From China Elections & Governance, prepared by Manfred Elfstrom:
A writer who dubs himself Xiang Tianxiao (“Laughing at Heaven”) has written a very personal account of grassroots democracy entitled A Township Cadre’s Journal of Appealing to the Government. The account, written, as the title suggests, in the form of a diary, revolves around elections held in the author’s hometown, where he works as a low- ranking official. It reflects both the new pressures faced by township administrations and old, persistent patterns of corruption.
The atmosphere in rural China is tense, at least for officials, in Xiang Tianxiao’s journal. In the past, being a cadre meant enjoying a certain level of respect, plenty of eating and drinking, and the occasional bribe. Now, the ranks of officialdom are being reduced as a result of financial constraints imposed by the central government’s rollback of onerous peasant taxes (a main source of revenue for local governments). For those officials who stay on, someone is always looking over their shoulders, criticizing their mistakes and lowering their salaries. Elections for various offices are a part of this heightened supervision.
