“The Trend Cannot Be Stopped”

Chinese philosopher and Geneva Professor Lanxin Xiang believes China’s political elites should look to Switzerland’s example of direct democracy. He denounces Montesquieu, the mastermind of the separation of powers, as his “chief intellectual enemy.” Xiang, who was born in Nanjing, the historic capital of the Ming Dynasty, dreams of a brave new republic in the Middle Kingdom.

He is "a well-connected Chinese scientist who lives and teaches in Europe," the Economist recently wrote of the Geneva-based scholar of Chinese politics and history. Above all, however, Professor Lanxin Xiang is a boldly original thinker who offers surprising and fresh insights into the Asian behemoth, land of his birth.

“The Trend Cannot Be Stopped”

Xiang is neither an apologist for the Chinese dictatorship nor a bitter critic. The proud Chinese ...