one institution with two names
{{Short description|Nomenclature arrangement for Chinese government bodies}}
"One institution with two names" ({{zh|c=一个机构两块牌子|p=yīgè jīgòu liǎng kuài páizi|l=one agency two signs}}) is a bureaucratic arrangement in the Chinese government wherein a government agency exists in name only, and its functions are in practice performed by another agency or a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) organization so that in effect one institution has two or more governmental brands to use selectively for political, historical, or bureaucratic reasons. This type of arrangement was historically common until the mid-1980s but has been extensively revived by reforms which began in 2017.{{Cite web |title=国务院部委管理的国家局 |trans-title=State Bureaus administered by Ministries or Commissions |url=http://www.china.org.cn/china/leadership/2013-03/11/content_28206251.htm |access-date=2022-12-28 |website=China Internet Information Center |language=zh |archive-date=2018-04-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180408055057/http://www.china.org.cn/china/leadership/2013-03/11/content_28206251.htm |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |title=〔独家约稿〕国务院机构改革方案通过！"对外保留牌子"的行政法内涵及机构设置法律实践 |language=zh |trans-title=[Exclusive Commission] The State Council's Institutional Reform Plan Approved! The Administrative Law Connotation of "Retaining Names Externally" and the Legal Practice of Institutional Establishment |work=Phoenix TV |url=http://share.iclient.ifeng.com/shareNews?aid=52967228 |access-date=29 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181230233729/http://share.iclient.ifeng.com/shareNews?aid=52967228&fromType=vampire |archive-date=30 December 2018|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web |last1=Lulu |first1=Jichang |last2=Jirouš |first2=Filip |last3=Lee |first3=Rachel |date=2021-01-25 |title=Xi's centralisation of external propaganda: SCIO and the Central Propaganda Department |url=https://sinopsis.cz/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/scio.pdf |url-status=live |access-date=2021-11-20 |website=Sinopsis |language=en-US |archive-date=2021-11-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211120213638/https://sinopsis.cz/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/scio.pdf }}
Generally, the purpose of retaining the name of the state institution is so that the party institution can use it where it may be legally or aesthetically appropriate. For example, one name can be used domestically, and another can be used when dealing with institutions outside China. The arrangement can be achieved by either "adding a name" ({{zh|c=加挂牌子|labels=no|p=jiā guà páizi}}) or "externally retaining a name" ({{zh|c=对外保留牌子|labels=no|p=duìwài bǎoliú páizi}}). The arrangement is sometimes called "one institution, two brands."{{Cite web |date=January 18, 2024 |title=China's ruling party takes direct control of country's universities |url=https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/china-universities-01182024160231.html |access-date=2024-01-19 |website=Radio Free Asia |language=en |archive-date=2024-01-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118232311/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/china-universities-01182024160231.html |url-status=live }}
Within Chinese bureaucratic nomenclature, "one institution with two names" is distinct from "co-located offices" ({{zh|c=合署办公|p=héshǔ bàngōng}}). In the latter situation, two institutions or agencies retain their distinct structure and personnel and only share office spaces and physical resources.
Adding a name
An organization can acquire an additional name when it is responsible for multiple duties or uses an additional name when dealing with foreign institutions. This happens when two institutions or offices merge, with the original institution taking on the responsibilities and duties of the merged office by using only its existing resources. Such organizations usually do not have separate leadership or staff because of additional names.
Externally retaining a name
"Externally retaining a name" is when an organization that has absorbed another can continue to use said organization's name for bureaucratic purposes. For example, the United Front Work Department (UFWD) (a communist party institution) uses the name of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office (OCAO) (a state institution), which it absorbed in 2018, when making statements related to overseas Chinese affairs.{{Cite web |title=中共中央印发《深化党和国家机构改革方案》_中央有关文件_中国政府网 |url=http://www.gov.cn/zhengce/2018-03/21/content_5276191.htm#1 |access-date=2022-12-29 |website=Government of China |archive-date=2019-02-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190215125408/http://www.gov.cn/zhengce/2018-03/21/content_5276191.htm#1 |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |last=Joske |first=Alex |author-link=Alex Joske |date=May 9, 2019 |title=Reorganizing the United Front Work Department: New Structures for a New Era of Diaspora and Religious Affairs Work |url=https://jamestown.org/program/reorganizing-the-united-front-work-department-new-structures-for-a-new-era-of-diaspora-and-religious-affairs-work/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190721191900/https://jamestown.org/program/reorganizing-the-united-front-work-department-new-structures-for-a-new-era-of-diaspora-and-religious-affairs-work/ |archive-date=July 21, 2019 |access-date=29 December 2022 |website=Jamestown Foundation |language=en-US}} In this case, the organization may have a separate nominal leadership team for the nominal organization, that concurrently can also serve in the leadership of the bigger organization (e.g. Chen Xu both officially serves as the director of the OCAO and a deputy head of the UFWD). In some cases, the nominal organization can seemingly retain their internal structures (e.g. the China National Space Administration seemingly has a large internal structure and is a retained name for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology).
Examples
According to scholar Anne-Marie Brady, the State Council Information Office is an example of a "public face" for "foreign propaganda work" of the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party.{{Cite book |last=Brady |first=Anne-Marie |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uj-1sxeO99kC |title=Marketing Dictatorship: Propaganda and Thought Work in Contemporary China |date=2008 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-0-7425-4057-6 |pages=23, 156 |language=en |oclc=968245349 |author-link=Anne-Marie Brady |access-date=2021-05-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210109071355/https://books.google.com/books?id=uj-1sxeO99kC |archive-date=2021-01-09 |url-status=live}}
= Examples of one organization with two names =
- Central Military Commission of the Chinese Communist Party and the Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China
- Cyberspace Administration of China and Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission
- Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council and Taiwan Work Office of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
- Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council and Hong Kong and Macau Work Office of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
- Hong Kong Liaison Office and Hong Kong Work Committee of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
- Macau Liaison Office and Macau Work Committee of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
- All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce and All-China Chamber of Industry and Commerce
- China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations and the 11th Bureau of the Ministry of State Security
Chinese public universities' internal CCP committee and the universities' office of the president increasingly operate as one institution with two names.
= Examples of externally retained names =
- National Religious Affairs Administration (retained by the United Front Work Department)
- Overseas Chinese Affairs Office (retained by the United Front Work Department)
- State Council Information Office (retained by the Central Propaganda Department){{Cite web |last=Lyhne-Gold |first=Bertie |date=2024-07-23 |title=One Institution with Two Names |url=https://chinamediaproject.org/the_ccp_dictionary/one-institution-with-two-names/ |access-date=2024-07-23 |website=China Media Project |language=en-US |archive-date=2024-07-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240723050021/https://chinamediaproject.org/the_ccp_dictionary/one-institution-with-two-names/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |last=Kilpatrick |first=Ryan Ho |date=2023-03-16 |title=The Ins and Outs of the China Daily USA |language=en-US |website=China Media Project |url=https://chinamediaproject.org/2023/03/16/the-ins-and-outs-of-the-china-daily-usa/ |access-date=2023-03-25 |archive-date=2023-03-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230325153605/https://chinamediaproject.org/2023/03/16/the-ins-and-outs-of-the-china-daily-usa/ |url-status=live }}
- National Press and Publication Administration (retained by the Central Propaganda Department)
- National Copyright Administration (retained by the Central Propaganda Department)
- China Film Administration (retained by the Central Propaganda Department)
- Chinese Academy of Governance (retained by the Central Party School of the Chinese Communist Party)