Hardback
Law and Politics of Religious Fraud Regulation
China, Taiwan and Hong Kong
9781802200232 Edward Elgar Publishing
In comparing the ways in which China, Taiwan and Hong Kong punish religious claims and practices considered by the state to be false or fraudulent, Jianlin Chen presents a seminal contribution to the interdisciplinary study of religious freedom. The book not only reveals how these legal tools sustain a hierarchy of religion, but also the political dynamic behind the design and utilization of these legal tools.
More Information
Critical Acclaim
Contents
More Information
In comparing the ways in which China, Taiwan and Hong Kong punish religious claims and practices considered by the state to be false or fraudulent, Jianlin Chen presents a seminal contribution to the interdisciplinary study of religious freedom. The book not only reveals how these legal tools sustain a hierarchy of religion, but also the political dynamic behind the design and utilization of these legal tools.
Adopting a novel, comparative approach, Chen adeptly investigates various legal tools employed to regulate religious fraud in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Through a systematic survey of court judgments, he identifies the surprising convergences among the religious fraud regulations across the three jurisdictions. He further employs public choice analysis to tease out the reasons behind these often unconstitutional religious fraud regulations, and highlights the complicity of individuals who otherwise advocate for liberal democratic values. With its wealth of legal and political analysis, the book critically interjects in the global inquiry of religious freedom and democratic backsliding.
This progressive book is an important touchstone for scholars and students in Asian studies, law and religion, criminal law and justice, and law and society.
Adopting a novel, comparative approach, Chen adeptly investigates various legal tools employed to regulate religious fraud in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Through a systematic survey of court judgments, he identifies the surprising convergences among the religious fraud regulations across the three jurisdictions. He further employs public choice analysis to tease out the reasons behind these often unconstitutional religious fraud regulations, and highlights the complicity of individuals who otherwise advocate for liberal democratic values. With its wealth of legal and political analysis, the book critically interjects in the global inquiry of religious freedom and democratic backsliding.
This progressive book is an important touchstone for scholars and students in Asian studies, law and religion, criminal law and justice, and law and society.
Critical Acclaim
‘This book is a critical account, a comparative study and an insightful analysis of the relevant law and practice regarding “religious fraud” in the Greater China Region. It is an important, original and ground-breaking contribution to the study of how the balance between freedom of religion and protection of the public against fraud should be struck.’
– Albert H.Y. Chen, University of Hong Kong
– Albert H.Y. Chen, University of Hong Kong
Contents
Contents: Preface 1 Introduction: Law and Politics of Religious Fraud Regulation 2 Regulating religious fraud: theory and practice around the globe 3 China 4 Taiwan 5 Hong Kong 6 Law: the differentiated religion in the constitutional right to religious freedom 7 Politics: false religion and fragility of real religious freedom 8 Conclusion Index
