when entering a university and even for work and when calculating a pension. A family of two children is not only deprived of all these benefits, but is also required to pay a rather large fine; in addition, parents can be demoted. And for families with a large number of children, there is also a scale of progressively growing deductions from wages. It must be borne in mind that in order to enter into a marriage, it is necessary to obtain permission from the place of work, pass an interview and a medical commission. And permission to have a child is issued by the local family planning committee, and with an indication of a certain period.
Rice. 92. Vital movement in China
In general, the demographic policy in China has proved to be very effective. Suffice it to say that during the period from 1950 to 2005, the birth rate in the country decreased by 2.8 times, and the rate of natural increase - by 2.7 times. As a result, China actually moved from the second type of population reproduction to the first, entering the third phase of the demographic transition. As is known, this phase is characterized by a relatively low birth rate and low mortality, which leads to a relatively small increase in population. In China, it was: in the 1950s. - 2.18%, in the 1960s - 1.84, in the 1970s - 1.94, in the 1980s - 1.3, in the 1990s - 1.1% (or 11b, i.e. 11 people per 1000 inhabitants). Moreover, at the beginning of the 21st century it dropped to 1% or less. Correspondingly, the indicator of the number of children born to one woman on average also decreased - from 6.2 children in 1950 to 1.7 children in 2005. The average family size also decreased to 3.5 people. Today, almost 9/10 married women use contraceptives.
Experts believe that if China did not use such harsh (SN Rakovsky calls them cruel) demographic policy measures, the country's population could exceed the current level by 200 million people. Naturally, this would also lead to the fact that the 5-6 billion milestones in the world population would also be reached earlier.
In an in-depth study of the demographic problems of China, it is of particular interest to consider several successive stages of population reproduction in this country. You can get acquainted with them using table 35 and figure 92.
First stage covered the second half of the 1950s, when the demographic policy had not yet been implemented and the reduction in mortality while maintaining a high birth rate led to a very significant natural increase in the population. In the socio-economic life of the country, it corresponded to the time of the first five-year plan, which laid the foundations for the industrialization of China. Second phase came in the early 1960s. - a period of social upheaval caused by the "Great Leap Forward" and the political instability associated with it, as well as crop failure and famine. At this time, the death rate increased sharply, exceeding the birth rate, and the rapid absolute growth of the population in some years was even replaced by its decline. After the failure of the Great Leap Forward, third stage, characterized by a population boom. In 1970, the absolute population growth reached its maximum, exceeding 23 million people.
Next came fourth stage, characterized by a marked decline in birth rates and natural increase. At first, such a decline was largely due to the ups and downs of the “cultural revolution”, which caused a drop in the living standards of people, and mass movements of young people to rural and remote areas of the country. Then the demographic policy began to have an ever greater effect. The lowest level of natural population growth (10.8 people per 1,000 inhabitants) was noted in 1984. The absolute increase in the same year was only 9.8 million people.
Table 35
DYNAMICS OF NUMBER, NATURAL MOVEMENT AND ABSOLUTE GROWTH OF THE POPULATION OF PRC
In the mid 1980s. made the transition to fifth stage, when the absolute growth began to rise again. This is due to at least several reasons. Firstly, the marriageable age of those young people who were born in the early 1960s, during the mentioned demographic boom. Secondly, the introduction of family contracting in the village, which stimulates a higher birth rate. Thirdly, a general increase in the living standards of the population, the abolition of the rationing system for almost all foodstuffs. And fourthly, some relaxations in the demographic policy of the state, which were expressed in lowering the age of marriage and in the official permission for many to have a second child - especially in the countryside and in those urban families where the first child is a girl.
Apparently, we can talk about the offensive in the 1990s. sixth stage, which is characterized by a new decline in absolute population growth. AT early XXI in. this trend continues. Thus, in 2008, the absolute annual population growth remained at the level of 8 million people.
Both Chinese and Russian experts on China's demography note one characteristic, geographical in essence, feature of the family planning policy in this country. It lies in the fact that such a policy turned out to be much faster and more effective in cities than in rural areas. Apparently, this is explained by the fact that the level of education and employment of women is higher in cities, and medical care is better established. As for the countryside, here, especially in the national regions, but also among the Han, large clan families still predominate. This is due to the long tradition of having many children, when every Chinese wanted to have as many children and grandchildren as possible, especially sons. This is also connected with the remnants of the powerless position of women in the family, which was determined by the three commandments of the teachings of Confucius: obedience to the father in childhood, husband in marriage and son in old age.
Despite the high efficiency of the demographic policy pursued in the PRC, the task originally set for it was still not fully fulfilled. It consisted in the fact that the population of the country at the turn of the XX and XXI centuries. did not exceed 1.2 billion people. After the publication of the results of the 1990 census, it was decided to raise the bar for 2000 to 1.28 billion people. It was she who was almost reached. More than 9 million marriages a year take place in the country, while in the USA - 2.4, in Bangladesh - 1.2, in Russia - 1.1 million. Therefore, new measures to reduce the birth rate can be expected.
It is impossible not to take into account the fact that even with a relative increase of 1%, the annual absolute population growth in China, until recently, was 13 million people. This means that he outnumbered the entire population of countries such as Belarus, Belgium, Hungary, Greece, Portugal or the Czech Republic. Not surprisingly, the demographic problem in China inevitably gives rise to complex socio-economic problems.
First, this the problem of the sex structure of the population. Throughout Chinese history, the number of men in that country has far outnumbered women, a result of deep-seated prejudice and the traditionally unequal position of women in the family and society compared to men. Although the proportion of women in the country's population has slightly increased over the years of people's power, they are still about 40 million fewer than men. As a result, there are on average 105.9 men per 100 women. Even the state demographic policy, as if paying tribute to traditions, is much more aimed at the birth of boys than girls. As a result of this violation of the normal proportion between the sexes, there is a kind of "deficit of brides" in the country, and the number of unmarried men of marriageable age is 18 million (in 2020 there will be 30 million). Thus, the actual social inequality of men and women, despite the proclamation of their legal equality, still persists.
Secondly, this the problem of the age structure of the population. Previously, China, like other developing countries, was characterized by a large proportion of people of childhood (34% in 1950) and a small proportion of older people (4%). But as a result of a sharp reduction in the birth rate, and even with a noticeable increase in average life expectancy, this proportion has undergone major changes. By 2005, the proportion of people of childhood had dropped to 21%, while those over 60 had increased to 11%, i.e., to approximately 145 million people. The aging of the population complicates the tasks of organizing social security and medical care for pensioners. And it will complicate them even more in the future - after all, according to Chinese forecasts, in 2025 the number of elderly citizens in the country may reach 300 million. This means that in China alone there will be as many as in all developed countries of the world.
Thirdly, this employment problem. China has the largest labor force in the world. However, it should be taken into account that this figure refers only to the urban population, while in rural areas the level of unemployment and semi-unemployment is much higher. The share of the employed population in the total number of people over 16 is now 77%. Even with very great success in the economy, it is not easy to provide jobs for such a huge number of able-bodied people. Therefore, unemployment in recent years, according to official data, is kept at the level of 5-6 million people, but in reality it is much higher.
Fourth, this the problem of providing food and durables. For a long time in China there was a system for distributing them by cards, which were purchased at the place of residence. Gradually, it was canceled, and the food and material supply of the population improved significantly. However, per capita consumption remains much lower than in economically developed countries. For example, in the use of telephones, mobile phones, personal computers per 1,000 people, China is still noticeably behind. Although it should also be taken into account that in terms of the absolute number of phones (315 million) and mobile phones (400 million), China back in 2005-2006. firmly held first place in the world, ahead of the United States almost twice.
Fifth, it the problem of education. In the 50s-80s. 20th century The proportion of illiterates in China has decreased by five times. The level of education among the urban population has been especially noticeably improved. As a result, illiterate and semi-literate workers were replaced by people with an education level of at least high school first step. However, at the turn of the XX and XXI centuries. There were more than 200 million illiterates in the country. Among the employed, their share was 11%, and those who received education only in the volume of primary school - 33%.
And here are the data for 2005: the proportion of literate people aged 15 and over is 91%, including 95% among men and 87% among women; Primary education covers the entire child population of the country. There are now 25% of people with secondary education, and 3.5% with higher education. The ratio of boys and girls in primary and secondary schools has actually become even. However, the problem of education remains relevant.
Sixth, it the problem of increasing the burden on the environment, which primarily refers to non-renewable and partially renewable natural resources. For example, during the years of people's power, the area of arable land in the PRC not only did not increase, but for some reason even decreased by 15 million hectares. As a result, the provision of arable land per capita also decreased: from 0.18 ha in 1953 to 0.075 ha in 2000. This is one of the lowest figures in the world (Table 21 in Book I).
Recently, there has been a lot of discussion in the Chinese press the problem of education younger generation. Experience suggests that when there is only one child in the family, parents usually spoil him excessively. It is no coincidence that children began to be called "little emperors."
The more interesting are population growth projections China. As noted above, in 2010 the country's population should increase to 1.36 billion, and in 2025 - to almost 1.5 billion people. According to Chinese estimates, this is about the number of inhabitants that the country's natural resources and economic capabilities can support, although there are other judgments about these estimates and capabilities. As for the forecasts for 2050, they differ quite a lot: from 1322 to 1515 million people.
The Constitution of the People's Republic of China defines the country as a unitary country, inhabited by many nations, ethnic groups, national minorities and nationalities. The Basic Law of the country (in Article 30) states that China, on an administrative-territorial basis, should be divided according to a three-stage system:
- The first step or upper link is the provinces, cities of central subordination, autonomous regions;
- The second step involves the division into provinces; areas with autonomous status include counties (autonomous), counties, autonomous counties, cities;
- Volosts, settlements, national volosts (are part of counties and autonomous counties).
Cities have their own administrative structure, represented by districts and counties. In turn, autonomous regions include cities, counties and autonomous counties.
Separately, there are areas of national autonomy, which include regions, districts and counties (all territorial units have an autonomous status.
The constitution gives the country's leadership the right to change or regulate the boundaries of autonomous regions, but this requires good reasons. For example, for the cohesion of a certain minority, the development of a certain economic specialization in industry and trade.
Exceptions
Special legislation provides for the creation of other territorial entities:
- Special administrative regions, to which it is customary in the PRC to include Hong Kong and Macau;
- Free economic zones, i.e. territories with a special customs regime.
Modern division of the country
China is divided into two special administrative regions, four municipalities, five autonomous regions, and 23 provinces. Each of them has a center, which has the status of a provincial capital.
The capital of the country is the city of Beijing. The government of the country controls all territorial units except Taiwan.
The province is headed by a governor who is directly subordinate to the Chinese government. Although all power actually belongs to the secretaries of the provincial committees of the Communist Party of China.
In administrative terms, China is divided into several levels (from largest to smallest):
- Provincial;
- District;
- county;
- Volostny;
- Rustic.
Each of these levels has its own territorial units. So, it is customary to include provinces, autonomies of district significance, cities of central subordination and special administrative districts in the composition of the first level - provincial. The second - the district level - these are the cities of the so-called sub-provincial level, districts, urban and autonomous districts, aimags.
The third level - county - covers large quantity administrative-territorial associations. In particular, counties, city and autonomous counties, khoshuns, autonomous khoshuns, districts subordinate to the city and individual national districts of urban significance. Enough complex structure has a volost level, including volosts, settlements, volosts of national importance, soums and national soums, districts of county subordination. This also includes street committees, national settlements, cities of settlement significance. The simplest and least numerous level is the village level, since it covers only villages and microdistricts.
Such a complex administrative-territorial structure of the People's Republic of China is due to the vast scale and expanse of the country, which is home to 1.382 billion people. Taking into account the multinationality and multi-ethnicity of the population of the state, the leadership of the PRC is trying to preserve the autonomous rights of representatives of all nationalities and ethnic groups.
uncontrolled province
This is Taiwan or the Republic of China, which is considered the 23rd province of the PRC, but has its own administration, capital, and president. Geographically covers the island of Taiwan and the Pescador Islands.
The capital of the Republic of China is Zhongxing.
Areas with autonomy status
Formed on a national basis, where there is a mandatory titular nation. It is she who has the right to elect the chairman of the district assembly of all residents of the district. There are five such formations in China:
- Inner Mongolia with its capital in the city of Hohhot;
- Guangxi Zhuang, the capital of Nanning;
- Ningxia Hui, the capital of Yinchuan;
- Xinjiang Uyghur, the capital of Urumqi;
- Tibet.
Cities subordinate to the center
According to their status, they are equated to provinces, but are divided into county units without a district level. Such an administrative unit appeared on the maps of the country after 1949, when the People's Republic of China was established. These cities include small settlements- cities, towns, agricultural lands, due to which the number of urban residents in such territories is less than rural population.
In China, Beijing, Tianjin, Chongqing and Shanghai have the status of cities of central importance.
The province of Taiwan includes two more cities subordinate to the central government. Only the situation here is radically different from mainland China. The city of central subordination covers only urban areas. In the Republic of China, such cities are the capital of the province - Taipei and Kaohsiung. central authority The PRC does not equate these settlements in status with Beijing or Chongqing. Taipei is considered to be the administrative center of Taiwan, although in the Republic of China it is called the city of Zhongxing.
Administrative regions with special status
Until the end of the 1990s. two cities of China, Hong Kong and Macau, were under the control of two European states - Great Britain and Portugal. The first was owned by Britain, which renounced its Chinese territory in 1997, and the second by Portugal, which gave Macau to the PRC in 1999. In order to integrate these cities into the rest of mainland China, special administrative regions were created. Hong Kong and Macau differ from other territorial units in their very broad autonomous rights, including the ability to pursue their own policy regarding migrants and participate in the work of international organizations. The Chinese leadership determines only the directions in foreign policy and the defense sphere. Hong Kong is divided into 18 districts, while Macau has no administrative division.
Administrative division. The People's Republic of China exercises administrative control over 22 provinces (省); while the PRC government considers Taiwan its 23rd province. In addition, China also includes 5 autonomous regions (自治区) where national minorities live; four municipalities(直辖市), corresponding to the cities of central government, and 2 special administrative regions (特别行政区).
The 22 provinces, 5 autonomous regions and 4 cities under the central government are grouped under the term "mainland China", which usually excludes Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.
The Chinese constitution de jure provides for a three-level administrative division: provinces (autonomous regions, cities of central subordination), counties and townships. But de facto there are five levels of local government in mainland China, not including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan:
Provincial level (34) : 23 provinces, 5 autonomous regions, 4 municipalities and 2 special administrative regions.
District level (333): 15 districts (prefectures), 286 urban districts, 30 autonomous districts, 3 aimags
County level (2853): 1455 counties, 370 city counties, 117 autonomous counties, 49 khoshuns, 857 districts, 3 autonomous khoshuns, 4 special regions.
Volost level (46466): 19683 settlements, 13587 volosts, 1085 national volosts, 106 soums, 1 national somon, 7194 street committees and 2 county subordination districts
village level: villages and local communities, or neighborhoods (in cities).
form of government. People's Republic of China - unitary republic, "the socialist state of the people's democratic dictatorship". The basic law of the state is the constitution adopted in 1982.
China's form of government socialist people's republic . The highest body of state power is the unicameral National People's Congress (NPC), consisting of 2,979 deputies elected by the regional people's congresses for a term of 5 years. Sessions of the NPC are convened on an annual basis. Between sessions, the powers of the NPC are exercised by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.
Only deputies from the Communist Party of China and the eight so-called democratic parties that make up the People's Political Consultative Council of China (CPPCC) are allowed to vote. Their own legislative bodies operate in the territory of the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau.
All NPC deputies are representatives of the bloc of communists and democrats.
head of state – Chairman of the People's Republic of China. Current President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping- Representative of the fifth generation of leaders of the country.
The transition of power to this generation began in 2002, when Hu Jintao replaced Jiang Zemin as Secretary General CPC Central Committee. In March 2003, Hu Jintao was elected President of the People's Republic of China, and in September 2004, Chairman of the Central Military Council (CMC) of the CPC Central Committee. Previously, all these posts were also held by Jiang Zemin. March 8, 2005 session Chinese Parliament - National People's Congress, approved Jiang Zemin's request to resign from the post of Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China. Later, this post was also taken by Hu Jintao, which completed the process of change of power in the country's top leadership.
Central Military Council of the People's Republic of China was established in 1982. Its first chairman was Deng Xiaoping, who was succeeded by Jiang Zemin in 1990. The posts of chairmen of the Central Military Commission of the CPC Central Committee and the Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China in the current political system of China, as a rule, are combined by one person.
The military council and its leader play important role in the Chinese political system. So, in 1989, Deng Xiaoping, who held this post, by this time had already left the highest party and state posts, decided to suppress the speeches on Tiananmen Square.
Political parties. Power in China belongs to the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Founded in 1921, it is considered the vanguard of the Chinese working class, the spokesman for the interests of the multinational people, and the guiding core of the cause of building socialism. The leading role of the CCP is reflected in the country's Constitution.
Revolutionary Committee of the Kuomintang is one of the official small parties of the People's Republic of China. It was founded in 1948 by leftists of the Kuomintang who had broken with the Kuomintang during the Chinese Civil War. The party strives to be the sole follower of Sun Yat-sen's ideas. Among the officially sanctioned parties, the Revolutionary Committee ranks second in status in the country after the Communist Party of China. In the party system at various levels, he owns a certain number of seats, including a fairly large representation in the CPPCC - 30% of the seats. They also take part in other areas of Party life, for example, in the activities of Party schools. At the end of 2014, the party had about 82,000 members.
Democratic League of China- Another of the official small parties of the PRC. It was established in March 1941 in the city of Chongqing. Initially, it was a coalition of three democratic parties and three pressure groups. Tried to find a "third way" between communists and nationalists in civil war, but the growing authoritarianism of the Kuomintang dictator Chiang Kai-shek swayed her to an agreement with the CCP.
The basis of the party are representatives of the intelligentsia working in the field of culture and education, as well as science and technology. In 2014, the League had over 230,000 party members, according to Chinese media reports.
China Pursuit of Justice Party is one of the eight legally recognized political parties in the People's Republic of China represented in the National People's Political Consultative Committee.
The party was founded in October 1925 in San Francisco. The first platform of the party adhered to the principles of federalism and multi-party democracy. In 1926, the party moved its headquarters to Hong Kong. During the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, the party was almost completely destroyed.
After 1949, at the invitation of the CPC, party representatives attended the first plenary session of the CPPCC in 1949. They took part in the preparation general program and electing a government. The party is supported by overseas Chinese. Used as a tool for the Chinese government to maintain international contacts. For example, in the case of Paraguay, which is still recognized by the Taiwanese government, and not by the PRC. In 2001, a Paraguayan delegation visited China at the invitation of the Chinese Justice Party.
Taiwan Democratic Self-Government League is one of the so-called democratic parties in China. It was founded in Hong Kong in 1947 in response to the bloody riot control in Taiwan in February 1947. Currently, there are about 1,600 members from Taiwan or with Taiwanese roots.
Democratic Party of China(PDK) is a political party originating in the People's Republic of China. Officially banned Communist Party China. It is generally accepted that the KDP was founded in 1998 by Democratic activists and former leaders student movement from a rally in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
Also prohibited are New Democratic Party of China, Nationalist Union of China, Inner Mongolia People's Party.
Judicial system
Judicial system. The judicial system in the PRC includes Supreme People's Court, local people's courts, military people's courts, railway courts, water transport, as well as sea port courts.
Similar information.
The constitution of the People's Republic of China provides for a three-stage administrative division: province, county (city), parish (town). However, in reality there are two more levels: the county (between the province and the county) and the village (below the parish). For a long time there was also a sixth level - districts of county subordination ( xianxiaqu), but recently almost all of them have been abolished (in 2004 there were 20 of them throughout China).
A city (town) in China can be located at any of these levels, and is equated in the hierarchy, therefore, with a province, county, county, or township. A certain territory is subordinated to the city municipality, as a rule, it goes far beyond the city limits, within this territory there may also be subordinate units - counties and volosts. For this reason, the population of the city itself is difficult to estimate - statistics usually give the population of the entire territory subordinate to the city municipality, which quite often many times exceeds the population of the city within the city limits.
Each of the levels corresponds to a certain official rank (for reference, see the Table of Ranks of the Civil Service of the PRC).
provincial level
The PRC comprises 34 provincial-level units ( shengji; actually under the control of the central government - 33), including 23 provinces, five autonomous regions, four cities of the central subordination and two special administrative regions. There are two central government cities and two provinces under Taiwanese government (since Taiwan controls a negligible area of one of them, the provincial governments have been largely abolished).
In mainland China, the provinces are in theory strictly subordinate to the central government, but at the same time, in practice, the provincial governments have very broad powers in the implementation of economic policy. Some economists call such a system "federalism with Chinese characteristics" (similar to socialism with Chinese characteristics).
With the exception of the northeastern provinces, most of China's provinces were delimited during the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. The boundaries between provinces were often drawn regardless of cultural, linguistic or geographical boundaries in order to prevent separatism and the rise of local warlords. In China, this difference between administrative and cultural boundaries is said to be "interspersed like the clenched teeth of a dog" ( quanya jiaoqo). Despite this division into provinces plays a decisive cultural role, the inhabitants of each province are endowed with their own traits that fit into a certain stereotype.
Among recent changes in the administrative division of China, the raising of Hainan and Chongqing to the provincial level and the establishment of the Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions. In Taiwan, Taipei and Kaohsiung were proclaimed cities of central government after the resignation of the Kuomintang government and the advent of the Democratic Progressive Party.
List of administrative entities of the PRC
| № | Region | Pinyin | (whale.) | Adm. center | Pinyin | Population, (2010) pers. |
Square, km |
Density, person/km |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Provinces | ||||||||
| 1 | anhui | Anhui | Hefei | Hefei | 59 500 510 | 140 455 | 423,63 | |
| 2 | Fujian | Fujian | Fuzhou | Fuzhou | 36 894 216 | 122 919 | 300,15 | |
| 3 | Gansu | Gansu | Lanzhou | Lanzhou | 25 575 254 | 459 233 | 55,69 | |
| 4 | Guangdong | Guangdong | Guangzhou | Guangzhou | 104 303 132 | 178 341 | 584,86 | |
| 5 | Guizhou | Guizhou | Guiyang | Guiyang | 34 746 468 | 174 976 | 198,58 | |
| 6 | Hainan | Hainan | Haikou | Haikou | 8 671 518 | 34 438 | 251,80 | |
| 7 | Hebei | Hebei | Shijiazhuang | Shijiazhuang | 71 854 202 | 187 240 | 383,75 | |
| 8 | heilongjiang | Heilongjiang | Harbin | Harbin | 38 312 224 | 431 767 | 88,73 | |
| 9 | Henan | Henan | Zhengzhou | Zhengzhou | 94 023 567 | 166 310 | 565,35 | |
| 10 | Hubei | Hubei | Wuhan | wuhan | 57 237 740 | 185 673 | 308,27 | |
| 11 | Hunan | Hunan | Changsha | Changsha | 65 683 722 | 211 231 | 310,96 | |
| 12 | Jiangsu | Jiangsu | Nanking | Nanjing | 78 659 903 | 98 285 | 800,32 | |
| 13 | Jiangxi | Jiangxi | Nanchang | Nanchang | 44 567 475 | 171 041 | 260,57 | |
| 14 | Kirin | Jilin | Changchun | Changchun | 27 462 297 | 191 038 | 143,75 | |
| 15 | Liaoning | Liaoning | Shenyang | Shenyang | 43 746 323 | 147 451 | 296,68 | |
| 16 | Qinghai | Qinghai | Xining | Xining | 5 626 722 | 720 459 | 7,81 | |
| 17 | Shanxi | Shanxi | ; | taiyuan | Taiyuan | 37 327 378 | 204 846 | 182,22 |
| 18 | Shandong | Shandong | Jinan | Jinan | 95 793 065 | 156 219 | 613,20 | |
| 19 | Shaanxi | Shaanxi | ; | Xi'an | Xi'an | 35 712 111 | 149 708 | 238,55 |
| 20 | Sichuan | Sichuan | Chengdu | Chengdu | 80 418 200 | 491 146 | 163,74 | |
| 21 | Yunnan | Yunnan | Kunming | Kunming | 45 966 239 | 388 610 | 118,28 | |
| 22 | Zhejiang | Zhejiang | hangzhou | hangzhou | 54 426 891 | 106 078 | 513,08 | |
| Province controlled by the Republic of China (political status unknown) |
||||||||
| 23 | Taiwan | Taiwan | Taipei | Taipei | 23 069 345 | 36 178 | 637,66 | |
| Autonomous regions | ||||||||
| 24 | Guangxi | Nanning | Nanning | 46 026 629 | 235 001 | 195,86 | ||
| 25 | Inner Mongolia | Inner Mongolia | Hohhot | Hohhot | 24 706 321 | 1 181 104 | 20,92 | |
| 26 | Ningxia Hui | Ningxia | Yinchuan | Yinchuan | 6 301 350 | 52 188 | 120,74 | |
| 27 | Xinjiang Uyghur | Xinjiang | Urumqi | Urumqi | 21 813 334 | 1 743 441 | 12,51 | |
| 28 | Tibetan | Tibet | Lhasa | Lhasa | 3 002 166 | 1 178 441 | 2,55 | |
| Cities of central subordination | ||||||||
| 29 | Beijing | Beijing | 19 612 368 | 16 808 | 1166,85 | |||
| 30 | chongqing | Chongqing | 28 846 170 | 82 403 | 350,06 | |||
| 31 | Shanghai | Shanghai | 23 019 148 | 6 500 | 3541,41 | |||
| 32 | Tianjin | Tianjin | 12 938 224 | 11 943 | 1083,33 | |||
| Special Administrative Regions | ||||||||
| 33 | Hong Kong (Hong Kong) | Hong Kong (Xianggang) | 6 864 346 | 1 095 | 6268,81 | |||
| 34 | Macao (Aomen) | Macau (omn) | 541 200 | 27 | 20 044,44 | |||
| Total | 1 363 249 758 | 9 662 593 | 141,09 | |||||
Provinces
More: Provinces of the PRC
Provinces ( sheng) is the most common type. administrative divisions provincial level.
| Name | Chinese (P) | Chinese (U) | Pinyin | Old postal romanization | Reduction | Capital | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| anhui | nhu | Anhwei | van | Hefei | List of county-level units | ||
| Gansu | Gns | Kansu | gan or moons | Lanzhou | List of county-level units | ||
| Guangdong | Gungdng | Kwangtung | yue | Guangzhou | List of county-level units | ||
| Guizhou | Gizhu | Kweichow | qian or gui | Guiyang | List of county-level units | ||
| Liaoning | Lionng | fengtien | liao | Shenyang | List of county-level units | ||
| Sichuan | Schun | Szechuan | chuan or shu | Chengdu | List of county-level units | ||
| Fujian | Fjin | Fukien | min | Fuzhou | List of county-level units | ||
| Hainan | Hinn | Hainan | qiong | Haikou | List of county-level units | ||
| Hubei | hbi | Hupeh | uh | Wuhan | List of county-level units | ||
| Hunan | hnn | Hunan | xiang | Changsha | List of county-level units | ||
| Hebei | hbi | Hopeh | chi | Shijiazhuang | List of county-level units | ||
| heilongjiang | Hilngjing | Heilungkiang | hey | Harbin | List of county-level units | ||
| Henan | hnn | Honan | yu | Zhengzhou | List of county-level units | ||
| Kirin | Jln | Kirin | chi | Changchun | List of county-level units | ||
| Jiangxi | jingx | Kiangsi | gan | Nanchang | List of county-level units | ||
| Jiangsu | Jings | Kiangsu | su | Nanking | List of county-level units | ||
| Qinghai | Qnghi | Tsinghai | qing | Xining | List of county-level units | ||
| Zhejiang | Zhjing | Chekiang | zhe | hangzhou | List of county-level units | ||
| Shaanxi | Shnx | Shensi | shan or qin | Xi'an | List of county-level units | ||
| Shanxi | Shnx | Shansi | jin | taiyuan | List of county-level units | ||
| Shandong | Shndng | Shantung | lu | Jinan | List of county-level units | ||
| Yunnan | Ynnn | Yunnan | dian or june | Kunming | List of county-level units |
Uncontrolled territories
Since its founding in 1949, the PRC has always considered Taiwan to be its 23rd province. However, the real check on the province is carried out by the government of the Republic of China, which controls the island of Taiwan and the Penghu Islands (Pescadores Islands). At the same time, the Republic of China officially claims all of mainland China (including Tibet), Mongolia (see Outer Mongolia), Russian Tuva, and a number of other territories. The President of the Republic of China, Lee Tenghui, unofficially withdrew these claims in 1991, but at the same time, his statement was not backed up by constitutional changes.
Provincial boundaries on maps of China issued in the Republic of China often do not match the actual modern borders provinces controlled by the People's Republic of China, since in the latter, after 1949, the administrative division was seriously changed. In addition, on the maps of the Republic of China, all of the above disputed territories are included in China.
At the same time, on the maps of Taiwan issued by the PRC, the administrative division is also presented in the form in which it was before 1949: Taipei and Kaohsiung are not cities of central subordination, but administrative center The province is designated Taipei.
Autonomous regions
More: Autonomous regions of the PRC
Autonomous regions (/ zizhiqu listen)) are provincial-level units with a designated ethnic minority, constitutionally enjoying greater rights. For example, an autonomous region is headed by a chairman (province - governor), who must represent the titular nationality of the region (Tibetan, Uighur, etc.)
Autonomous regions were formed after the CCP came to power, following the Soviet model of nationality policy. There are five autonomous regions in China.
| Name | Chinese (P) | Chinese (U) | Pinyin | Title minority | self-name | Reduction | Capital | List of county-level units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region | Nimngg Zzhq | Mongols | Mongolian - br Mongghul-un bertegen Jasaqu Orun |
Neimenggu | Hohhot | List of county-level units | ||
| Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region | Gungx Zhungz Zzhq | Zhuang | Zhuang - Gwangjsih Bouxcuengh Swcigih |
gui | Nanning | List of county-level units | ||
| Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region | Nngxi Hiz Zzhq | Hui people | Hui dialect Chinese | nin | Yinchuan | List of county-level units | ||
| Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region | Xnjing Wiwr Zzhq | Uighurs | Uyghur - Shinjang Uyghur Aptonom Rayoni |
blue | Urumqi | List of county-level units | ||
| Tibet Autonomous Region | Xzng Zzhq | Tibetans | Tibetan - Bod.ra.skyo.ljos |
tsang | Lhasa | List of county-level units |
Cities of central subordination
More: Cities under the Central Government of the People's Republic of China
Cities of central subordination (/ zhishashi) - large cities, endowed with the same powers as the provinces. GPCs directly administer county-level units, with no intermediate county level. In reality, the city itself makes up a small fraction of the GPC's total area, with smaller cities, towns, and agricultural land making up the bulk of it. Most a prime example Chongqing is in this sense: its rural population exceeds its urban population.
There are 4 cities of central subordination in China.
| Name | Chinese (P) | Chinese (U) | Pinyin | Reduction | List of county-level units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beijing | Bijng | ching | List of county-level units | ||
| Tianjin | Tinjn | jin | List of county-level units | ||
| chongqing | Chngqng | yu | List of county-level units | ||
| Shanghai | Shnghi | hu | List of county-level units |
| Name | Chinese (P) | Chinese (U) | Pinyin | Reduction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kaohsiung | goxing | gao | ||
| Taipei | Tibi | bay |
Since the status of GPC was assigned to these cities after 1949 by the authorities, which the PRC government does not recognize as legitimate, the PRC does not consider them cities of central subordination and considers Taipei, but not Zhongxing, the administrative center of Taiwan Province.
Special Administrative Regions
More: Special Administrative Regions of the PRC
Special Administrative Regions (/ tebe xingzhengqu) - administrative units enjoying wide autonomy within the course of one country - two systems and reporting directly to the Central people's government, as written in Article 12 of the Basic Law of both SARs.
Unlike provinces, autonomous regions and cities, whose powers of relations with the central government are regulated by Article 30 of the 1982 Constitution of the People's Republic of China, the legislative framework for the SAR, see Article 31, written specifically pending the return of Hong Kong and Macau to Chinese sovereignty. This happened in 1997 and 1999 when Hong Kong and Macau were consequently ceded to China by the UK and Portugal.
The level of autonomy of the SAR is much wider than that of provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions. The SAR have their own courts of last resort, legislation, passports, currencies, customs, rules for entry into the territory, extradition - that is, in fact, everything except foreign policy and national defense. The SAR have their own representation in many international organizations and field their own teams in sports competitions.
Both SARs are small in area and neither of them apply the administrative system of mainland China. Hong Kong is divided into 18 districts, which are administered by district councils. Macau is administered by the government of the SAR as a single entity without division, after the municipalities that existed during the Portuguese rule were abolished.
| Name | Chinese (P) | Chinese (U) | Pinyin | Reduction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hong Kong (Hong Kong) | xinggng | gan | ||
| Macao (Aomen) | omn | ao |
Read more also:
- Districts of Hong Kong
- Municipalities of Macau
District level
Map of China's prefectural level divisions
District level ( diji) division exists only in mainland China. This is the second level of administrative division. As of December 31, 2005, it included 333 units, including:
- urban districts (cities of district significance) (283)
- districts - they are also called prefectures (14)
- autonomous regions (30)
- aimags (3) - only in Inner Mongolia
Urban districts (cities of district significance) (dijishi, Prefecture-level city) make up the vast majority of district-level units. Strictly speaking, they are not "cities" in the usual sense of the word, since, in addition to the urban area proper, they include vast rural areas, so the name of the urban district is more correct.
In most provinces, district-level units are represented exclusively by urban districts. Of the 22 provinces and 5 autonomous regions administered by the PRC government, only three provinces (Yunnan, Guizhou, Qinghai) and two autonomous regions (Xinjiang and Tibet) have more than three non-urban county units.
Districts (prefectures) (diqu, Prefecture) were once the dominant second-level administrative division in the PRC, so this level was called the district level. However, in the 1980s and 90s, most of them were transformed into urban districts. Today, most of the districts have been preserved in Xinjiang and Tibet.
aimags (maine, League) are the same districts, but located in Inner Mongolia. Like counties, most of them have now become urban counties. Their name is preserved from the old Mongolian system of administrative division.
Autonomous regions (zizhizhou, Autonomous prefecture) are districts with one or more titular national minorities. Most of them are located in the western and southern regions of China.
County level
Map of China's county-level divisions
As of December 31, 2005, there were 2,862 county-level units in mainland China ( xianji), including 1464 counties, 852 municipal districts, 374 urban counties, 117 autonomous counties, 49 khoshuns, 3 autonomous khoshuns, 2 special districts and 1 forest district. There were 23 county-level units under the control of the Taiwan authorities, including 18 counties and 5 cities of provincial subordination.
Counties ( xian) is the most common unit of this level. Counties have existed continuously in China since the Warring States period (3rd century BC), that is, much earlier than any other administrative unit in China.
Autonomous counties ( zizhixian listen)) are counties with one or more titular national minorities, similar to autonomous regions (provincial level) or autonomous regions(district level).
In Inner Mongolia, counties correspond to khoshuns ( qi) and autonomous khoshuns ( zizhiqi). Their name is preserved from the old Mongolian system of administrative division.
City counties (cities of county significance) ( xianjishi), just as urban districts are not "cities" in the truest sense of the word, since they include both urban and rural areas. In the 1990s, many counties became urban counties, but this process was suspended. In Taiwan, similar units are called provincially subordinate cities ( shengshashi).
Districts ( shixiaqu, or simply qu) is another type of county-level unit. Previously, they were areas consisting only of urban development. However, in recent years, many counties have been turned into districts, so today districts are often no different from counties - with towns, villages and farmland.
There are also several special units of the county level. Among them, one forest area ( linqu) Shennongjia (Hubei Province) and two special regions ( tequ) Liuzhi and Wanshan (Guizhou Province).
In mainland China, urban areas are usually divided into street committees ( jiedao banshichu, also abbreviated jiedao"street" or jiebang), and rural areas are divided into settlements ( zhen), volosts ( xiang) and national volosts ( minzuxiang). Soums ( sumu) and national soums ( minzu sumu) are similar to volosts and national volosts, but exist only on the territory of Inner Mongolia.
In Taiwan, there is a special unit, which has no analogue in mainland China - the city of county subordination ( xianxiashi), that is, a city parish or a city of parish significance. Urban townships and rural townships in Taiwan are similar to townships and townships in mainland China, respectively, with only a difference in name.
Districts of county subordination ( xianxiaqu, or quigongso listen)) is a rudimentary level of administration in mainland China. Once they constituted an additional administrative level between counties and volosts. Today there are very few of them left and, apparently, they will be completely abolished.
village level
The administrative level of villages does not play a big role in the PRC's system of executive power, but rather performs organizational functions (population census, post office, etc.). Grassroots units of local government are not informal, as in the West (cf. English neighbourhood), but have well-defined boundaries and a chapter.
In urban areas, the grass-roots units are local communities, or neighborhoods ( shequ, xiaoqu or juzhuqu) managed by committees. In rural areas, the corresponding unit is the village cun run by the village committee.
Special cases
Despite the clearly defined place of administrative units in the general hierarchy, some of them are given more powers than they should be.
For example, such are the large cities of the district level. They are also known as sub-provincial level cities ( fushengzishi), that is, they have powers greater than those of counties and county towns, but less than those of a province. Thus, they are, as it were, “half-level” higher than ordinary counties and have more autonomy, but are still subordinate to the province.
Similarly, one level down, there are also sub-district-level cities ( fujishi). Often they are not included in any of the districts, but report directly to the provincial government.