Problematising the Public Sphere in China

By a case study of the Red Cross in China from its inception during the late Qing to its development through the early Republic, the Nationalist, the era of Mao and the post-Mao years until 1999, this thesis addresses a central question of how the concept of the public sphere fits in China. The thesis proves that the four States of distinctive political nature have one common feature which is that the Red Cross was never fully separate from the State.