摘要：Citizenship has been an important subject in the history of modem state-and nation-building. It has been a vitalcomponent of the historical experience of modernization not only for the West but also for the non-Western nations.The subject is now assuming particular importance in today’s China as the nation is engaged in the pursuit of a“harmonious society,” along with an audacious economic transformation that has generated unprecedented socialchanges in the nation’s history. The idea of citizenshipi is now returning to the Chinese political discourse as peoplehave become more and more sensible and vigilant about their citizenship rights—rights that are derived fromcitizenship. The subject, however, has not been given a close attention by the Chinese and Western academia onlyuntil recently.ii.
