Strict Regulation with Lenient Punishment:The Strategic Choice of Grassroots Law Enforcement
According to the implementation of administrative order and administrative punishment,grass-roots law enforcement can be divided into four types:"strict regulation with strict punishment","lenient regulation with lenient punishment","lenient regulation with strict punishment"and"strict regulation with lenient punishment".Among them,"strict regulation with lenient punishment"is charac-terized by strict regulation of illegal behaviors and lenient punishment of illegal counterparts.It mainly ap-plies to illegal behaviors with moderate rationality,high hazard,low information asymmetry,and low economic value.Based on the case study of the straw burning ban in County C,Province A,we attempt to explain the logic of"strict regulation with lenient punishment"by using three-dimensional tension shaped by attributes of illegal events,namely,legal reality tension,multiple objectives tension,and eva-sion strategy tension.In addition,we propose that"strict regulation with strict punishment"under cer-tain conditions,such as serious illegal behaviors,attention from political leaders and social impact,is an important guarantee for"strict regulation with lenient punishment"."Strict regulation with strict punish-ment"is rooted in China's unique grassroots governance,reflecting the flexibility and wisdom of grass-roots cadres in keeping balance between the state and society,as well as policies and reality within the constraints of limited financial and technical resources.
grassroots law enforcementgrassroots governancediscretionstraw burning ban