In 1958, against the backdrop of the Great Leap Forward, the Chinese Communist Party proclaimed that the problem of unemployment had been fundamentally eradicated in socialist China. However, shortly thereafter, the downsizing policy (Jingjian, 精簡 in Chinese) aimed at reducing urban populations was implemented, resulting in a reduction of 26 million urban residents, including a substantial portion of labor force, over the three-year period from 1961 to 1963. Using Shanghai as a case study, this paper analyzes the process of implementing the downsizing policy to reveal the political mechanisms that underpinned the reality of the disappearance of unemployment. The fluctuating labor policies of the central government and the immature planned economic system exerted contradictory pressures at the local level. On the one hand, local governments and enterprises needed to reduce their labor force to meet the demands of streamlining policies; on the other hand, the local need for labor persisted amidst a dynamic political environment and the soft budgetary constraints of the planned economy. To address these conflicting pressures, diverse actors such as local governments, enterprises, grassroots social organizations, and workers created a space that ensured the mobility of labor outside the planned economic system. The existence of this space, formed through the dynamic interplay of various local interests, underpinned the reality of the disappearance of unemployment and complemented China’s planned economic system.

This paper examines the Mongolian league and banner system during the Mengjiang regime, focusing on the territory of the Ulaanchab League and the authority of the Jasag. Although the league was organized in line with the dynamics of Mongolian nomadic society, agrarianization and the establishment of provinces in Inner Mongolia led to the dismantling of the league’s territory by the 20th century. In the 1930s, in Western Inner Mongolia, De Wang and his followers started a movement that opposed the Nationalist government and demanded ethnic autonomy and the abolition of provinces, before coming under Japanese rule with the establishment of the Mengjiang United Autonomous Government. At that time, De Wang tried to strengthen the authority of the Mongols by establishing a new administrative office for the Ulaanchab League. However, as the league did not exist as an organization, they explored how to organize and administer it. In 1940, the Mengjiang regime held a conference in the Ulaanchab League, where the princes and local banner administrators sought to maintain their territory and the Jasag system according to the framework of the Qing dynasty. In response, the Mengjiang regime permitted only the maintenance of the Jasag system, but did not resolve the issue of cultivated land (territory). As a result, the banners of the Ulaanchab League entered 1945 in a destabilized state.

Since the reform and opening up policy, China has experienced rapid economic development, but accompanying this growth, food safety issues have gradually evolved into a serious social challenge. To address this problem, the central and local governments have implemented measures such as legal and administrative reforms to strengthen food safety management. Meanwhile, various consumer movements have actively emerged in the private sector to safeguard food safety.

This study focuses on the activities of civilian organizations and “professional fraud fighters” centered on consumers’ sovereignty in the food safety field. Through a literature review, field research, case analysis, and interviews with professional fraud fighters, corporate employees, government officials, and lawyers, this study reveals the actual conditions, challenges, and limitations of these activities.

Consumer movements in the food safety field currently face multiple difficulties, including the weak position of civilian organizations and individuals, inadequate regulatory systems, pressure from enterprises, profit-driven motives of professional fraud fighters, and government management tendencies that favor protecting enterprises. These issues severely hinder the protection of consumer rights and the realization of market fairness.

To effectively address these challenges, China must adhere to the principle of consumers’ sovereignty, take concrete measures to promote the healthy development of consumer organizations and movements, and build a fair and just market system to ensure food safety and protect consumer rights.