新乡贤：内涵、作用与偏误规避

'New Able Villagers':Connotation,Effect and Bias to Evade

在如火如荼的新农村建设中,"新乡贤"一词被提出并引发了众多讨论。文章在考察新乡贤的历史渊源之后,提出应着重强调其"在乡性"、资财、知识与道德。新乡贤是在新的时代背景下,有资财、有知识、有道德、有情怀,能影响农村政治经济社会生态并愿意为之做出贡献的贤能人士。在目前乡村价值规范体系坍塌的情况下,新乡贤的核心作用在于凝聚乡邻,以道义整合利益,发展出在新时代下适应乡村发展的共享价值规范体系。在此基础上,为乡民提供一套行动准则,实现乡村治理由"主体到规则"的转变,进而推动村民自治的发展。与此同时,需要规避一些可能出现的认知偏误:首先,新乡贤不应是"现代化治理"的主体,而是起到助力作用,乡村治理的主体应是乡民;其次,"新乡贤"是可以促进和催化的,但绝不能"培育";最后,通过建立完善、规范的约束制度和公开、透明的监督机制并发挥"同乡会""团拜会"与各种仪式性活动的优势来培育新乡贤的作用环境。

In the raging new countryside construction,the concept of ‘New Able Villagers'( ‘New Xiangxian') was put forward and has initiated a lot of discussions. After reviewing its historical origin,this paper stresses its distinctive characteristics of ‘being in countryside',assets,knowledge and morality.In the new historical background,‘New Able Villager'is defined as a person who has assets,knowl-edge,noble character,as well as can affect and would like to dedicate their energy and resources to the rural livelihood. Especially when facing the reality of value system 's collapse in countryside,the key function of New Xiangxian is to unite villagers and integrate the interests of various parties by morality,and gradually develop a new and sharing normative system which suits the development of rural society,with which they can provide an action principle,and realize the change of rural governance,and finally promote the development of villager self-governance. Some possible misunderstandings or misconceptions should be corrected: firstly,‘New Able Villager'is not the main body of rural governance,but plays a role of assistance,and the main body is actually villagers themselves. Secondly,‘New Able Villager'is not to be fostered. But we can cultivate the circumstance to promote them to play a bigger role,including constructing normative and transparent supervisory mechanism and taking advantages of ritual activities such as ‘Fellow-Villager Association'and ‘Mass Greetings Club'.