“稻田治理模式”:中国治水体系中的基层水利自治——基于“深度中国调查”的事实总结

“Paddy-field Model”:grassroots water conservancy autonomy in Chinese national water control system——A summary of facts based on Material from “In-depth Fieldwork in China”

治水作为重要的社会管理职能,在中国的国家产生和演进中扮演着重要角色。中国的国家治水体系是双层治理体系:一是政府主导的国家治水,主要是大江大河的治理;二是当事人的自我治理,主要是日常生产用水的治理。中国作为世界最大的稻作区,历史久远且范围广泛的稻作区治水事实却一直被忽略,甚至被既有的理论遮蔽。本文基于田野调查资料发现,与自上而下的政府主导的国家治水不同,稻作区内用水当事人在小块水田经营上的独立性、自主性以及依赖性和共同性,不但形成了多层级多样式的自愿的联合,而且通过自我决策、自我管理和自我监督的水利自治,塑造了行之有效的"稻田治理模式"。每种生产形式都产生出它所特有的法权关系、统治形式,广大范围的稻田治理模式,因此成为政府主导治水的有益补充,与政府主导治水共同构成了中国双层治水体系,共同浇灌了中华文明,形成了双向国家治理结构。

As an important social management function,harnessing water played an important role in China s nation-building and evolution.China s national water control system was a two-level governance system:First,the government-dominated water control on the state level,mainly the big rivers;second,the self-governance of the parties involved,mainly on daily production water.Based on first-hand data from field study,this paper finds that,unlike the top-down government-dominated national water control,paddy cultivation had the combined characteristics of independence(each paddy field separated from others),autonomy(farming process was done by family),interdependence(rice farmers relied on their neighbors)and commonality(rice farmers use communal water utilities),and they formed multi-layered and multi-styled voluntary unions.And through the self-deciding,self-managing and self-monitoring practice,they shaped an effective“Paddy-field Model”.Each form of production produced its own legal relationship and form of domination.The broad-scale Paddy-field Model had become a useful supplement to the government-dominated water control.Collectively,they constituted a two-level water control system in ancient China,which formed a two-way state governance structure.